Whether you are selling your handmade goods as an independent vendor on an online marketplace or selling from your very own e-commerce store, choosing how to package your product is a step that should never be overlooked no matter how big or small your business.

A customer’s shopping experience goes far beyond just browsing your store and placing their order. Unlike old-fashioned brick and mortar stores where the customer receives their product at the point of sale, a quality online shopping experience requires the seller to send their product to the customer.

In this post, The Packaging Company provides five actionable tips to help make sure your packaging will never let your customer service down.

Tip #1: Prioritize Product Security

First and foremost, keeping your product in one piece during shipping is vital. Too often, products arrive to customers broken or misshapen due to poor packaging choices that could easily be remedied.

To protect your product from potential damage during shipping, add protective padding materials such as bubble wrap or packaging tissue. Packaging foam is also highly effective by securely holding your product in place and can be placed on corners of your product that would otherwise cause tears or rips in the packaging box. Moreover, packaging foam boasts the advantage of being light and therefore will not noticeably affect shipping fares.

Tip #2: Choose the Right Cardboard Box

While the interior of your packaging needs to shield the product from damage, so must the exterior. Corrugated cardboard boxes are a hardy, recyclable and light-weight solution to packaging boxes that are preferred by many e-commerce sites.

When choosing the box size, consider the dimensions of your product and its packing materials. For example, choosing too small of a box can lead to overstuffing or tightness, which adds unnecessary pressure to sealants such as tape, making tears much more likely.

Conversely, opting for a box that is too large can give your product too much free movement, resulting it in it sliding inside the box. Not only does this damage the cardboard box, but it can also cause fragile products to break.
As a rule of thumb, if you find yourself needing extra packaging tape to keep the box secure, it is likely too small. On the other hand, if you can feel the product easy tilting inside while moving the box, the box is too big or needs more protective padding to help fill out unwanted space.

Tip #3: Add Personal Touches to Your Packaging

As an e-commerce seller, you might be accustomed to using plain and simple packaging for your customers. While most businesses do tend to be minimalist when it comes to packaging design, this can often let down the appeal of high-quality and valuable products.

Remember, first impressions do count. When your product arrives at your customer’s doorstep, this is likely the very first time they have interacted with your company and your range of products. Treat this moment as an opportunity to present your brand and show quality customer service through thoughtful packaging design.

From measures such as adding custom branded tape to personalizing gift boxes, attention to detail can significantly boost customer satisfaction and project a positive image of your brand as a thoughtful and considerate seller.
Similarly, quality customized packaging can go a long way in marketing, especially if it catches the eye of an influencer or reviewer who often shares their experience unboxing a product through social media platforms.

Tip #4: Choose Reliable Transit & Shipping

Accidents can happen during shipping that are typically not the fault of the seller. Yet sadly, e-commerce businesses can still bear the brunt of customer complaints when things do go wrong.

When a customer experiences poor customer service from their courier or mail service, they may also subconsciously pass this disappointment onto your business too. Instead of telling their friends, family, or coworkers about their experience with your store or product, your customers may be too preoccupied complaining about a poor courier service to do so. This is sadly a missed opportunity that affects many online sellers, with some customers even publicly venting their frustration on the seller’s platform for other potential customers to see.

To mitigate this, dedicate some time to researching couriers and delivery services. If you are selecting a local courier, consider reading reviews to gauge how effective and reliable they are in your region or city. Before selecting a courier, look for frequents complaints such as parcels being damaged, left in unsecure places, or customers having poor interactions with the delivery notification system.

Tip #5: Ask for Feedback from Customers

Part of delivering a quality customer experience is being adaptable and listening to your customer’s thoughts and feelings. Though many sellers often reach out to buyers asking for their thoughts on the product, they still tend to forget about packaging.

Whether you are following-up with an email questionnaire or asking for a product review, give your customers the opportunity to give feedback on the packaging. They can help identify issues that can quickly be resolved and improve the shopping experience for future customers.

If you are looking to get a better idea of how to properly package your product before launching it, you can also incorporate this feedback during your market research. This extra step means your product will be well-optimized for customer satisfaction and can help ensure a strong product launch.

Stock Up on All Your Packaging Supplies with The Packaging Company

Overall, quality packaging can make a big difference to a customer’s online shopping experience. To give your packaging the quality treatment it deserves, consider purchasing your packaging supplies from The Packaging Company. We provide a wide selection of reliable packaging solutions for e-commerce sellers, supplying everything from mailers to custom tape.

It is time to give your customers the genuine customer experience they need, browse our catalog today!