07 Jun 2004 | Colin D. Devroe said...

As you said, it doesn't appear to be of too much use. However, I think it would be really cool if you had ordered say an iPod Mini and a Powerbook - and the picture you recieved only had 1 box in it, then I would be concerned. Perhaps it will lead to catching shipping mistakes early on in the process.

Oh yeah, in answer to your question. Very cool.

07 Jun 2004 | Bryan Haggerty said...

I suppose the real question is whether you can do anything if you notice something that appears to be wrong. If so this could pose a lot of problems for CDW such as false problems which could in turn increase shipping time.

This mostly just seems like a method of differentiating between the others out there. Gives them a slight competive edge. Plus you can compare the photo taken at the warehouse and what you get at home. A little bit of insurance.

07 Jun 2004 | Brad Hurley said...

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but to me this removes some of the aura of "mystery" that I find appealing about mail and online ordering. I remember when I was a kid, the first thing I ever ordered was one of those Estes model rocket kits, and I would run down to the mailbox every day after the postman passed by to see if my parcel was there. When it finally arrived, there was a delicious sense of anticipation as I ran back to the house, shot up the stairs to my room, and opened the box to look at the contents inside. It was like unwrapping a Christmas present.

So now I'm older and more jaded, but even so I still get a little thrill when I receive a box in the mail or by courier.

I think being able to see your box, open, before it's shipped takes something away from the experience. I don't even like to track my parcels; I'd rather be surprised when they arrive.

07 Jun 2004 | Jesper said...

Thinking inside the box. :)

07 Jun 2004 | One of several Steves said...

Cool, but as far as I can see, useless. Can I call and tell them to stop, that's not what I ordered?

If I can't act on it, it's 1998-ish thinking. Hey, let's do this just because we can! I certainly don't see any benefit for CDW in terms of cost savings or efficiencies. Quite the opposite, in fact. And I really doubt that it's a compelling enough feature to influence customer choice.

07 Jun 2004 | Allen said...

It's an excellent feature. One of the things I hate most about purchasing over the net are the "what-if" questions. What if they shipped the wrong thing? What if they've missed something, etc. It's more psychological than anything else, but seeing your package in the midst of shipping eliminates some of those "what-ifs". It keeps my mind at ease.

07 Jun 2004 | Heidi said...

It seems to me that taking those images would be practical--as proof against customers who claim their box arrived missing something, a means of verifying employee honesty, etcetera--and someone clever in marketing or pr stumbled across the internal photo auditing system and said, "Hey, that would make a great gimmic if we gave customers access to it on the web!"

They should consider expanding to quicktime videos of the box as it travels down the conveyor belt, gets taped shut, addressed...

-- H

05 Jul 2004 | Andrew said...

Great! thanks
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