Imagine, if you will, that you run a large organisation that is busy with routine tasks every day (although not as busy as you used to be). When it comes to the run-up to Christmas, though, you are guaranteed to be REALLY busy. Really. Busy. Busy10 if you like.
If that were the case, it would surely be a bonkers decision of the highest order to migrate your website to a new platform around, ooh, the end of November/beginning of December, wouldn't it? Only an insane person would do that.
Yet that is precisely what Royal Mail has done. With predictable results.
Something was awry as long ago as Saturday 19 November. I tried to use the [usually extremely handy] online postage printing facility, only to find the whole website down with a message saying it wouldn't be back online until the next evening. Sigh. Still, what better way to spend Saturday morning than queuing up with the great unwashed of Brentford at my local Post Office? I can encapsulate the PO queuing process thus: waiting for aeons while two foreign folk try to do something complicated involving a passport application, being behind someone who gets to a vacant counter position and THEN starts writing addresses on their parcels, an old man shouting Sieg Heil and describing everyone as N*a*z*i*s because he's annoyed by one of the questions on his travel pass form, all with a backdrop involving a scrape-haired harpie simultaneously screeching into her mobile phone and at her disobedient toddler. Joyous.
After a suitable period lying down in a darkened room in the recovery position, I was subsequently extremely interested to
read this story about how the Royal Mail's Price Finder website has been
unavailable due to technical difficulties caused by aforementioned migration.
This has lasted more than a week, and an updated statement from Nick Landon,
director of customer experience (!), is reproduced below for your delectation
and delight. Dear Nick, my experience has been miserable...
Show me anyone - anyone - who has migrated a large website over to a new platform without the slightest technical glitch and I'll send you one of my nice Christmas stamps (at least something useful came out of all that queuing).
Website Technical Difficulties W/C 27 Nov 2011
Updated: Friday 2nd December 2011
Dear Customer,
I am sorry that there continues to be some problems with parts of our website following difficulties experienced by some customers since the beginning of last week. I wanted to update you on the latest position while my team and I continue to work hard to resolve outstanding issues as quickly as possible.
The initial problems some customers experienced followed technical difficulties that arose after the migration of part of our website to a new platform. As soon as we identified the problems, my team and I worked hard to resolve them as quickly as possible.
Some customers continue to experience technical difficulties with parts of our Online Postage and SmartStamp services. We are working around the clock to fix these individual issues as they arise. I know how important it is that we restore full service for all users as quickly as possible and apologise for the inconvenience this is causing.
Our Pricefinder application remains unavailable but we are hoping to restore the service very soon. We have placed a price guide on the website until that is the case.
Additionally, some people have experienced delays and other difficulties when using our online redirection service during the past week. We are very sorry about this and have contacted all affected customers.
Customers can access all other applications including our online redelivery service.
Please accept my sincerest apologies for the ongoing disruption some of you are experiencing. I am really sorry that it is taking us longer than we would have liked to resolve the issues. I will continue to update you on our progress while we continue to work to restore all applications to full service.
Yours sincerely,
Nick Landon
Director of Customer Experience
