Would you miss UPS?

Continuing my “Would you Miss” series ...

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Does UPS (United Parcel Service) provide such a unique service and customer experience that we would be saddened if it didn’t exist? Does UPS treat its employees so astonishingly well that those workers would not be able to find another employer to treat them as well? Does UPS forge such unfailing emotional connections with its customers that they would fail to find another shipping company that could forge just as strong an emotional bond?

What say you?

Post inspiration | Mavericks at Work

Comments

[Brent Terrazas]

But then what would brown do for ME!?!?!?!?!!? I'd never find out!

..... i'd start using DHL

[geno]

To be honest I've never really thought about UPS in a uber way until just a moment ago. Our UPS driver has a package for BOF that was not scheduled for delivery until 7pm tonight. We called to ask if we could drive to where he is currently working and get the package earlier. He offered to change his route to bring the package to us now. So what would brown do for me. They went out of their way, way out of their way.

[Katherine Coombs]

ooops, you've still got Pizza Hut in the body, not UPS. :-)

I work for a bank and, since we all love to hate our banks, I'd love to hear a "Would You Miss" about someone in our industry!

Kat

[Super Zoe]

I am really interested in privatizing the US Postal System. Like Geno, I have had a UPS go out of his way to meet me to deliver a package. Would I miss it?! Maybe. I am sure that I could live with FedEx.

[Steven Hoober]

UPS has its downsides, but on the whole its far and away the best of the delivery services. From superior customer service, to innovating with device design (the 'clipboard') they lead the way.

OTOH, USPS has been catching up. I am not totally unhappy with them anymore. Now, if they could just work out rates so they weren't rising all the time.

[Todd S.]

I would miss UPS. I have used them at multiple businesses where I have worked. The drivers are great. They can handle just about anything you throw at them. They have taken the complex task of moving things from point A to point B and made it simple for businesses. They are our outsourced logistics operation.

[Prescott Perez-Fox]

I think the one trait we'd miss most is the accountability. UPS has a reputation (perceived or actual) of being responsible for our packages in a way that the Postal Service doesn't. And they certainly led the pack when it came to online tracking of packages. From a business point of view, I can't say if they're better than FedEx, DHL, or anything else, but from a frequent buyer of Amazon.com products, it's incredibly annoying when they take Saturday off.

[Greg]

Between their online presence, USP stores, and numerous drop boxes, they are easy to use. I would miss it.

[BIG Kahuna]

Yes, most definately, without a question, that's a fact Jack!

[Brett]

I think I'd miss their whiteboard ads the most.

Otherwise, I wouldn't miss them. I always go purple.

[Conrad Hametner]

To answer the question, I would separate the valuable service they provide, from the company itself. Would I miss the service, yes without a doubt. The competition they provide to the other carriers (Fed Ex, USPS, DHL, etc.) helps keep the costs of commerce down. Would I miss the company itself? If you would have asked me that 8-10 years ago, I would have said no, but they have seemed to really have done a better job since all the strikes and lost packages of yester year. Our UPS guy always seems to be smiling when he delivers packages. Plus I really like those whiteboard commercials as well. So my answer is yes, I would miss brown.

[Stephen Denny]

The brand? No. Wouldn't miss it. Would almost pay to have the white board ads disappear. I used to think that self-styled celebrity CEO's appearing in their own ads were bad enough. Now we have creatives starring in their own creative. Yikes. End of times?

But the company? Yes. They provide great service and they deliver on Saturday. There are other providers and they all start at the #2 position.

FedEx would sure miss them, too. Fred Smith all told us once many years ago that without "Big Brown," FedEx would never have been born.

[Leah McChesney]

I like my UPS, I like my delivery people, they like me, they know my kids by name. I think the service is outstanding AND are so friendly and helpful! I have not liked my fed ex people or the post office!

[Tatyana]

I would miss UPS. I am glad that they provide an alternative to FedEx, because FedEx does not care about the satisfaction of their customers. I speak from personal experience.

[Joel D Canfield]

Nope. Plenty of alternatives, with nothing in my personal experience to make UPS fundamentally different from the alternatives.

Nor, on the other hand, anything fundamentally different about the alternatives, either. (Cute TV ads don't count. Ever.)

I wonder who's gonna wake up first?

[jim frazer]

Would you miss Ups if they were gone, i believe the answer has to be a resounding yes. We notice the dhl and fedex guys alot cause of their bright rucks and that they ride the front elevator with us in the mornings but the UPS guy is mostly invisible. He brings most the things we need the most, he is very friendly, has the cleanest trucks but he mostly uses the freight elevator and is thus invisible. Plus everyone loves the UPSman, they are very friendly and care about you and your business.

[Nick Hladek]

Yes, I would miss UPS. I'm an amazon.com Prime junkie, and most of my packages are serviced by UPS. My UPS driver and I know each other by name. I have never had a package lost. I had to call the customer service line the other day to ask a question, and I got connected quickly and got a friendly and knowledgeable response. The FedEx guy isn't as friendly, and the DHL driver is completely anonymous. When I have to ship a package, I always think of going to UPS first. So yes, I think that UPS does a good job of creating a brand that means good-value, personal, reliable package delivery, and I would miss it.

[Stephen Macklin]

We buy our UPS guy a gift at Christmas. We order it and have it delivered signature required. We sign for it and hand back.

Yes. We'd miss UPS.

[Simon Ford]

No. Get rid of them now! I had to have a parcel delivered by them at Christmas. They kept going to the wrong address, so I went to the depot. I was there two hours while they looked for the parcel and eventually they gave up. I left directions for my house and finally they still couldn't find it and I had to drive out to meet them somewhere and collect the parcel. Unbelieveably poor.

[Jenn]

I'm surprised at how many people would miss UPS. I've had nothing but trouble with them delivering to my residence. I don't feel they offer ANY customer service and I actually give second thought to online orders if I know UPS will deliver.

I would NOT miss UPS.

[John Mark Inman]

I work 9-6 most days. If you go online and tell them to deliver at a different time, they don't listen. They come at a different time, but not the one you requested. I've had to go to the warehouse a couple of times(although the same is true with FedEx). At least UPS is on my side of town.

Maybe it depends on the package, but now they drop my packages at the apartment office. This is def. better than the warehouse.

I don't know many long term employees. Most of the people I know are college/grad students who are package handlers. They work for the excellent medical benefits, but hate the overnight hours. It helps people who otherwise wouldn't be able to afford to have babies have babies while still in school.

[Laurie]

I would miss them!!! In fact I would have a hard time operating my business without them. UPS gets my products to my customers, and has been very accommodating picking packages up everyday. Everyone I have met at UPS seems to have a good attitude :-) Which I can't say for FedEx who I used to use exclusively. I don't use FedEx anymore because they left thousands of dollars worth of jewelry sitting on a doorstep (wrong address) and a signature was required, and I have many more FedEx stories like this one. Just my 2 cents.

[Bryan]

Yes, UPS would be missed for 2 reasons:
1. superior value for ground logistics as compared to the competition
2. the very personal connections made between the recipients (us) and the drivers. (The movie "Legally Blonde" has a sub-plot about this relationship; a girlfriend once dumped me to marry her "UPS man.")
Their marketing could take advantage of this, but instead we get the ridiculous "what could brown do for you." FedEx on the other hand still enjoys the equity of "when it absolutely, positively has to get there overnight, guaranteed".

[Joe]

UPS is by far the best company in the delivery business, and there's a reason, they pay their help better, and like anything else, you get what you paid for. UPS drivers, on the whole, are better educated, better trained, and more intelligent than the other drivers.

[Rick]

We use UPS exclusively despite that fact that our regular UPS guy is a total jerk. He is sullen and resentful. His 'tude got worse when our Christmas tip did not meet his expectations.

If he alone was representative of UPS the company would be in the tank.

[Glenn]

Nope.

My UPS driver, whom I see almost every other day with a package delivery, would rather not give any greeting, eye contact, or smile.

OTOH, my FedEx driver and DHL delivery people whom I see less frequently are always smiling, courteous, and even call me by my first name.

What does Brown do for me? Absolutely nothing.

[Jeff]

I don't know about other areas, but where I live, the UPS packages are almost always crushed. If you've ever seen the movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, then you know what I mean. The boxes look like someone was kicking it around and dropping it multiple times. FedEx on the other hand, always delivers the packages in pristine condition... and Airborne Express rocks! Those guys will come by again in the same day if they miss you the first time.
Point being.... I would NOT miss UPS.

[Jim]

Airborn express hasn't existed since 2003 when they were aquired by DHL. UPS transports so much of the GDP that they would be sorely missed - the competition couldn't handle the sheer volume. Most drivers are curtious and if not, you should complain.

I would certainly miss them...

[kd10021]

I prefer FedEx. Even more so since they joined forces with Kinko's.

And to the person that said that UPS trucks are cleaner...That's because they're brown. And so is dirt. I'm fairly certain they planned it that way. The cleanliness is an illusion. Not that that's a bad thing. Pretty smart, actually.