
Show HN: I redesigned the USPS package delivery slip - alizauf
https://medium.com/@alizauf/i-redesigned-the-usps-package-delivery-slip-fd43d8607753
======
joshvm
For reference this is how Royal Mail does it in the uk:

Side 1 has the relevant info time/date/what/etc

[http://cdn1.alphr.com/sites/alphr/files/images/blogs/wp-
cont...](http://cdn1.alphr.com/sites/alphr/files/images/blogs/wp-
content/uploads/2013/02/Royal-Mail-delivery-card-.jpg)

Side 2 has contact information for your nearest post depot. Note that
date/time is simply changed to 'hours' which saves space.

Fees to pay is actually a separate form (it's rare for most people to get
this, so why waste space on form 1?):

[https://www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/fee-to-
pay-10-...](https://www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/fee-to-
pay-10-2015-220x309.jpg)

I think it's pretty clean and it's normally obvious what's happened/what you
need to do. They follow a lot of the suggestions in the OP, for instance the
who/what/where/when is obvious and at the top. Payment is another form, as
above, and the options for getting your item are on the back. There's enough
room for large entry boxes and nice whitespace/branding.

It seems like that the USPS form is trying to handle every single possibility
in one form which leads to a mess.

~~~
3princip
A Serbian Post example:

[http://i.imgur.com/pqmUdYE.jpg](http://i.imgur.com/pqmUdYE.jpg)

I hate getting these, if I'm waiting for a package it means I have to wait
another day and pick it up myself, if it's addressed to another family member
and they're not around, the package is basically returned as they refuse to
hand it over at the post office (understandable but inconvenient).

But generally the post is fascinating, I order lots of stuff from China and
while it does take a few weeks to arrive, nothing has been lost/stolen yet, I
can track packages half-way around the world and it costs me almost nothing.
Logistically it's amazing.

~~~
the_mitsuhiko
I think postal services in all of Europe are heavily improving as a result of
all the internet orders. They started rolling out pin locked boxes here which
you can install for a fee at home and they put the package in there and then
throw the one-time use pin into your mailbox. I think this sort of stuff has
potential.

//EDIT: these things:
[https://www.post.at/en/personal_receive_mail_collection_box....](https://www.post.at/en/personal_receive_mail_collection_box.php)

~~~
alizauf
I think this is what the gopost option is supposed to do, but this version
seems more effective.

------
nipponese
Will probably get some downvotes for the raw criticism, but your redesign is a
regression in usability for both the carrier and the recipient:

In the actual, the fields where the poor guy/girl actually has to write are
large spacious to allow the delivery person to write quickly (and sloppily).

Also, notice how Final Notice is bigger than the rest of the text? That's
because it's important. This is one example of confusing typographical
priority.

I'll just stop there.

~~~
blowski
I actually agree with what you've written, but I downvoted you because I hate
reading comments that say things like "I will probably get some downvotes". If
you think you're going to be downvoted, ask yourself why and consider
rewriting it in such a way that people won't downvote you.

For example, in your comment here, to make it less downvotable you could say:

* What do you _like_ about the redesign? There must be something positive you can say, even if it's just "it definitely looks more visually appealing" or "I understand that you were trying to improve usability by putting more information on the same side".

* Do you have any evidence that supports your counter-argument? If not, you're just two people with opinions, and since you're not a well-known authority on usability it's just noise.

* What would you suggest doing to fix the problems you've said here while also fixing the problems that the OP identified? Or do you not agree that those problems are really problems?

~~~
Infinitesimus
> If you think you're going to be downvoted, ask yourself why and consider
> rewriting it in such a way that people won't downvote you.

I don't think intentionally trying to write in a way that doesn't provoke
downvotes is helpful to a healthy discussion.

The post in question was direct, that's it.

While it is fair to suggest that the parent post highlight the positives, I
don't think it is necessary always. Especially in light of 45 hearts on the
medium post in support of the word. I'd say your last two points were
addressed in the post as well...

~~~
blowski
I agree with you that avoiding downvotes doesn't promote healthy discussion.
However, I take exception to someone pre-empting downvotes - to me personally,
it comes across as a challenge to disagree and I don't think that's helpful to
a healthy discussion either.

If someone writes something without thinking about whether they'll be upvoted
or downvoted, then that's great, even if I disagree with them. But writing
with the explicit assumption that you'll be downvoted suggests that you're
being contrarian.

~~~
noxToken
Fact of the matter is that websites like this breed hivemind behavior. The
behavior may only be on a per thread basis, but when people see a lot of
upvotes and positive praise, the natural response to a challenging post seems
to be, "You're just going against the grain. Stop being an asshole." This is
also true for comments that get downvoted.

As an example, I had a post where I said the concept of payday loans is not a
bad one while simultaneously denouncing the predatory practices that payday
loan companies employ. You borrow a small money for 15 days, pay back the loan
plus 20% ($200 + 20% in fees and interest = $240), and call it a day. All it
took was one post to say that I'm siding with the payday loan companies. The
highest I saw was +3. It's currently sitting at -7. I think prefacing the post
would have helped the vote count.

Prefacing a post acknowledging possible downvotes is a forewarning to readers
that the poster is going against the grain - contrarian if you will - but not
in way that's purely devil's advocate. It says to me, "I know what I'm about
to say disagrees with you guys, but please hear me out." It's probably not the
most eloquent way to express that idea. I have never seen it as a challenge
though.

------
level3
I applaud the effort, but there are a few points about usability that you may
have overlooked.

1\. Entry spaces are now much smaller and requires smaller writing,
particularly for names and addresses. I actually doubt that many addresses
will fit.

2\. By putting the checkboxes closer together, it makes it harder to tell them
apart. The delivery person now has to be more precise when making marks,
leading to reduced efficiency.

3\. One of the biggest points is that everything the delivery person fills out
should be on the same side, so they don't have to flip the sheet over,
especially when they may be carrying a package in one arm.

~~~
alizauf
Agreed that I could make the spaces for writing bigger. I might make another
version with bigger writing spaces. Also, good point, re: 3.

------
KaiserPro
I would say that your use of checkboxes is off. There shouldn't be any need to
explain that if a check box is ticked then this sentence applies.

Royal mail have got it down to a pretty good art:

[http://cdn1.alphr.com/sites/alphr/files/images/blogs/wp-
cont...](http://cdn1.alphr.com/sites/alphr/files/images/blogs/wp-
content/uploads/2013/02/Royal-Mail-delivery-card-.jpg)

and earlier:

[http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ZKsGEgLdzMc/S-kztysmnJI/AAAAAAAAAL...](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ZKsGEgLdzMc/S-kztysmnJI/AAAAAAAAAL4/7JGTTAX7OHA/s1600/Royal+Mail+failed+page+2.gif)

The main issue I have is that there is too much space devoted to telling you
stuff you already know. You know the destination address because thats why you
have the card. More importantly there isn't a space for a tracking number. (I
assume the USPS has some sort of tracking.) surely that's the most important
thing?

    
    
      Dear _______ We missed you,
      Your package __________ was:
      []too big []needs payment
      []needs signing for
      and is now back at the post office.
    
      [] I will try again AM/PM
      [] The package will need collecting
    
      Date_______ Time_______
    
      Notes:
      _______________________
      _______________________
    

On the back collection information.

Much more simple, readable and compact. The flow of information is from top to
bottom, most important who its addressed to, next why its not been delivered,
then when its being delivered (if at all) Date and time of attempt, extra
notes.

~~~
level3
There are a couple of cases where the destination address is valuable to
ensure that the package is delivered to the right person.

1\. Particularly in apartment buildings where postboxes are next to each
other, the slip may not be placed in the correct box. If I receive a slip
that's intended for a neighbor, it would be helpful to know the correct
address (since I probably don't know all my neighbors' names)

2\. If the address is my address but not my name, then it's either a mistake
by the sender or it's intended for a former resident, and I can inform USPS.
If the address wasn't on the slip, I would just assume it was meant for a
neighbor.

~~~
KaiserPro
Fair enough, It'd be worth putting in the first line of the address at least.
Not too much extra space taken up.

------
sschueller
Here is the one the Swiss post uses: [http://www.balsthal-
collector.ch/holderbank/digitale-fotos/i...](http://www.balsthal-
collector.ch/holderbank/digitale-
fotos/image?view=image&format=raw&type=img&id=7977)

And here is the new one:
[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CRR5bTwUYAE9Tkm.jpg:large](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CRR5bTwUYAE9Tkm.jpg:large)

~~~
cstuder
Note on the new one the right side: You can go online and directly instruct
the post office on how to proceed (Hold it for me, try a second delivery,
forward...)

Additionally I like their email service: Get a mail as soon as somebody sends
any package to your address. Get a second mail as soon as it is delivered.

[https://www.post.ch/en/customer-center/all-online-
services/b...](https://www.post.ch/en/customer-center/all-online-
services/benachrichtigungen-abonnieren/info)

~~~
alizauf
The USPS has some online steps you can take once you get the slip, but I like
the idea of proactively emailing you.

------
markbao
This is a thoughtful redesign. Although the organization of the redesigned
form is stronger in some aspects and weaker in others (stronger in terms of
how much sense it makes and the behavior flow, weaker in its visual
organization), it's still a great improvement.

The key issue is that it seems busy. I think the form could sacrifice the
increased font size (and generally standardize the font size and the font
styles) and instead add more lines and shading that would help separate the
different parts of the form. I think using lines, like the original document,
is a stronger and clearer organizing tactic than font size. For example, more
obvious headers (all caps? white on black background?) would help people break
down the steps of what needs to be done.

But yeah, this is definitely an improvement, particularly on the UX side. Nice
breakdown.

~~~
hanniabu
Agreed. The original slips are very confusing. Not because they're actually
confusing, but because visually the firm is very busy and has all these sub
points and bullets. It more so flusters the mind.

The redesign is much cleaner and easier to look at. Therefore being easier to
process. This is something that is much less intimidating to look at and I
would have no problem filling out while the original is daunting and seems
like more of a chore, if not torture.

------
mintplant
You may want to make it clearer from the get-go that the two images at the top
are your re-design and not the current form.

~~~
csmattryder
Thanks for your comment, I went through the entire article asking "Where's the
redesign?", and had to come to the comments hoping somebody's linked to it in
some way.

I really don't think that the OP's redesign does anything new, it just seems
to be "I removed some stuff that's there for some very specific edge cases and
wrote a Medium post about it".

Maybe it's because I'm used to Royal Mail's parcel slips, I don't know. But it
looks just as confusing as before.

------
chinathrow
Initial reaction to the first two images: "Curious on how he/she would
redesign that non-intuitive layout."

Ouch :(

~~~
powerslide
Same here, I thinking the first images were the original form.

~~~
jdiez17
Me too. I actually scrolled back and forth a couple of times thinking I missed
something (I only skimmed the text).

------
Theodores
This is why the world thinks we need designers... In this case I think a
designer is needed, the layout falls short in conventional layout terms -
grids, use of white space, things just lining up properly.

Give it another go, take on board what people have said here about it looking
to busy and get the form to have function and look good!

You can do the bit that some manager would hand over to a designer, that
designer not necessarily as good as you at understanding the task, or the 'how
it works' bit of design.

~~~
alizauf
I do think I'm going to give it another try, thanks. And agreed--I have more
of a background in UX, but this was my first go at paper layout design. There
is definitely much to improve.

------
ajdlinux
What is it with the US government and having indecipherable forms?

I've had a few dealings with CBP, IRS and such, and every time I try to read
and comprehend a US government form, I notice that they all seem to be
designed to have as little spacing as possible. They're very fond of using
lines as dividers between fields (rather than around just the response box)
and then putting them as close together as possible so it becomes a confusing,
uneven mess. Sure, the form takes up fewer pages, but it's ugly as heck.

In Australia, OTOH, while the questions on one's paperwork are still just as
tricky, at least it's usually clear which question you're answering and how
the form is meant to flow.

------
jrockway
The author has the same post office as me. I've never even managed to get
something redelivered even when filling this form out, or filling it out
online. That seems to be the bigger problem.

I would just make the form say, "You can get this thing at the post office
tomorrow. If you don't pick it up by XXX, it will be crushed into a cube."

~~~
alizauf
Ha.

------
plusbryan
Great post! I dream of a day when this will be a pull request on a government
repo so that USPS could more easily adopt it. Imagine average citizens working
together to solve problems that they face every day....

~~~
alizauf
I love that idea.

------
joe_momma
I don't like the redesign, it's less intuitive and has no hierarchical
priority.

Not exactly sure how this made the top 30.

------
ck2
The reason why the USPS forms look so ancient is because they are so ancient.

Their budget has been destroyed over the years by Congress so there is no
money for things like redesigning forms and reprinting them.

I've watched my main post office slowing implode on itself because all of USPS
income is going back into funding future imaginary employee retirement funds
(due to congressional law designed to destroy them).

~~~
jschwartzi
USPS has no budget from Congress. They're the only government agency in the US
that is required to break even using the money they collect from fees.

~~~
ascagnel_
Congress passed a law in 2006 stating that the USPS must pre-fund benefits. It
didn't allocate any money for it, though.

It's the equivalent of your credit card company saying "we think we'll end up
lending you $1m over the lifetime of the card, so can you pay us back all of
that up front?"

~~~
ceejayoz
As with defunding the IRS, the intent likely being to ruin them financially so
they can point to the USPS and say "See? Government can't run anything
properly! Let's give the business to my friend over here..."

~~~
ck2
Actually with USPS it is more insidious than that.

Congress wants to force USPS to allow private corporations access to your
mailbox and replace USPS entirely with privatized services.

Then congresspeople can use their re-legalized inside trading to invest in
those private corporations ahead of time with the knowledge they are about to
pass the law to make it legal.

------
BinaryIdiot
This is a significant improvement though the form itself is still incredibly
busy. I would much rather have something more tailored to my delivery than
this generic thing that requires effort from everyone involved. This is a good
solution for 2007 but 2015? This needs more automation.

For instance USPS should know what type of delivery it is, customer name,
sender, addresses and whether it's a final notice or not. Why can't the
postman / postwoman press a button in their car that prints a sticker with
everything already filled in (without labels even; just a custom made sticker
without all of this busy text).

Press button, slap the print out to the mailbox / house and you're done. Let
the user call a number, text or go to a web site to setup the redelivery
stuff.

~~~
jcrawfordor
Although automation could certainly be implemented to some extent here, note
that on city routes the carrier will often use this form when not near their
vehicle (flats fit in the bag). There are several options for body-worn
thermal printers, but durability of the device and output might be a problem.
These cards are printed on pretty heavy stock and are really very sturdy.

As far as body-worn printing of adhesive labels, I'm not aware of any product
for that. Thermal print (on thermal paper, not thermal transfer printing)
tends to fade very easily in sun or rain and would also be a problem.

~~~
ygra
DHL does that (in Germany at least). The delivery people have combined
scanner/printer things that thermal-print on adhesive labels. So if they
didn't find you and you need to pick up a package, you get a card in the
mailbox with a printed slip on top of it which says where you can pick it up
as well as the opening hours of that shop (which is a great improvement to
before when the opening hours weren't listed).

When you give them a package (you don't have to bring it to the post office,
you can give it to delivery people as well), they scan the label and print you
a receipt (which also has the tracking number on it so you can track it).

The nice thing about that is that adding new features to the print-out (e.g.
the opening hours mentioned before) is just a software update.

Some delivery services here also give you very accurate tracking with a
delivery window that's just 15 minutes or so and you get the option to re-
route the package online if you know you're not present during that time – or
tell them to drop it off in a certain place (I have asked for non-fragile
things to just thrown on our balcony in the first floor before; it's secure
enough and I'd rather have a package instead of having to wait for redelivery
or pick it up), or let them deliver to a neighbour.

All in all I think there are numerous possible improvements here and not all
of them revolve around designing a better form that may be obsoleted by some
of the better options.

~~~
alizauf
I completely agree that any online option or specific printed labels would be
better than a generic card.

------
swingbridge
I got one of these sorts of things one time. It told me to go to a post office
nearby to pick up a package. When I went there they didn't have my package and
the following exchange occurred:

"Why did you come to this post office?"

"Because your form says to come to this post office. See right here on the
slip..."

"This isn't your post office you need to go to (post office a few miles away)"

"OK, so why did you guys tell me to come here?"

"Sir if you want your package you have to go to the other post office."

"Whatever, thanks"

It's constant screw ups and interactions like this that generally cause me to
avoid the USPS whenever possible.

------
huuu
This is the same as the post some time ago about "Why designers can’t stop
reinventing the subway map":
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10534321](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10534321)

------
eecks
I have to ask why bother apart from a personal exercise for yourself. I have
no idea why this got over 150 points on HN.

You could do this with anything.. Facebook, HN, my kitchen, a newspaper. Some
things could be better but don't need to be.

------
atdt
One piece of feedback: I'd argue that it isn't important to specify the type
of parcel. Recipients usually already know what type of mail they're getting,
especially if the sender is identified. Good job, though! I enjoyed the
writing, too.

------
mhb
Why does it need to be jammed into that size of paper? Making it bigger would
relax the most significant design constraint. Maybe it is this size for some
reason; maybe not.

------
scopecreep
My postman can't even be bothered to properly fill out the current one. How
adding more questions to the thing will help that problem is unclear to me.

~~~
thecosas
Part of this redesign is making it easier for the mail carrier as well:

 _I decided to place all these sections at the top since you want to know this
information first. I made it more readable by putting them within a single
Mad-Libs style human-readable sentence. This is the main section the mail
carrier will need to fill out, too, so it should also make her job quicker to
have all the writing in one place._

------
ableal
> aliza.aufri.ch/tig

Devious. I don't think I've come across a personal URL like that before.

------
pduszak
> It took me nearly ten minutes of flipping the card back and forth and back
> again to tentatively figure out how to get it redelivered.

It took me carefully looking at both sides for 10 seconds..

~~~
angdis
Whether it is 10 seconds or 10 minutes (clearly hyperbole), the point is that
these notifications are difficult to interpret because of poor design.

As the attempted re-design and the commentary shows, this is not an easy
problem. It takes some serious effort and consideration of many use-cases.

Instead of someone trying to "Steve-Jobs" a redesign, perhaps the best thing
to do would be to devise a process for coming up with a new design. To do
something like this "right" requires actual study with users-- not just a
designer applying his/her talents.

FWIW, I think the OP's redesign is more clear, but that's just my limited
viewpoint, it doesn't mean that it would be successful over all possible use-
cases.

