March Newsletter
It is time for a
little update on whasup at PB stamps. I will start by saying that
if you no longer wish to receive emails from PB stamps then please reply
to this email & put REMOVE in the subject line. - Thanks
Next, because my customer base continues to grow many of you are not
completely aware of who/what you are dealing with. This is NOT
your typical impersonal internet shopping site where everything is
automated. It is quite the reverse.
I started selling stamps about 5 years ago as a hobby - not a business.
I'm glad to say that it is still a hobby but getting ever closer to
becoming a business because the workload makes it difficult for me to
take the time to be personal and when the day comes that this is no
longer fun I will give it up and find something else to occupy my time.
Patty thinks I would make a great Wal-Mart greeter.
Things are getting too serious when a customer writes and tells me I
made a mistake on her order. I had shorted her one stamp. I
very politely replied: Dang, tried to get away with one and got caught.
And that I would send the stamp right out.
Obviously this lady didn't read my ABOUT US page on the website or she
would have known I was joking. Now I have an upset customer and
that is the last thing I want.
I have made too many shipping errors lately. This is a one-man
show and last month I sent out about 1500 stamps -- that's a
BUNCH seeing as the average order is 5-10 stamps. So, I have taken
some steps that should shrink the time it takes to process orders from
beginning to end. It is those changes I want to make you aware of.
I stock over 1800 different Penny Black images -- that's a BUNCH.
Far more than any other Penny Black dealer. They take up a lot of
space and I am limited in that area. I have to hold customer
orders for one reason or another but mostly because I am waiting for
payment and that really creates a mess in my shipping area.
Anyway, I have decided to now take credit cards directly. I have
taken the steps to assure security. It is my desire to someday
eliminate PayPal as a method of payment as I have to type the name of
every stamp on the order whereas my credit card program does that
automatically. I am not making that decision yet but we'll see how
it goes.
When you place an order you will get a confirmation showing the prices
and the total for the stamps and either an estimated shipping cost or
the actual.
Now what I have to do is divide my customers into two groups.
A) Those who know and trust me to fill their orders without first
waiting on giving their approval to charge it to their card. Since
I charge actual postage there should be little reason not to be an "A"
customer. One reason NOT to be an "A" is if you have credit card
"problems".
B) Those who insist on having a "bill" to authorize. Believe
me, I can understand your concern.
For those of you who
choose to pay by credit card please reply to this email with either A or
B in the subject line and again, please consider clicking the link at
the bottom of this email
The problems arise primarily because all communication is via email and
sometimes people don't look at their email regularly; block emails; go
on vacation, etc., etc. Sometimes it is because they want to wait
until payday or until they receive their inheritance from grandpa's
estate or whatever. I have really tried hard to accommodate those
people but that compounds the problem so that is a practice that I'm
gonna have to stop. ALL other websites want and get their money
NOW & UPFRONT. This is not the case with me. I just want to
get payment the day the order is ready to go.
So, I hope you are taking this in the vein it is intended. I still
want to sell stamps and have you as a customer and to have me happy so I
look forward to it every day. I am asking you to do two
things.......
First is to determine if you will be an "A" or "B" customer - I'll still
respect you in the morning regardless of your choice.
Secondly, if you are pretty sure you will be placing an order in the
future then please consider clicking the "secure" link at the bottom of
this email to send me your card information. That way I can get
that process taken care of ahead of time.
That's about it..... I used to put out light-hearted and funny
newsletters - haven't done that for a few months. I'm trying to
generate a smoother flow and operation so I have more time to keep the
website up to date and be funny again...
Good news for you fans of the older Penny Black stamps.....In a couple
of weeks I will "unveil" some more 1996-1997 oldies that Penny Black
just "uncovered".
I promise another newsletter at
that time and it will be so funny you'll split your britches or spit
your false teeth out from laughing so hard! Can't wait, can ya?
Thanks for your understanding and your addiction to RED RUBBAH.
Dick Robinson
PB Stamps
Link to secure webpage to provide Credit Card info:
https://secure.bluehost.com/~