2019 Holiday Shipping Deadlines

The holidays are just around the corner. And this year, local shoppers admittedly have a week less of shopping days due to a late Thanksgiving. If you haven’t already, it’s time to start promptly marking your calendar with these important deadlines to ensure your customers receive their bargains prior to Christmas. Quick and on-time shipping will undoubtedly be the key to success this holiday season!

Keep reading to learn more about upcoming shipping deadlines, additional tips on how to ensure a problem-free holiday shipping experience and the benefits of USPS® Priority Mail™. 

SHIPPING DEADLINES

All deadlines listed below have been gathered by our partners at Visible Supply Chain Management. These cut-offs are for expected delivery prior to December 25, 2019. This is not a guarantee, but an estimated send-by date from the corresponding carrier. Actual delivery dates may vary— make sure to send out your orders accordingly.

ADDITIONAL HOLIDAY SHIPPING TIPS

Throughout the holiday season you will most likely receive a significant number of orders. This will ultimately result in higher shipping expenses for your eCommerce business. To adequately prepare for the influx of shipments, make sure to properly check your postage account balance. Next, confirm your low thresholds are appropriately set. Following that, you'll need to maintain an available postage balance sufficient enough to properly support your upcoming shipping activity. Carefully following these necessary steps will ensure a seamless shipping process for your Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.

PRIORITY MAIL VS. FIRST-CLASS MAIL

Merchants need a reliable and cost-effective service for 2-3 day delivery, especially during the holidays. With USPS Priority Mail, your packages typically arrive 1-2 days earlier than First-Class Mail shipments. With free packaging and $100 of free insurance, Priority Mail™ from the USPS® allows you to better compete with private carriers. Priority Mail also gives shippers access to different flat rate options, allowing you to send heavier, denser items for less.

With Priority Mail™ from Pitney Bowes® you can also take advantage of Pitney Bowes Delivery Guarantee, the only 3-day guaranteed delivery for Priority Mail. The 3-day guaranteed delivery gives you the peace of mind that your shipment will be delivered in 3 days or fewer. If for some reason, your package is delivered in more than 3 days, you can simply request a refund for the cost of the shipping label. And the best part is, there is no additional cost for Delivery Guarantee if you are a DesktopShipper user!

BE PROACTIVE

Being prepared prior to Black Friday and Cyber Monday will drastically improve your shipping processes this holiday season. Make sure to accurately mark your calendars with the listed dates, so there are no mishaps with frequent customers. Take steps to properly safeguard your postage accounts before the influx of orders you'll undoubtedly receive in the upcoming weeks. Lastly, if you sign up with DesktopShipper today, you'll instantly receive a free trial of our software plus a 3-day guarantee on all holiday shipments.

Good luck and happy holidays!