Hoping to capitalise on an anticipated growth in the use of online marketplaces this year, Royal Mail has launched a new postage and label service called Click & Drop for eBay sellers.
Click & Drop will connect to eBay sellers’ accounts, meaning they can buy and print postage labels without switching applications and without manually inputting the buyer’s address details. The service, which is part of Royal Mail’s ongoing investment in new IT systems, will automatically check postcode details as part of an attempt to reduce failed deliveries.
Unveiling a service specifically aimed at one specific segment of parcel and delivery customers is a clear indicator that the once nationalised concern wants to be seen as open for business.
Last year, Royal Mail introduced a new Shipping and Tracking tool for account customers sending more than 1,000 parcels a year. It is also making its click and collect service, called Local Collect, available to 20,000 SME-sized account customers.
Nick Landon, Managing Director of Royal Mail Parcels, described Click & Drop as “part of Royal Mail’s programme of investment in IT to support customers and make it easier for them to do business with us. The new solution allows eBay sellers to integrate their accounts, enabling them to manage their orders more easily.”
The new service comes as Royal Mail research reveals one in four (24 per cent) UK SME online e-retailers plan to start using online marketplaces to increase their sales this year. Royal Mail’s annual tracker study into the expectations and challenges facing UK SME online retailers revealed the sector is in positive mood with “seven-out-of-10 businesses expecting sales to increase in 2015.”
Customers using the new online service will have access to Royal Mail’s domestic parcel services, giving a choice of delivery options including 1st and 2nd Class, Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm, Signed For 1st and 2nd Class. International shipping will be made available through Click & Drop later in the year, as will access to Parcelforce Worldwide services.
