Message From Canada Post To Help With Shipping Costs

[2nd-time-around-jewelry]

Just got this message from Canada Post. Hope it applies to labels made through PayPal too.

Get significant discounts on shipping services for the next 3 months    

Dear,

We want you to know that we’re doing everything possible to support small businesses like yours. That’s why, effective immediately, we are launching our Think Small support program to provide you with significant discounts to help your business survive.

We understand the challenges your business is facing in these unprecedented times. As a valued customer, you will be the first to access the Think Small support incentives, which include added savings on shipping costs.

At Canada Post, we’re doing big things for small business. That means putting customers like you at the heart of everything we do. In the coming weeks, we will be launching our Think Small support platform on a national level, and offering even more tools & resources, partner offers, and practical advice.

Exclusive offer for Canada Post Solutions for Small Business™ customers

Starting today, you will be able to access significant offers and incentives to ensure you can better manage your operations and e-commerce business, and better serve local customers in your community.

For the next 3 months, your business will be able to benefit from:

•

Elevated discount levels within the Solutions for Small Business Program – up to 34% savings when shipping within Canada.

•

Up to an additional 10% discount on local shipping, when using Expedited Parcel™ and Regular Parcel™ services.

Note: Offers valid from April 27 – July 31, 2020. Only available when creating shipping labels using online shipping tools such as Canada Post Snap Ship™ or through our affiliated partners.

Canada Post is committed to helping small businesses succeed – and we will be introducing added support in the near future.

[msmaggie060]

Same here triber, I didn’t even receive an email about this and have had an SfSB account for 15 yrs. not noticing any discounts other than the usual when I use Snap Ship or Shippo.

[triber]

Thanks for your reply msmaggie, I didn't get the email either, I have no idea why, I am not sure whether to phone Paypal or Canada Post about it, sometimes CP is not very helpful. If I get an answer, I'll let you know.

[reallynicestamps]

From what people are saying the only discounts we are getting at the moment are on the services covered by SfSB (and by extension SnapShip, Paypal and Shippo which have identical discounts) and the current drop in the fuel charges.

There are also discounts for high volume shippers. I've never shipped enough through SfSB to think about those, being a stamps on the envelope type.

What other discounts do you think you should be getting?

[ypdc_dennis]

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@triber wrote:

I am not getting any discount except the usual 30 cents on small packages. I have had the Canada Post Solutions for Small Business for many years.

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The additional discounts are available for parcels to CANADA for labels bought online.

No change to the usual tiny discount for Small Packet

and no change to the over-the-counter discounts when you use the SfSB card.

-..-

[pjcdn2005]

There was no email as far as I know. As I mentioned earlier, one day we had to enter our small business number on Paypal in order to print a label. If you haven't done so at the time, you wouldn't be able to print labels. 

There is nothing there showing you an extra discount, it is automatically priced based on your small business level and level 1 is not all that noticeable.  There is more of a difference now because CP is giving an extra discount but normally there isn't.  If you want to compare, after you print a label on PP, enter the same postal codes, dimensions etc on the Canada Post calculator. Don't sign in to CP before you do that as you want to compare the regular rate with the rate you just received.

https://www.canadapost.ca/cpotools/apps/far/business/findARate?execution=e1s1

[triber]

Thank you, I didn't realize it was just within Canada. For me shipping  a package within Canada is rare, usually just letter mail.

[msmaggie060]

Hi triber, I did read that it was just for shipping within Canada and can’t remember now if I sent anything Expedited last week within Canada. Like you, most of my items can go Lettermail. Still, I wonder why I did not receive the Canada Post email about the 3 months extra discounts for shipments outside of Canada. I wonder if it is because I am still using the older Venture One card?

[msmaggie060]

Oops! I meant “3 months extra discount for shipments within Canada”.

[reallynicestamps]

@msmaggie060 

I wonder if it is because I am still using the older Venture One card?

My VentureONE card has the same number as my SfSB card. One of them. For some reason I have three.

[triber]

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@msmaggie060 wrote:
 I wonder why I did not receive the Canada Post email about the 3 months extra discounts for shipments outside of Canada. I wonder if it is because I am still using the older Venture One card?

---

My card in new, but I still didn't receive it.

[ypdc_dennis]

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@triber wrote:
My card in new, but I still didn't receive it.

---

E-mail message was titled: Urgent support measures for small business.

"You are receiving this email because you made a transaction with Canada Post in the past two years, or have agreed to the Canada Post terms and conditions. Please note that you can unsubscribe at any time."

....

From April 27, 2020 to July 31, 2020, Canada Post Solutions for Small Business™ members currently at a savings level 1 will have access to savings level 3 shipping rates when shipping within Canada.

....

From April 27, 2020 to July 31, 2020, Canada Post Solutions for Small Business™ members currently at a savings level 2 or savings level 3 will have access to savings level 4 shipping rates when shipping within Canada. 

-..-

[zee-chan-jpn-books]

So I happened to have sold a books lot to Quebec today. Unfortunately I didn't stock any of the flat rate shipping boxes at home... so I tried to get a quote for shipping from Vancouver BC to Rouyn Noranda QC for a 32 x 22 x 10cm 2kg package, and I got a quote of $23.16 CAD with Shippo Expedited Parcel (exact same price with Regular Parcel). Does that sounded like an already discounted rate or is that the usual rate? I tried to get a quote from Chit Chats as well and it's actually slightly higher at $23.23 CAD. Even more expensive than shipping to the States lol...

Checked the CP flat-rate shipping boxes rate, a medium would be $22.99 so it's about the same cost as using my own box and pack at home, so I'm not going to bother with making an extra trip just for getting a box. 

Edit: Nevermind, I looked at the Canada Post e-mail again and it says to do it via Snap Ship. So I used Snap Ship and I got a  $24.26 $19.73 quote. So that'd be a 19% discount  Should I bother selecting the "signature needed" option? It's only $90 so if tracking shows delivered it should be good enough right?

[ypdc_dennis]

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@zee-chan-jpn-books wrote:
... So I used Snap Ship and I got a  $24.26 $19.73 quote. So that'd be a 19% discount  Should I bother selecting the "signature needed" option? It's only $90 so if tracking shows delivered it should be good enough right?

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Not much point with signature. Canada Post (and other shipping companies) have not been collecting signatures because of covid-19 concerns. 

-..-

[zee-chan-jpn-books]

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@ypdc_dennis wrote:

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Not much point with signature. Canada Post (and other shipping companies) have not been collecting signatures because of covid-19 concerns. 

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Yeah, that's what I thought too.

[peterkat2020]

Is anyone else not getting any tracking updates on Canada Post site with Expedited Parcel?  I dropped a package in the red Canada Post mailbox on Monday May 11 going from Montreal to Gatineau, QC, and Canada Post site has no updates other than electronic information was sent to them, meaning I created the shipping label.  Normally I'd think the package would arrive within the week.  I wonder if it is possible it is in transit but was never scanned.  I dropped an Expedited Parcel in the red mail box on May 1st  going to Ottawa and it arrived the following Monday May 4th so I find it odd my 2nd package is not showing any updates in the tracking.  

[lady.stark]

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@peterkat2020 wrote:

Is anyone else not getting any tracking updates on Canada Post site with Expedited Parcel?  I dropped a package in the red Canada Post mailbox on Monday May 11 going from Montreal to Gatineau, QC, and Canada Post site has no updates other than electronic information was sent to them, meaning I created the shipping label.  Normally I'd think the package would arrive within the week.  I wonder if it is possible it is in transit but was never scanned.  I dropped an Expedited Parcel in the red mail box on May 1st  going to Ottawa and it arrived the following Monday May 4th so I find it odd my 2nd package is not showing any updates in the tracking.  

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About 2 weeks ago, I shipped a Tracked Packet in a red mailbox too, and it was scanned only 3 or 4 days later. I was nervous at first, even wrote to CP to ask if they were still picking up the mail and parcels in the mailboxes, but it finally got scanned when I got my answer from CP (yes they still pick them up).

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

If you drop a parcel in a mail box, right now there might be a big wait time between when it is dropped, and when it is scanned by Canada Post. Usually, there isn't. Canada Post seems to be scanning parcels less throughout the shipping process.

One way around this, Canada Post offers free pickup right now. When Canada Post picks up, they scan your item.

You have to sign up for a Canada Post Small Business account and book the pickup on their website. This is very simple to do. If you know roughly what time your local mail man usually drops off your mail, you can usually schedule a pickup around that time and it is really efficient. I will schedule my pickup, and 15-30 minutes later, it will be picked up. You might have a more difficult time if you schedule it after the local guy is gone. 

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

Also, you're probably fine with your parcel dropped in the red box. No way it is lost. Canada Post just has really inconsistent shipping right now so it is difficult to predict how long a package will take. It seems like one package regionally takes 2 days, another 10, etc, etc. 

The point of suggesting pickup, was that you and your customer at least get the piece of mind of a pickup scan. They know you actually sent it and didn't just print a label, you know you're protected if it takes a bit longer to get there. 

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

Scanning with Canadapost is all over the map as of late.

Shipment dropped off on the 13th using expedited:

CPC tracking #85766438782xxxxx

• May 13, 2020
• 2:23pm

• Shipment received at originating postal facility
• CALGARY, AB

Shipment dropped off yesterday using Xpresspost:

CPC tracking #85766430522xxxxx

• May 15, 2020
• 1:08pm

• Item in transit
• MONTREAL, QC

• May 15, 2020
• 11:04am

• Item processed
• MONTREAL, QC

• May 14, 2020
• 9:17pm

• Item in transit
• CALGARY, AB

• May 14, 2020
• 7:03pm

• Item processed
• CALGARY, AB

• May 14, 2020
• 10:03am

• Tracking number provided

Results may vary. 🙂 For the few folks that use Regular service in Canada curious to know how much slower it is...Now? Hmmm....

-Lotz

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

It is all over the place. One example:

-An order shipped Expedited April 30th going to Edmonton took 15 days.

-An order shipped Expedited May 6th going to Calgary took 5 days. 

Both orders were size 0 mailers of a similar size/weight. I've had similar experiences with other Expedited packages. 

April letter mail was very very bad. I've had items take over 30 days to arrive in Ontario/Quebec. I stopped taking letter mail orders for a short period of time, but after seeing a lot of my early May orders arrive in less than two weeks, I resumed letter mail but updated my listings to inform customers that it may take 20-30+ days to arrive. I use "economy shipping", so the latest expected delivery date is usually 30 days from delivery. 

I also have one or two Small Packet Air orders that are taking forever to cross over to USPS. Most are crossing over within 5 or so days. 

I think the lesson from all this is that any package is a gamble right now. There is no way to assure buyers it will get there in a regular time frame. Most will, but if you are a high enough volume seller you should expect to have to commit a considerably higher amount of time to answering questions from buyers who wonder if their package disappeared into thin air.