New service available from Thursday 12 March at 20.00
InPost - the leader of modern logistics in Poland - due to the growing demand for services based on the network of Paczkomat® InPost machines in connection with the pandemic, is accelerating the start of a new "Parcel on the Weekend" service allowing deliveries to be made to the machines also on Saturdays and Sundays, on a basis similar to any other day of the week. Due to the coronavirus, from 12 March for the next three weekends (until 29 March), customers who need to send or deliver parcels urgently will be able to use the weekend service at no extra charge - the standard cost of the service is PLN 4.99 gross.
"We had planned to launch this service only over the long May weekend, but due to the huge demand for the service that we have seen in recent days we are accelerating the introduction of weekend deliveries from Thursday 12 March. In addition, for the expected peak period of sickness, sending a parcel with collection at the weekend will be exempt from an additional charge, as we realise that during the period of actual quarantine, which we are slowly entering, the logistics service will be one of the most important channels for supplying consumers with the most necessary items. We are also encouraging e-tailers to launch weekend consignments in their shops, as this is what customers expect - especially during a period of threats like the present. We have already E-shoppers have increasingly signalled their demand for the introduction of an immediate delivery service ” - said Wojciech Kądziołka, spokesman for InPost.
Under "Parcels at the weekend", parcels will be delivered to customers at the weekend if sending (i.e. transferring the parcel to a device or POP or placing an order for collection by the courier ), will take place on Saturday by 13:00.
InPost recommendations for the coronavirus pandemic period:
- when you have the choice between delivery by an InPost courier or to an InPost parcel machine - choose Parcel Machine® - which reduces contact with other people
- do not touch the control panel when picking up the parcel from the device - open the box remotely using the free InPost app from your smartphone (app available for download in the App Store and Google Play shops)
- for home/apartment deliveries, we recommend that couriers and recipients keep a sufficient distance and hand over parcels at the door or in front of the house to minimise face-to-face contact time
- in accordance with health authorities' guidelines, we recommend avoiding direct contact in the form of greeting by shaking hands, handing over mobile computers, pens, etc. while signing.
The company's internal research shows that as many as 60% of respondents who use courier delivery expressed a desire to use the Paczkomat® InPost[1] delivery option at the weekend.
"Our new service covers all 6,000 machines in Poland, not just those located in the biggest cities - we make sure that every one of our customers, regardless of where they live, has access to the unique convenience of collecting and sending parcels provided by Paczkomat®. The work of the warehouses and sorting facilities has been prepared in such a way that parcels can be delivered throughout the country on an ongoing basis." - indicates Wojciech Kądziołka.
An urgent parcel can be posted to a designated machine directly at a Paczkomat® InPost device, by an InPost courier or at a Parcel Collection Point if it is open on Saturday. Any e-store can choose to offer the service to its customers - as many as 82% of the surveyed e-commerce representatives expressed their willingness to introduce a weekend delivery option to the Paczkomat® InPost device in their shops[2].
The 'Parcel on the Weekend' service will be available to all business and retail customers. For customers generating labels in the Parcel Manager and within the API v2 and ShipiX, the "Parcel on the Weekend" option will be available from Thursday, 8 p.m. to Saturday, 1 a.m. For offline customers (not generating labels in the API) - there will be an additional column "Parcel on the Weekend", where it will be defined whether the parcel to be sent has an additional service purchased.
Demand for InPost's services is growing steadily - the number of machines (more than 6,000 devices in Poland) has exceeded the scale of the Polish Post's own outlets (4,600[3]).
As many as 63% of online shoppers declare that they most often use the services offered by InPost[4] - the highest result among all logistics companies operating in Poland.
InPost has also released an innovative solution that allows you to manage your Paczkomat® InPost device and your locker from within the app[5]. . From a few months onwards, multiple people will be able to receive parcels at once at a single machine. GO MOBILE Strategy! is another step in the reorientation of the logistics industry towards mobility. InPost will also soon make it possible to send parcels via an app installed on a smartphone. InPost can now also be contacted via Google Assistant. The conversation starts by calling a bot called ChatBot Mat with the phrase "Talk to InPost". Customers can ask about, among other things, the status of their parcel, the nearest Parcel Machine®, and, new to the bot, the number for the courier. The same Bot is also available on Messenger, with all its functionalities.
By 2020, InPost will already have 11 logistics centres: four Panattoni Europe sites, the existing expanded central sorting facility at the P3 Piotrków warehouse park, two sorting facilities at new logistics parks - 7R Park Sosnowiec and 7R Park Warszawa, as well as modern facilities at the MLP Poznań West, MLP Gliwice and MLP Wrocław West logistics parks and KJF Park Balice.
InPost ranked first in the supplier of the year category in Ceneo.pl's trusted shops 2019 ranking , ahead of DPD and DHL. Also in the NPS (Net Promoter Score) survey of the online service Furgonetka.pl for 2018, InPost's devices won first place in the courier sector, while the company's courier services came third.
In October 2019, the company introduced a new 'Quick Posting' service - with no registration, logins or queues. Since October, InPost's retail customers have also benefited from a new, lower price list for parcels of various sizes - which involves up to a 20% reduction, to £11.99 gross.
A high percentage of use of Paczkomat® InPost machines is recorded not only in large (81%) or medium-sized (77%) cities, but also among residents of rural areas (71%) and smaller towns (74%). . There is a similarly high level of indications among users in all age groups, with the over 50s as high as 65% and the over 60s 58%.
InPost goes green and washes the equipment with steam without any chemicals. The action is carried out nationwide by specialised teams in electric cars, using as little water as possible. When graffiti is washed away, eco-friendly cleaning agents are used.
InPost has also introduced the InPost Fullfilment logistics service dedicated to business customers. The company provides infrastructure and know-how and supports customers at every stage of the warehousing process. As a logistics partner, InPost offers the highest quality of service and automation of the entire logistics process based on its own experience. Thanks to the InPost service Fulfillment e-commerce entrepreneurs can focus on growing their business and not worry about issues related to storage facilities, packaging of goods and shipping.
In addition, by virtue of a cooperation agreement, InPost has begun installing devices at shops Dino, Lidl and Kaufland throughout Poland, as well as in Auchan Shopping Centres. Paczkomat® InPost is also the most frequently offered form of delivery of purchases in online shops according to a report by Furgonetka.pl. As many as 74 per cent of large shops and 44 per cent of small and medium-sized shops offer delivery by Paczkomat® InPost. The average cost of delivery through them is £10 in smaller and £9 in large online shops.
According to the Gemius E-commerce in Poland 2019 report:
- As many as 52% of online shoppers declare Parcel Machine® as their most frequently chosen form of delivery of goods. This represents an increase in the popularity of the service among internet users by 4 percentage points compared to the results of the 2018 report
- InPost's courier services gained in popularity - they recorded a 5 percentage point increase in indications compared to 2018 and maintained their third place among the most popular courier companies in Poland. They overtook, among others, Pocztex (Poczta Polska) and global giants such as GLS, UPS and FedEx
In addition, as many as 61% of respondents declare that the InPost service encourages them the most to buy online - an increase of 6 percentage points year-on-year.
InPost records one of the highest NPS customer satisfaction ratings (January 2019, survey sent to customers after service delivery):
- InPost courier: 70.81 /N=4512/
- Paczkomat® InPost: 81,5 /N=13278/
InPost is Poland's largest logistics operator, invested in by US investment funds Advent International and KKR. The company offers courier services and deliveries via the nationwide network of Paczkomat® InPost devices for individual and institutional customers, including comprehensive services dedicated to the e-commerce industry.
More information at: www.inpost.pl
[1] CAWI survey "Exploring the opinions of online shoppers about the product delivery option to an InPost parcel machine at the weekend when placing an order on a Friday", conducted 31.05-03.06.2019, sample N=1001
[2] Pop-up survey on manager.paczkomaty.pl performed 03-06.06.2019, sample N=3871
[3] Source: biznes.gazetaprawna.pl/artykuly/1401760,zarzad-poczty-o-podwyzkach-dla-listonoszy.html
[4] CAWI survey of a representative sample of N=1,000 internet users, all made an online purchase in the last three months, April 2019
[5] The solution is available on 95% of machines. The remaining older machines are being successively upgraded to the latest standard
