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Here is a typical conversation with a hotel guest about receiving:
G: Hi this is Bob Smith. I'm expecting a package, has it arrived.
Me: I don't see anything for Smith at this time.
G: I was supposed to arrive 3 days ago (or 2, or 4, or whatever, it's always SUPPOSED to be here).
Me: Do you have your tracking number?
G: Ummmmm.....no.
Me: Which method of shipping was used? Fed Ex, UPS, Post Office?
G: Ummmmmm...I think it was (Something)....errr, wait, no, it was (Something else). or I'm not sure.
Me: Well, right now it's not here but it might come in on a later delivery. If you get the tracking information I can look it up and see if I can find it for you.
G: Oh. OK. Um....I'll call back.
About 80% don't call back. I like to think it's because the act of trying to find out the necessary information is so difficult that it forces their brain to shut down thus killing them, but more likely than not they delegate the task to one of their peons only to discover that they forgot to tell said peon to ship the stupid thing in the first place.
I'm sympathetic towards guests who obviously have never shipped something to a hotel before (or at all) or people who don't ship very often. But some of these people attend conferences all over the country, all year long, and have no idea that there might be a problem with shipping and that their stuff doesn't just magically appear at the desired location simply because they wish it to.
Now to the helpful portion of my post:
I bet you didn't know there was going to be a quiz, well, there is. Here you go:
Which of the following packages is most likely to be delivered to the correct person and on time:
A) TO: Dave
Hotel Address
B) TO: Smithcorp
Hotel Address
C) TO: Hotel Address
D) TO: Bob Smith
9/17/10 Banking Event Name
C/O Jane Doe - Event Manager
Hotel Address
If you answered A, B, or C, I hate you. While I did change names to protect the stupid, A, B, and C are based on examples that I see on a regular basis. I know to the person shipping the item putting Dave or Smithcorp makes perfect sense, but to me it's pretty meaningless. On any given night I might have 2 Dave's and 3 David's staying in the hotel. Or several events that the package to Smithcorp might have to go to.
Should you ever need to ship something to a hotel, the more information you have, the better the chance of getting your item in a timely manner. Here are some tips:
1. Always know your carrier. UPS, Fed Ex, and the Post Office are the three most common, but sometimes 3rd parties are used, especially for freight.
2. Always know your tracking or invoice number.
With those 2 items, I can most likely find where your item is, or at least where the computer says it is.
3. First and Last name of the person it's going to. If there are multiple people it might go to, it's OK to put more than one name.
4. If there is a specific event the package is for, please include that information if possible. Including the specific event manager that is handling your group is a nice bonus as well since I will know who to talk to about where to deliver your item(s).
5. If you reuse a box, please mark out or cross off any old shipping info and/or handwritten notes that are not relevant to the current recipient.
Anyway, now that that's out of my system, I need to go log in some more packages.
G: Hi this is Bob Smith. I'm expecting a package, has it arrived.
Me: I don't see anything for Smith at this time.
G: I was supposed to arrive 3 days ago (or 2, or 4, or whatever, it's always SUPPOSED to be here).
Me: Do you have your tracking number?
G: Ummmmm.....no.
Me: Which method of shipping was used? Fed Ex, UPS, Post Office?
G: Ummmmmm...I think it was (Something)....errr, wait, no, it was (Something else). or I'm not sure.
Me: Well, right now it's not here but it might come in on a later delivery. If you get the tracking information I can look it up and see if I can find it for you.
G: Oh. OK. Um....I'll call back.
About 80% don't call back. I like to think it's because the act of trying to find out the necessary information is so difficult that it forces their brain to shut down thus killing them, but more likely than not they delegate the task to one of their peons only to discover that they forgot to tell said peon to ship the stupid thing in the first place.
I'm sympathetic towards guests who obviously have never shipped something to a hotel before (or at all) or people who don't ship very often. But some of these people attend conferences all over the country, all year long, and have no idea that there might be a problem with shipping and that their stuff doesn't just magically appear at the desired location simply because they wish it to.
Now to the helpful portion of my post:
I bet you didn't know there was going to be a quiz, well, there is. Here you go:
Which of the following packages is most likely to be delivered to the correct person and on time:
A) TO: Dave
Hotel Address
B) TO: Smithcorp
Hotel Address
C) TO: Hotel Address
D) TO: Bob Smith
9/17/10 Banking Event Name
C/O Jane Doe - Event Manager
Hotel Address
If you answered A, B, or C, I hate you. While I did change names to protect the stupid, A, B, and C are based on examples that I see on a regular basis. I know to the person shipping the item putting Dave or Smithcorp makes perfect sense, but to me it's pretty meaningless. On any given night I might have 2 Dave's and 3 David's staying in the hotel. Or several events that the package to Smithcorp might have to go to.
Should you ever need to ship something to a hotel, the more information you have, the better the chance of getting your item in a timely manner. Here are some tips:
1. Always know your carrier. UPS, Fed Ex, and the Post Office are the three most common, but sometimes 3rd parties are used, especially for freight.
2. Always know your tracking or invoice number.
With those 2 items, I can most likely find where your item is, or at least where the computer says it is.
3. First and Last name of the person it's going to. If there are multiple people it might go to, it's OK to put more than one name.
4. If there is a specific event the package is for, please include that information if possible. Including the specific event manager that is handling your group is a nice bonus as well since I will know who to talk to about where to deliver your item(s).
5. If you reuse a box, please mark out or cross off any old shipping info and/or handwritten notes that are not relevant to the current recipient.
Anyway, now that that's out of my system, I need to go log in some more packages.
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