There have been several threads about UPS in the general forum recently.
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum54/HTML/003383.html
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum54/HTML/003394.html
UPS makes everything very easy for shippers. As you say, they'll even give shippers scales and computers to encourage you to use them. But, to your customers, those of us who will ultimately receive the product and who are actually giving you your profit, UPS is frequently a nightmare. No shipper is perfect. All occationally loose or damage packages and all have their occational service hitches. But UPS seems to be head-and-shoulders above the rest for loss, for damage, and for poor customer service.
These two recent threads are only the latest in a long series of UPS bashing theads. Whenever the topic comes up, the vast majority opinion is clear: UPS sucks.
BTW, I've never seen whole threads pages long bashing the UPSP, Fed Ex, or any other carrier. Why is that?
I decided a long time ago that I will no longer order stuff from mail order and .com places if they insist on UPS. On several occations when companies have goofed up and sent orders via UPS, I have called UPS and insisted that they return, pick up the package, and take it back. Then, I've called the company and insisted that they reship it via a different carrier as they were instructed to when I placed the order and that they do so at their expense. (Mike, I did not do this with the last two BM42s that you send me since I don't want to cause trouble for you.) But, last I checked, just a minute ago, UPS was the only option for domestic orders on 1sks's shipping options pull down menu. This means that I can not make an order from 1sks. 1sks is letting UPS and that free scale be a barrier between them and their customers.
I'm NOT demanding that 1sks send back the free scale and never ship anything via UPS again. I'm NOT suggesting that UPS shouldn't be 1sks's preferred shippper if that's what works best for them. I'm just asking for an option for those of us who simply refuse to use UPS, and I'm suggesting that maybe I'm not the only potential customer who will hesitate or refuse to order because of UPS.
Finally, my hidden agenda: I'd like 1sks and other mail order and .com retailers to tell UPS, "We love what you do for us. We love the free scale. We love your regular service. But our customers, the people who we get our profit from, are pushing back. They tell us that you're not serving them very well. They're demanding that we use other carriers. You need to make the service you deliver to them as smooth and as good as the service you provide to us." The fact is that when I call UPS and complain, they don't care. I'm just one customer. I'm a few dozen packages per year. I'm a drop in their ocean. But, when a big shipper talks to his UPS rep and says, "see all those packages with Airborne labels on 'em?", then UPS will listen.
By the way, I'd suggest 1sks talk to Airborne Express. Several of the mail order and .com retailers that I frequent have recently switched to Airborne as their prefered carrier. That kind of surprised me, so I asked one of 'em. Airborne sees UPS's failings as a market opportunity. They're pushing hard to take UPS's market share. My understanding is that for large retailers, Airborne will do everthing that UPS does, all the scales and computers and printers and scanners, etc., and, for about a buck a package more than UPS Brown (a week to ten days to cross the country), Airborne will deliver everything overnight. That's service.
------------------
Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.balisongcollector.com
[This message has been edited by Gollnick (edited 10-15-2000).]
