“The Online Seller's Guide to Holiday Shipping 2014” on EcommerceBytes
11/02/2014
By Ina Steiner
Are you ready for holiday shoppers who need their items YESTERDAY? For most online sellers, the holiday shopping season is their busiest time of year, but it is also a time when shipping problems are more apt to arise.
A perfect storm of events saw many shoppers disappointed during last year's holiday season, giving online shopping a bad rap for last-minute shoppers. “Last year's shortened shopping season, coupled with bad weather, and an unexpected surge in ecommerce, led to a holiday shipping fiasco leaving thousands without gifts on Christmas day,” Endicia cofounder and General Manager Amine Khechfe explained.
“With holiday package volume 19 percent higher in 2013 than the same period in 2012, the private carriers underestimated the number of shipments and their networks were unable to support additional packages,” he said, noting that the USPS was quick to identify and react to the surge in volume - it delivered packages on the three Sundays before Christmas in its busiest markets and delivered 75,000 packages on Christmas Day.
