1-What are some
of the differences between SmallMove
Solutions (SMS) and other options
available to facilitate small shipments?
There is a major difference
between how small shipments are handled by SMS and
many of our competitors. Small moves are handled
differently depending on the company you speak to.
Some examples follow below.
Scenario A -The company
you are speaking to about moving your treasures
does not operate a single terminal, own a single
truck or have a single employee empowered to handle
your shipment. Instead, they hand off your move
to a company they have contracted with to do the
work. The company is really a broker
who will provide your move and corresponding details
to a 3rd party company in order to provide the service.
Scenario B- The company
you are considering to handle your miniature move
is really a call center who sub contracts
your move or redirects it to a 3rd party.
They sub contract with local companies
to do the pick up and delivery and quite often many
areas are not serviced because the sub-contractors
will not go to all points. In addition they may
take your move and pack it in to wood or card board
container, ship by freight or train to a delivery
provider with whom they have contracted who will
unpack the wood or cardboard containers and then
deliver to the destination.
Scenario C- The company
that you called to move your antique cupboard is
insisting on packing or crating the item and then
may or may not let you know that this antique
will be shipped by common carrier freight
truck that delivers curbside with one driver
or they will have to deliver to another
company who can deliver with 2 people if the shipment
has to go upstairs or requires the use of an an
elevator in order to complete the delivery.
Scenario D- You called
around and found someone who will put it with another
order "going your way". Though
this is certainly possible, often many times
the company may not really have something going
your way and you find that out usually the day before
or day of your pick up in the form of a "truck broken
down" or the order is canceled for an unknown reason.
We see this scenario becoming more and more common
as difficult economic times, coupled with high fuel
costs are forcing companies to try and book
work at any cost. As a general rule with few exceptions,
if the company that has offered to "put
it on the back of load" for a price
that sounds almost too good to be true , then buyer
beware. If there is an issue and the company has
to decide between picking up or delivering the 12,000
lb load and your china cabinet to the grandchildren
, then you can guess how that turns out.
It is important that you ask
the right questions and you make an informed decision
on how you want your move or shipment to be handled.
While some customers may desire that a shipment
be handled in a certain manner and some of the above
may be appropriate under certain limited conditions,
we have found that customers when making an informed
choice would prefer their shipment is handled by
a quality driven, financially stable, resource laden
organization, who provides the service they are
inquiring about as a regular course of business,utilizes
company equipment, staff and the very high quality
level white glove pad wrap delivery method.
2-Do you offer declared value
insurance on my order ?
Yes, aside from the
.60/lb. release valuation that you automatically
receive, you have (3) options with regard to the
purchase of additional valuation insurance.
$12 per $1000 of
coverage with a $500 deductible
$15 per $1000 of
coverage with a $250 deductible
$20 per $1000 of
coverage with a $0 deductible
3-My
shipment(s) have some very special needs and
requirements and necessary advance coordination
and pre-planning. Is that something that fits
in with your service offerings?
We
thought you would never ask. The above very often
is standard fare and we look forward to meeting
your requirements and exceeding your expectations.
This type of service is very often where we shine
and outdistance the offerings of our competitors.
We take service very seriously. If at any time in
the order or inquiry process from the time you first
reach our company, to receiving a quote or a return
call or email, to the time that your order is delivered,
to the drivers being courteous and polite you ever
receive anything less than exceptional service,
we want to know about and if it is within our control,
it will be corrected. That's our service guarantee.
4-What's
an ISO?
An
ISO is an Independent Sales Organization. Many companies
or in this case (carriers) chose to work with an
ISO of sales professionals in the industry. When
you book a cruise, merchant processing service plane
tickets or many other very common services , often
you are dealing with an ISO professional. The service
you receive is exactly the same or in many instances
can even be improved as the ISO can concentrate
on making sure your sales experience and overall
customer experience exceeds expectations. You will
pay for service, execute paperwork and take care
of any other applicable matters directly with the
carrier with the assistance of the ISO professional
just like in the examples explained above. You are
receiving your actual small move service directly
from the company.
When appropriate SMS will direct your inquiry to
a more appropriate solution as our company slogan
states, "We know where it belongs-SM" and if applicable
we will advise you on other options that may be
better suited to your needs based upon your budget,
or particular service requirement. We know small
shipments and all of the options available in the
market. Our philosophy is that maybe if we can not
be of service to you today, but can guide you to
a solution, you will come back to us tomorrow or
send a friend that we can assist today.
