Selling To United States Buyers

[Ilya2005 10]

I live in the US and am a buyer here on BoB. I thought I'd give you a "head's up" on how the packages you send us are processed once they arrive here so you can tell your buyers why there may be a holdup:

 

When you send an airmail/registered package to the US with a tracking number, it almost always arrives within 48 hours. And, you can track the package on the US Post Office website (http://www.usps.com) with ease once you have mailed that package with the tracking number. That's great! However, the enormous bureaucracy of the US government, the US Postal Service and US Customs drop the ball once the package is here on US soil.

 

It sits at the ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) office in suburban New York City for a week OR MORE before being dispatched to your customer's addresses. They simply sit on the item for a week, at least, before deigning to do their duty to deliver the package. No amount of e-mailing, phone-calling nor begging for help does any good. The old Soviet-style bureaucracy has found a new home in the US.

 

So, if you sell to a buyer here in the US, and he/she e-mails you about time of delivery, you can say honestly that the delays are most likely because the package is stuck at the ICE unit in suburban New York City. :notrust:

 

Ilya2005

[Not1CentMore 10]

The old Soviet-style bureaucracy has found a new home in the US.

 

Every Alphabet Soup Government Agency... from the White House to the outhouse.

 

Ruthie

[JohnBenn 12]

I sent something to Ruthie,above, it took about 3 months.

I sent a registered letter to someone else, it took more than a month.

 

Now I know, why. Does this happen to Standard International mail sent to S.A too? Because I normally wait for a month on those too.

[SADiamondsrus 10]

Could even be worse than that, 3 of my packages to US, took 4 months to reach their local post offices! EISH

[Ilya2005 10]

Could even be worse than that, 3 of my packages to US, took 4 months to reach their local post offices! EISH

 

Sorry to hear that. Did you send them Airmail with tracking number? I usually pay my sellers in SA about R150.00 to R200.00 for that Airmail service with tracking number and have had virtually no problems. SAPO seems to be a pretty efficient outfit and get packages out in good time. Again, my problems begin once the package has landed in the US.

 

I wish I had a solution to the s-l-o-w service once it hits the States, but, I don't. You might tell your customers to pay for that tracking service because it does show where the holdup is...and, it ISN'T in SA!

 

Ilya2005

[NooNooBug 10]

Have posted parcels all over the world and have had few issues. Once they leave SA Borders it can be slow at the receiving country. If the item is small I will usually advise small package as it seems to have less red tape. I only post with tracking numbers, so registering small packages is necessary. Small packages are a tad quicker than ordinary parcels but that all depends on the Customs etc. I usually say 3 to 6 weeks but have had anything from 10 days to 6 weeks. If you opt not to use airmail well that is 2 to 4 months and my experience has been 3 weeks to 3 months, even to remote corners of the globe !

I don't think US are any different to other countries, customs all seem to like to "hold" parcels a while longer than we would like.

[SADiamondsrus 10]

Yes, airmail, and it took forever to get to destination. Also the global tracking system didnt help much either

[Cali Craft and Gems 14]

Are there any limitations to "what" you can send from SA to USA?

 

The reason I'm asking is that my young cousin relocated to Winnetka, Illinois about two weeks ago and we are planning to send her a nice gift for Christmas - possibly a piece of jewellery she was eyeing when she was in our shop.

 

I would send it Airmail with a tracking number but want some guidance as to what to put on the envelope as contents, etc.

[mrmouse 11]

Are there any limitations to "what" you can send from SA to USA?

 

The reason I'm asking is that my young cousin relocated to Winnetka, Illinois about two weeks ago and we are planning to send her a nice gift for Christmas - possibly a piece of jewellery she was eyeing when she was in our shop.

 

I would send it Airmail with a tracking number but want some guidance as to what to put on the envelope as contents, etc.

Put on the package :: Replacement parts ,No Commercial Value , and insure for Minimum amount , ive never lost a part yet !!!!,if youre scared they scan it to see contents add a few ringpulls to the envelope , makes it almost impossible to identify , i send warranty parts to USA and France regularly , France takes 5 days airmail , and USA normally around 10-14 days up to 30 days to the west coast .never had a query in 22 years from customs .

[SADiamondsrus 10]

And pray Customs dont open the parcel..........

SA customs opens ALL mine... does not matter if its document or not. Suppose USA is not that strict.

 

I would declare gift with a $10 value.........

[Timeless Board Games 10]

How does a registered parcel compare to using a courier? (Regarding international)

Edited August 11, 2014 by Timeless Board Games

[Bloemgroup 10]

SADiamondsrus: Totally agree, gift statement on the package should help, at least sometime.

[Bloemgroup 10]

How does a registered parcel compare to using a courier? (Regarding international)

 

Courir company will do CUSTOM declaration for you, they will charge you, but you do not need care about anything