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Endicia Internet Postage
(sorry, I don't have a cool picture for this one!)
Review:
What does it do?
Endicia Internet Postage lets you print postage for all your mail. All you need is a PC, an Internet connection, and a printer.
Unless you are selling only downloadable products (and hopefully you
are selling some of those), you will need to ship your products to your
customers. There are many options to shipping a package, but I will cut
through the red tape and tell you what I do. We used to ship a lot of
books through UPS (United Parcel Service), but they became so expensive
that it wasn't worth it.
So, we decided to ship through the USPS (United States Postal Service),
but standing in line every day got old real soon. We looked into
postage machines so we could do the postage at home, but you have to
ship a lot to make it worth the cost.
What to do? We needed
to find a website where we could print postage out on our own printer
AND that wouldn't charge us an arm and a leg.
Things I Like:
Well, Endicia to
the rescue! For a flat fee of $5/month, you can ship as many packages
as you want and even buy your postage online! You can print the postage
labels on regular paper in your printer and then attach the labels with
packing tape. It is truly an economical and convenient way to go.
You
still need to take the packages to the Post Office, but you can use one
of their plastic boxes (they will even allow you to take 4 or 5 home)
and just drop it off at the counter. Nothing is sweeter than dropping
off 20 packages at the counter and waving goodbye (in your mind, of
course) to all those people standing in line!
Things I Would Change:
Printing postage at home through Endicia is a great time saver, but there are a few things you need to keep in mind.
You
need to set the date that you are shipping your package and ship it on
that day! If you forget, you can print a correction, but it is kind of
a hassle.
You
will need to get extra forms to fill out at home. Some people will want
you to insure their package (which is one form) and others will want
you to send it out of the country (which is another form). Actually, if
you use Endicia's insurance, you can fill the info out online. It is
very quick and simple.
If
you make a mistake, you can print a new postage label and then file for
a postage refund. The refund usually takes about 2 weeks and will be
added back to your postage account you have with Endicia.
Conclusion:
One of the great things about Endicia is
they have a postage log. You can print this out and now you have a
record of everyone you mailed a package to, when you mailed it and when
it arrived. I recommend always using delivery confirmation. It costs an
extra $0.15 (if you use priority mail, it is free), but you can tell a
customer where their package is at any given point in the process.
If you upgrade to the
$15/month service, you can cloak how much you paid for postage and
automatically send your customer a tracking number via email. No
more... "When is my package going to get here?!" Oh happy day!
Rating: (Featuring the Beefy/Nacho Cheese Rating System)
Highest rating is five "T"-bones
For more information on Endicia, click on the link below:
http://endicia.familye-biz.com
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