Sunday, August 21, 2011

Making it Hard to Buy Parcel Post Online

A comment to the recent post on the growing market share of Postal Service parcel products indicated that it is possible to buy Parcel Post postage and print labels on line.  But as the following set of instructions from  the eHow website shows, the method is convoluted, requires the customer to have a PayPal account, and does not reflect the Postal Service's goal of making it easy for customers to buy its services on line.

Instructions

  1. Log on to your PayPal account. Click on "Multiorder Shipping" in the "Tools" menu. This menu is found on the left side of the "My Account Overview" screen. You must have pop-up blockers turned off. If you are using Mozilla Firefox, a "Preferences" tool bar will come up on the top of the screen. Click the "Allow Popups from PayPal" to disable the blocker for PayPal.
  2. Click "Create New Order" in the "File" menu.
  3. Expand the "Shipping Details" section of the new order screen by clicking on the black arrow.
  4. Click on the "Add Service Type and Package" drop-down menu. Choose the option under"Parcel Post" that meets your needs. Fill in the weight and measurements of your package, and choose whether you want to insure the package or use signature confirmation.
  5. Expand the "Ship To Address" section and fill in the details.
  6. Expand the "Ship From Address" section and verify your address.
  7. Click the "Save and Close" button.
  8. Click on the "Print" button at the top of the "Multiorder Shipping Window." The addresses will be verified by PayPal at this time.
  9. Highlight the correct order from the list and click "Pay and Print." Your PayPal account will be charged and a new window will pop up with the shipping label.
  10. Print your shipping label and adhere it to the package. It is fine to print the label on a plain piece of paper and tape it to the package. Just be sure you tape it securely.
Shouldn't there be an easier way?

No comments: