Mr. A ordered a new power tool from Amazon, this item here: Makita 18-Volt Cordless 3-Piece Combo Kit. Mr. A checked the prices at Home Depot, and Amazon's price of $262.25 with free Super Saver Shipping was a screaming deal. It included a regular drill, a driver drill and flashlight, two batteries, charger and contractor's bag. Thank you Father's Day Specials!
He was concerned about it being shipped and left outside all day long so I told him I'd be sure to check the tracking option through Amazon.
It was due to be delivered yesterday, and I was working from home.
The only problem: since our home is on the middle of our fenced property it's hard to know when something gets delivered! Usually the delivery guys will hang the item over the fence using a big plastic bag, but someone could drive by and easily snag it. I could listen real hard to see if I could hear the dogs barking as they always do when a big truck pulls up and stops, but that's iffy especially if the air conditioner happens to be running right then.
That was before I knew about Text Trace:
Text Track allows you to track your Amazon.com packages via text messages (SMS) sent to your mobile phone. When you sign up, important tracking updates for that package (also visible in Your Account) will be sent to your mobile phone.
Standard text messaging rates apply, please contact your carrier for details.
I discovered the option when I look at all the delivery details on my order. Apparently it is in beta testing at this time, and is only available for items shipped by Amazon. The updates are sent during the hours of 7am and 8m PST and will arrive once the package is 1) out for delivery, 2) delivered, or 3) if there is a delivery exception. Click here to read more: Amazon's FAQ on Text Track.
Neat!
I was so glad this option was available for my order. It made my day much less worrisome. I didn't have to stress out about someone coming by and swiping it before I even knew it was delivered.
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Now in all fairness, I have to say that although I was much less stressed and didn't feel the need to keep going onto the porch and looking out to the front fence, because I assumed a text would arrive, I finally spotted the box out there around 3pm. By 6:30pm at night, a text had still not arrived. When I looked online at Amazon to see when the package was delivered it was marked 1:45pm and the location was “front door”. That's funny, since they can't get to our front door, and actually dropped it over the fence.
Hopefully Text Track will work better in the future. I still think it's a great option and would definitely take advantage of the option in the future.
Have you heard about or been given the option to use Amazon's Text Trace?
I’ve had really good luck with deliveries from Amazon. Text Track sounds like it would be a great idea for people who don’t work from home and want to check the status of delivery, or in cases where the property is really large or the guy can’t get to your door. Maybe they’ll work out the little quirks while in Beta. Thanks for the info!
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I hadn’t heard of the option before, but it sounds like it could be really cool once they get the kinks worked out.
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blanca Reply:
January 31st, 2012 at 10:43 am
@Jackie,
I have been signed up for this for some time and the dozens of orders in that time have never produced a single text message
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Mrs. Accountability Reply:
February 5th, 2012 at 9:51 pm
Hi @blanca, come to think of it I haven’t gotten any text messages for shipments in a long time either. I just went to check and for some reason I was not subscribed. I had to enter my phone number again. Check to see if you are subscribed still. Log in and go to My Account, then under settings see Text Trace. Let me know what happens. Best, Mrs. A
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I have had great success ordering from Amazon, but have not tried the text trace yet. Sounds like a great idea. Sounds like hubby got a great deal on the Makita tool set too!
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