Whilst you want to ensure your parcel gets safely and securely from A to B, you’re probably a little reluctant to spend valuable time making it happen.

So how can you make parcel delivery a hassle free experience?

Here are three top tips.

1.      Decide what delivery specification you need

In short, when must your parcel arrive? It’s pointless searching around for the cheapest deal if you have a delivery deadline to achieve. Here are your main options.

• A timed service: This premium option guarantees delivery before a particular time – and assuming you’ve met the collection cut-off, you’ll get delivery the next working day. The most popular options are by 9am, by 10am and by 12 noon.

• Next day: As the name suggests, this option promises delivery by close of play the next working day (again assuming your parcel has been collected before the cut-off).

• 48-Hours: This is usually the cheapest option and may be preferable if you’re in less of a rush and budget is more important than speed. 

2.      Search online

You don’t need to spend time ringing around couriers to find out the best price. Instead you can look online. Even better, you can use the free, no obligation quote and book service provided by parcel re-sellers such as collectmyparcel.com. Here you can type in your parcel dimensions and delivery postcode and instantly see quotes for a range of services from the big brand couriers.

3.      Use a courier

You could send your parcel via the Post Office but you may find it’s less convenient. After all, it means popping out and maybe even queuing.

Instead, arrange for your parcel to be delivered via a courier. As well as being an affordable alternative, they’ll collect from an address you specify. It means you can stay at home or carry on with your work and still get that important parcel sorted.

When you need a courier collection you may be inclined to book direct with your chosen courier provider.

On the surface it makes sense to go straight to the likes of City Link, Parcelforce Worldwide or Yodel. However, you may be surprised to discover there is a more cost-effective way to get your item from A to B.

You see if you go direct you could end up paying more than you need to – especially if you’re an ad hoc poster or despatching just a small number of items. That’s because there is an alternative that could save you money and still deliver the same high quality service you’d expect from one of the big brand couriers.

collectmyparcel.com is a parcel re-seller.

What this means is we can book collections with the major couriers on your behalf.

But here’s the really interesting bit. Because we book collections on behalf of so many individuals, we are often able to give you a cheaper price than you would get by going direct.

In addition, if getting cheap parcel delivery is important to you, the free quote and book service makes it really easy to ensure you get the best deal for the item that you wish to send. That’s because by typing in just a few details such as your delivery postcode and parcel dimensions, you’ll able to compare delivery specifications and prices for courier collections from a range of household name courier companies.

What’s more it’s quick and easy.

So whilst you could go direct, if you’re looking for the best price you may be better off using a service such as that provided by collectmyparcel.com.

But what do you think…?

If you choose to post a parcel with a courier service you can elect to have it delivered the Next Day (depending on collection cut off times).

In addition, if you’re happy to pay a premium, you can also ensure your parcel is delivered by a specified time period. The main difference is that these timed delivery services attract a premium price because they guarantee delivery between a tighter time window than the standard Next Day option – for example by 9am, by 10am or by noon.

However, there will be times when this premium service is worth the extra investment. Here are just three examples of when a Timed service may be just right for you:

1. Your recipient does not want to stay in until the end of the day to await the arrival of their parcel.

2. The parcel contains an item that is time sensitive, which means it must arrive by the morning.

3. The recipient is waiting to use the item that the parcel contains and would like to get cracking ASAP.

As a sender you don’t need to do anything different to access the timed delivery courier network. Simply specify at the time of booking what premium service you require. The service will then be reflected on the electronic barcode to ensure your parcel is handled in the appropriate way to ensure timely delivery.

In addition, because your parcel is linked to a unique barcode number, you can also check online to confirm that your parcel has been received.

It’s all part of the courier service.