plain and simple- ship small packets airmail 400-900 grams to*** best way?

[jerseys4u]

Hi,
Been looking around the forum for about 20 minutes, and decided i may as well post this question anyways.

I ship small packet airmail 400-900 grams to the US with Canada post.
Costs me $7.50 per package. Is there a cheaper way?
Been doing this for 5 years, i think its about time i ask if there may be a cheaper way 🙂
Thanks 🙂

[recped]

Costs me $7.50 per package.

You mean for the ones under 500 grams of course.

Is there a cheaper way?

Use USPS, likely by driving to the nearest border crossing.
"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915

[jerseys4u]

Yes the ones between 250-500 are $7.50....thats about 90% of my packages.

I ship everyday, so driving to the border 2 hours isn't goin g to happen.

I don't get a discount with Canda Post either....i can't even use the on-line shipping tools. I'm still fighting with them over $1,500.

I can use the "Ship and click" on-line though....no discounts.

Any other options for me?

[tobyshitzu]

Send surface, CP lists the expected range for surface USA as only 2 bus days longer then air.

[betterthanstore]

Drive across the border, ship twice a week by priority mail, it still gets to the US buyer quicker than the CP small packet, and you GET TRACKING NUMBER! Plus the saving on the postage. Worth the trip

[varietylights]

I switched to surface mail about a year ago, i find my packages get there in the same amount of time as Airmail.
You save a few $ per package.

[tobyshitzu]

Having USA small packet surface and air is like a grocery store having coupons hanging right under the product. The lower price is available to everyone but since some willingly pay the higher price for the same item it allows more room for the store to offer a deal to the price sensitive :).

On Canada town square board you've got some who only ship air who tell everyone who asks it will be weeks or months to ship surface to USA and increase their time estimate everytime they post :). You can point out the expedited they happily use is equivalent to surface, and that Canada Post's own advertising shows only a 2 day longer range for surface but they will repeat "Surface will take months" the next time.

Canada post has realized the pricing is out of whack as the 15% increase for surface is going to narrow the gap 😞 I suspect the air and surface are generally all moving together as there doens't seem to be a difference at all.

[cc_connection]

We make the 2 hour drive once a week, we figured with the extra we make (about $4 per package) shipping from the US compared to shipping from Canada with about 50 to 75 packages per week totals about $ 200 to $ 300 extra per week it covers the gas and time to make the trip. With shipping from the US we make an extra $ 1500 per month because we pocket the difference because our shipping charges are below the average charged in our catergory.

With all of the BS Canada Post pulls with 2 to 3 week delivery time and the fact that I needed a tracking number to prove delivery, it isn't worth the stress or hassle anymore.

Teri
CC_Connection

[ridgeesales]

Hi,
I figured I should add a few things to this as I have a very close relative that works for Canada Post in a management position.
First the best way to get a good shipping cost from Canada Post is to get a contract, if you are willing to meet their required amount of parcels mailed per year.
They have a whole range of discounts based on the number of parcels you sign your contracted guarantee for.
All parcels need to be manifested though.
Next Airmail just gets flies to the nearest gateway city in the USA from there what the USPS does with it is up to them but normally it flies to the city it is intended for.
Surface mail gets trucked to the nearest gateway in the USA and again the USPS does handles it the way it feels best, normally due to their sheer volume it gets handle by plane but no guarantees... So the 1-2 day difference is caused mainly by the first leg of trucking the item across the border. Therefore unless your far from a parcel sorting plant, there really isn't much difference in the time delay between surface and airmail within the same zone... but when you have small parcels going from say westcoast of Canada to the eastcoast of the USA, Surface mail parcels mailed from say Vancouer will just be trucked to Seattle, enter the USPS from there and then the USPS will take over and either truck it or fly it depending on the volumes to go east. When you ship the same parcels airmail, it will probably fly from Vancouver to the Toronto and then across the border to the USA and the USPS will take over the handling of it.
So for me, I ship small packet surface for anything on the westcost of Canada or the USA surface mail, anything going east I will send Airmail.

We are currently assessing our volumes of parcels from last year and figuring out what type of increase in parcels were expecting and will probably sign a contract based on the information to get an even cheaper rate as well as the tracking numbers for the parcels.
If you feel you don't have enough parcels on your own for a contract maybe ask some other sellers in your area to join a group and put all your parcels together to come up with a number of parcels you could contract with Canada Post... Personally I don't find driving the 20 mins to cross the border worthwile to me, as numerous times crossing the border takes a lot longer with the lineups etc, and any returned items costs you double + for not shipping with Canada Post.

[meesky]

ridgeesales : You get a Post Office Box at the USA PO---returned items will cost nothing as long as they are not Media Mail or Bound Printed.

and going across as a Commercial Entry would put you in a different line-up, your waits may not be what you think they will be

[magicpixiedust]

you can ship surface...though i have tried this and it takes 1-2 weeks longer (not 2 days more) so im not in favor of surface...no cheaper way sorry - UPS i tried talking o their rep, they offer better service but at a cost of course - im in the same boat as you will 90% of my pkgs going to USA as small packet and FED EX or UPS are much more expensive then CP...so were stuck unfortunately!

[my-imzadi]

I have tried and tried to find cheaper ways to ship. It is so difficult to compete with US sellers because the USPS is so much cheaper for US sellers to send within the US.

I hate to say this, but if at all possible, then yes, it actually is cheaper to drive across the US border and do your mailing there. Best to let the packages pile up a bit first...not worth it for under 10 packages or so.

I had to do that to avoid the major paypal rip-off as well. First I got a US savings account (in my Canadian bank), hoping that I could get my US paypal transferred there, without taking the horrible cut that Paypal takes (ex if true exchange rate for the day is 15%, Paypal only gives you 11 or 12%). But that didn't work. They still converted it to Canadian (at the loss) b/c it was a Canadian bank.

So I had to go across the border to open an account in a US bank. Now I get my Paypal transferred over to that account (no charge), then write a cheque to myself from the US bank to my US savings account in Canada...THEN wait for a better bank exchange rate and convert it to Canadian dollars so I can actaully use the money!

What a pain, eh?