Hello again,
Being an entrepreneur means the ability to think out of the box by putting away our fear of any risk, including financial - Ciputra
The last couple of weeks, I've been dealing with lots of delayed shipping. It is stressing sometimes but gladly all the customers are very understanding. Thank you so much!! It is a difficult situation for a small business owner like myself who rely on Post for International Shipping, though I must say that India Post has done much better then when I started selling in Etsy a couple of years back.
Since January this year there have been many delayed parcels especially to the USA. I guess due to the severe weather condition in the US. While the tracking on India Post Website showed that it is already being sent to the destination country, unfortunately there is no update from the USPS website. Even the EMS post sometimes takes 2 weeks in the US custom itself. Well, maybe it's because of the weather and since the booming of the global online shopping, I can imagine the people at Custom and Post Office must be working really hard.
From my own experience, now I have 3 parcels that are sitting at the Indian custom since February! In spite of me sending letters and supported documents that they asked, still there is no movement from the custom office. Another incident was last month. A package with UK address was sent to USA. And naturally, they were sending it back to me and I had to refund the customer. And I lost the shipping cost. Though their website stated we can claim for the damage but the hassle of getting the money back will not worth it.
I guess, with the booming of online shopping where anyone can import even a single piece of fabric from Fiji island, many countries are now coming up with new regulation regarding products that are coming into their country. That's natural! The technology has made shopping from faraway country possible. As a frequent online buyer, sometimes my orders came after 3 months!! The thing is, if you want it fast, do not buy online. Shopping online needs a lot of patience and understanding. As a seller, I try to be considerate to my buyers who are mostly crafters and buy for personal use. Yes, I do give full refund. The money lost is part of the business I am doing but customer's trust is utmost important for an online seller.
If you're an online seller, a mompreneur or a small business owner like me, don't be discouraged. Here are a few tips:
- If you are selling in Etsy or have your own website, make sure that your shipping policy is clear.
- Keep your head cool, esp. when dealing with angry customers. Losing your cool means losing clients. Empathize and explain patiently regarding the problem.
- Be helpful by helping them tracking the parcel. Remember, not all buyers are tech savvy.
- Be considerate by offering refund. Remember, financial lost is part of your business. But customers who trust you will come back for more or tell their friends.
Problems happen all the time and things will get better! Keep doing your work sincerely!
Have a nice day!
