Non-trackable Shipping : A suggestion & warning !!!
My latest book has just shipped – and I was VERY surprised to see that it is coming via a "non-trackable" option… Surprised – because I "thought" that I had opted for one of the premium (trackable) delivery options – as I ALWAYS do! I accept that the error is mine, and I will be on the edge of my seat for the next few days awaiting its arrival… however… A sugestion for Blurb… I think it would be nice (if not beneficial) if Blurb were to put up a "warning window" for anybody selecting the non-trackable option along the lines of; "You have selected a non-trackable delivery option. Are you sure you want to do that? Click OK to continue, or CANCEL to select another (trackable) option…" With this experience in mind, it would also be nice to see the shipping options on the order page enhanced to show that "Economy" shipping is "Non-trackable". I know there is a link to more info below that – but a slight tweak on the entry line would again be beneficial… A warning for other users… Be sure to DOUBLE-CHECK on the delivery option chosen! I consider myself a VERY experienced online buyer, and my history with Blurb has been to ALWAYS select a trackable option… It appears that it is easy to select the wrong button in error… Equally, until the book actually ships, there is no other warning that you have selected this (non-trackable) option, by which time it’s too late… so beware! Cheers; Lee
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Thanks for the suggestion, Lee. We are always looking to improve the Blurb ordering experience. I will definitely pass your idea along to my co-workers. – Kathy
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Hi Kathy; Thanks… I’m now keeping my fingers crossed for the book delivery… Don’t you just hate it when you tick the wrong box !!! Cheers; Lee
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I got terribly confused for a while when working out shipping because the order changed with the price to show the cheapest first. I ended up think it was going to cost £80 delivery for 70 books for the trackable option and the descriptions don’t really help – priority sounds like the quickest, but I think it isn’t. How about renaming the postage descriptions to Quick, Quicker, Quickest? Less ambiguity I think :-)
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Hi Dan; I think the reality is that shipping options are; - Agonisingly slow… - Reasonable… - Quicker ! I am still waiting on tenterhooks for my (erroneously ordered snail-mail’ed) book which left the printer on Monday. All my other regular mail from Europe (and I get quite a lot) gets here in 2 days ! Cheers; Lee
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"I am still waiting on tenterhooks for my (erroneously ordered snail-mail’ed) book which left the printer on Monday. All my other regular mail from Europe (and I get quite a lot) gets here in 2 days !" Like you I am underwhelmed by the delivery service. I opted for the slower service, thinking that would be about 3 days, and a week later, I’m still no nearer getting it. I have got mail from Hong Kong a lot quicker, and given that I’m in UK, I’m at a loss to know what takes so long. Do they just put it on a shelf somewhere and forget about it? Or perhaps they are deliverig it by hand from wherever in Europe it is printed. The postman could be walking across the French border as we speak! ; )
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The shipping information page does say that economy mail takes 4 to 7 business days, a week is just 5 business days so you’ve still (potentially) a couple of days to go! But I know what you mean :-( ......Tony
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Probably include the weekend then, I’ll expect it sometime next week! I can understand the printing bit taking a while, but once it has been posted, what do they do with it? ;-) Does it come by sea? Obviously 7 working days could , say posted on a Friday, include 2 weekends, making 11 days. I know I’m harping on about it, but living in the remote spot I do, I rely heavily on things from the internet etc, and I have never ordered anything that has taken half as long as this is taking. Generally, I have nothing but praise for the post service in the UK, it’s brilliant. I can upload photos before 4pm this afternoon to a printing company, they’ll be on my mat, delivered by tomorrow morning. Thanks
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I really don’t understand it either. I gather the cheap (post) option uses Swiss Post rather than Dutch Post, perhaps they have to wait for a St. Bernard to arrive from Switzerland to carry it back there so then can then pop it in the post box. .........Tony
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Well; here I am at business day 9 (so well past the 5-7 business days) since my book supposedly left the printer in Holland via the worlds slowest delivery system, and there’s still no sign of it… I guess now I have to wait until Tuesday (Monday is a holiday in the UK) and then see what Blurb have to say! A hard lesson learned… C’est la vie; Lee
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Mine arrived an hour ago Lee! But the UPS tracking didn’t track, so I wasn’t expecting it. It was "completed" on Tuesday lunchtime and a tracking number was issued. I checked regularly 2 or 3 times a day and it kept telling me the package had not been picked up. I raised an Order support request yesterday and Blurb were very helpful saying if it hadn,’t arrived by Monday they would print and ship me another copy. That was still the case last night. When I got up this morning it said In Transit, so I though I’d have to wait until Tuesday (very frustrated I was as I paid for express shipping). Last order I got pick-up, then tracked through , Einhoven, Brussels, Barking, Tamworth and Derby. But an hour later there was a knock on the door and there it was! I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you. .........Tony
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Tony, With my last order, the status online switched to shipped so I could access UPS tracking. The very same day, it arrived at my door! The day after it arrived, I had an email from Blurb saying it had shipped and would be with me soon… There’s not a lot of accuracy/consistency in their order status I’ve found over my last couple of orders.
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Happy, Happy, Happy… My book turned-up today – and – once again – ALL CREDIT TO BLURB… ...ANOTHER EXCELLENT PRINT JOB… BUT – there’s NO WAY that I will EVER endorse the "economy" (non-trackable) shipping option, and NO WAY that I will ever make the same mistake again… Cheers; Lee
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Have to admit to being very frustrated…...... I am still waiting to see my own first printed book which I uploaded on the 9th August. I see that it was shipped on the 14th, and here I am on August 28th still waiting. I appreciate that I selected the economy mail…...... but this does seem to be outside any reasonable timing even for that. Perhaps a couple more days should be added to the estimated shipping times. I would rather think that it had arrived earlier than get cross because it took longer. Tell me 12 days and then I will be delighted with 10…... I am a sucker like most folks in these things! J
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Ok…....... take it back…....... all is forgiven! The package arrived this morning, 29th August. However, I still maintain that adding a couple of days onto the estimated shipping dates – at least for my part of the world – might be an idea and save you a few "where is my book" kind of messages. Delighted with the book by the way!
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I am waiting since 8th August for a delivery .. apparently it is being posted thro Swiss Postal system to Ireland .. but it has not yet arrived .. the idea that 5 or 10 business is the "normal" postal period for non trackable items is a joke .. Friends or clients will just not believe you when you tell them that the item has been posted to them 4 weeks ago. This is the 2nd single book that has not reached its destination. Curiously enough orders I sent for 3 books at a time were delivered by the Swiss Postal system within 10 days .. but I am very unhappy with these long delays and I am almost giving up on ever receiving these 2 "lost" books .. Blurb customer support has been helpful but when books dont arrive after 4 , 5 or even 6 weeks its hard to keep your patience.
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NoelGreene,
Sorry to hear that. I’m getting impatient ass well. My order was shipped on the 20th of august, non-trackable. I contacted customer services, they told me it couldtake another 5 days. I read somewhere that the printers for Europe are located in Eindhoven(Holland), but shipping is with Swiss post, Eindhoven is on 25min drive from my door :-(.
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hehe, seems like every topic i read the poster says he’s getting worried about the book arriving, it arrives the day after the post. Same here, 14 business days for shipping only. Not really fast, but it’s nice to have an idea of the arrival date. thanks blurb for the nice books !
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