If you’re a subscription business or eTailer, you already know that there’s no substitute for a well-presented package. And if you’re an online buyer or subscriber, you totally understand why: We all want to know what’s inside a more enticing-looking gift – and we assume the item within it is going to be more valuable.
Let’s look at the topic of personalized and custom packaging and unbox several of the reasons why your company should get on board with this growing trend.
First-Rate First Impressions
Let’s begin with the obvious. During a typical online transaction, the first thing a buyer will see when his or her order arrives isn’t the actual item purchased. It’s the package that surrounds it.
Simply put, a nicely branded box or bag will trump a generic one every time, setting the stage for a more positive customer experience. It’s your first chance to wow a customer in an arena where every wow counts.
Industry research bears this out. In fact, according to one packaging company’s study, 30% of premium customers (those who spend $200 a month or more) are likely to purchase a product again based on custom packaging design.
Lights, Camera, Accolades
Have you ever watched YouTube unboxing videos? The great marketing push they can provide is another reason to consider custom packaging. Great-looking customized boxes are also more likely to get shout-outs on social media or to be shown to buyers’ relatives and co-workers.
Dimensional Cost Savings
Of course, no packaging decision can be solely about marketing. Now that dimensional pricing has become so prevalent, the use of custom packaging can lead to reduced shipping costs for certain kinds of products, because it provides the opportunity to tailor a box’s measurements more closely to its contents and reduce the overall shipping volume.
That’s a huge plus in an arena where shipping costs often represent one of the largest components of fulfillment expense.
A Vast Range of Cost-Effective Options
You probably won’t be surprised to know that pre-printed and designed packaging materials do cost more to produce (and yes, we’re aware that’s not a selling point, so keep reading). That said, there are plenty of other personalized packaging approaches that can help your company make a distinctive first impression without substantially increasing your fulfillment costs. These include:
- Using tape printed with your company’s name or logo
- Adding inserts or giveaways such as a thank you note, product sample, or sheets of gift wrap
- Using a custom logo stamp to personalize the outside of your box
- Employing distinctively colored mailing boxes
So if you think you can’t take advantage of a customized approach to your fulfillment packaging simply because you can’t afford to order a huge volume of pre-printed boxes in a wide variety of sizes, think again. Many personalization tactics are actually quite easy and economical.
Better Product Protection
On a final note, let’s talk product damage during shipment. Everyone is aware that it happens quite a lot, and it can have a negative impact on customer satisfaction and retention.
Although it’s not possible for the packaging materials you use to prevent all incidents of in-transit damage, a well-chosen and designed box that’s better fitted to your product and uses high-caliber filler materials can often serve as the first and best line of protection. And customized parcels often fit that description to a ‘T’.
Let’s Take This Offline
There are many more good things to say about this subject, but in the parlance of the packaging industry, it’s time to wrap things up – at least for now.
Contact Amware if you’d like to discuss the pros and cons of custom packaging in greater detail. We provide fulfillment services to many direct sellers and eTailers and have worked carefully with them to choose the custom packaging approach that’s best for their budgets.
