For almost three decades it has been “cool” to refer to postal mail as snail mail. I’ve always thought that this was unfair, because in most cases the U.S. Postal Service was getting mail in 1-3 days between any two points in the United States and less than a week to foreign countries.
Today I had a case where “snail mail” beat email. I ordered some merchandise last Thursday. It was shipped Friday. I received it about nine this morning. I received an email after three this afternoon with the tracking number. The message was sent by a “fourth party” on the request of the shipper.
Even the supposed “instantaneous” email is not so swift. I often receive a notice of sent email five or even fifteen minutes after it was sent.
But the worst case is an auto dealer that sends needed service notices after I have the service done. Almost two weeks ago I took my car in for an oil change. After noon today I received an email that I was due for an oil change! Come on! I didn’t drive 3,000 miles in two weeks. What’s this about corporate efficiency over government inefficiency?
Showing posts with label snail mail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snail mail. Show all posts
Monday, June 22, 2015
Saturday, March 02, 2013
An efficient private-public co-operation
I've written before about how well NetFlix and the Postal Service work together. A couple of weeks ago I had a real surprise on how efficient that co-operation can be.
We returned a Netflix DVD on a Saturday morning. On the following Monday, President's Day, a federal holiday, we received an email from NetFlix that we would receive the next DVD "on or about" Wednesday. We received it on Tuesday!
I post these because I am tired of anti-government types who take a few incidents and blow them up to regular occurrences. Any large organization makes many mistakes; consider my complaints about Apple and its many unsolved problems. That doesn't mean that an organization that makes mistakes doesn't do a lot of other things well. I've done a lot of useful things with my Apple products. I just won't be in a rush to get the latest major upgrade of any of its software. I'll wait until I have to buy a new device with the software installed.
BTW, DVDs by mail beat streaming. Many call postal mail "snail mail". Try streaming a movie any evening with a moderate speed connection. A snail keeps moving. A streaming movie can stop without warning.
We returned a Netflix DVD on a Saturday morning. On the following Monday, President's Day, a federal holiday, we received an email from NetFlix that we would receive the next DVD "on or about" Wednesday. We received it on Tuesday!
I post these because I am tired of anti-government types who take a few incidents and blow them up to regular occurrences. Any large organization makes many mistakes; consider my complaints about Apple and its many unsolved problems. That doesn't mean that an organization that makes mistakes doesn't do a lot of other things well. I've done a lot of useful things with my Apple products. I just won't be in a rush to get the latest major upgrade of any of its software. I'll wait until I have to buy a new device with the software installed.
BTW, DVDs by mail beat streaming. Many call postal mail "snail mail". Try streaming a movie any evening with a moderate speed connection. A snail keeps moving. A streaming movie can stop without warning.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Who does "snail mail"?
Ever since the Internet started, many people have dubbed postal mail as "snail mail". It may be a cute phrase, but I think it is grossly unfair.
In general, despite the detractions of many, including Grover Norquist, the U.S. Postal Service gives very good service. Within a city and sometimes even within a state, deliveries are often the next day. If it takes longer, it is often because the sender didn't put it in the mail on day the letter was dated.
When I worked for Univac years ago, a standing joke was that one could put identical pieces of mail in a company mail tray and in the U. S. Postal Service box outside. If the mail was addressed to one's home address, the mail put in the box outside would arrive the next day and the mail put in the tray inside would arrive sometime later.
As for customer service, I've always found that carriers and counter clerks do all they can to provide cheerful and helpful service. No matter how long the line, counter clerks offer a choice of rates and always ask "Anything more?" At least this is true in Minnesota.
Today I saw a great irony in service. I ordered a small item from Amazon and was told it would be shipped via UPS. Today if arrived in my mail box!!??!! The postage section of the package was labeled "US Postage Paid/UPS Mail Innovations". In other words, the "superior service" private company is depending on the U. S. Postal Service to do its job efficiently.
In general, despite the detractions of many, including Grover Norquist, the U.S. Postal Service gives very good service. Within a city and sometimes even within a state, deliveries are often the next day. If it takes longer, it is often because the sender didn't put it in the mail on day the letter was dated.
When I worked for Univac years ago, a standing joke was that one could put identical pieces of mail in a company mail tray and in the U. S. Postal Service box outside. If the mail was addressed to one's home address, the mail put in the box outside would arrive the next day and the mail put in the tray inside would arrive sometime later.
As for customer service, I've always found that carriers and counter clerks do all they can to provide cheerful and helpful service. No matter how long the line, counter clerks offer a choice of rates and always ask "Anything more?" At least this is true in Minnesota.
Today I saw a great irony in service. I ordered a small item from Amazon and was told it would be shipped via UPS. Today if arrived in my mail box!!??!! The postage section of the package was labeled "US Postage Paid/UPS Mail Innovations". In other words, the "superior service" private company is depending on the U. S. Postal Service to do its job efficiently.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Who delivers "snail mail"? You'd be surprised!
I hate the term "snail mail" because it is unfair to the post office. It assumes using the internet is instantaneous.
The internet is not instantaneous. First, it assumes the recipient is ready to read email at any time of day. Some people only check their email once a week. Second, it assumes the recipient will respond immediately. Some people never respond; lots of companies take two to three days to respond. Third, it assumes that any message sent is instantly available to the recipient. Many factors can lead to delay of email.
Any of the servers involved in routing a message from sender to receiver can be overloaded and thus delay the message by minutes or hours. A message may be sent by a third party who may take a few days to send it but with the time stamp of the original message.
This just happened to me. I received a message from a vendor dated 16 Oct 2010 04:27:31. However, it was sent by the third party at 20 Oct 2010 07:12:36. The times are PDT. The USPS generally does a better job; a first class letter put in a box before the last pickup on Saturday may be delivered Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, depending on the distance.
Worse, the address of the bulk mailer makes the email look like spam. However, the mailer has a legitimate URL; its home page lists "Enterprise Email Marketing" as one of its services. I guess I won't be sending this email to the Anti-Phishing Working Group.
The internet is not instantaneous. First, it assumes the recipient is ready to read email at any time of day. Some people only check their email once a week. Second, it assumes the recipient will respond immediately. Some people never respond; lots of companies take two to three days to respond. Third, it assumes that any message sent is instantly available to the recipient. Many factors can lead to delay of email.
Any of the servers involved in routing a message from sender to receiver can be overloaded and thus delay the message by minutes or hours. A message may be sent by a third party who may take a few days to send it but with the time stamp of the original message.
This just happened to me. I received a message from a vendor dated 16 Oct 2010 04:27:31. However, it was sent by the third party at 20 Oct 2010 07:12:36. The times are PDT. The USPS generally does a better job; a first class letter put in a box before the last pickup on Saturday may be delivered Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, depending on the distance.
Worse, the address of the bulk mailer makes the email look like spam. However, the mailer has a legitimate URL; its home page lists "Enterprise Email Marketing" as one of its services. I guess I won't be sending this email to the Anti-Phishing Working Group.
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