Commentary from the staff of Auctiva.com
Simple Packing Tips To Impress Online Buyers
7
Packing shipments is an art. After watching our in-house PowerSeller do a few nifty things to pack awkward items, I started thinking, what do other sellers do to ensure their items make it to their destinations in good condition, while keeping packing and shipping costs in check?
Miriam Otto, the owner of Blue Frog Shoes and an eBay-certified educator, was kind enough to share three of her packing tricks. They’re simple tips that will make a lasting impression.
Packing Tip No.1: Tissue, anyone?
Her first tip was to wrap all items in white tissue paper before putting them in boxes.
“Buyers absolutely love it!” Miriam notes.
The paper makes shipments appear professional and provides protection for the bumpy road that may await your shipment. A nice thing about tissue paper is that you can frequently find it at dollar stores, meaning you won’t have to spend much.
“It can also be purchased in bulk at some club stores during the months of November and December,” she adds.
And if you want to add a little color by using colored tissue paper, you can, just be sure to wrap your items in a plastic bag in case the package gets wet somewhere along the way to your buyer’s doorstep.
“You don’t want the color to run,” Miriam explains.
2. Packing Tip No. 2: Make your own box
Don’t worry; you don’t have to go to a paper factory to do this. You just have to gather a few boxes you have lying around. You can do this to create large or small boxes. For instance, if one of your items is too big for the box you have, or is an odd-size, tape two smaller boxes together to get the right fit.
“I sell oversized shoes,” she says. “If I don’t have the right size box for a pair of large shoes, I sometimes tape two Priority shoe boxes together.”
But don’t skimp on the tape. You want the boxes to hold together and look professional.
If you have a box too large for a smaller item, don’t be afraid to cut down the box to size, either. A box cuter will come in handy here, just be sure to cut along the folds—and take your time. You don’t want to end up with a crushed mess.
Packing Tip No. 3: Reduce weight when you can
Cutting down larger boxes won’t just help you get the right fit for your items, it can also help cut your costs by reducing the weight of your shipment.
“A few ounces can sometimes make a huge difference when it comes to price,” Miriam reminds us. “Cutting down boxes can often reduce the amount you pay at the post office.”
Just be sure to leave enough room in your box to add enough packing peanuts and packing paper to give your item, or items, cushioning so you’ll have a happy buyer at the end of the transaction.
What are some of your simple packing tips? Tell us below.
About the author
Olga Munoz is assistant editor of The Online Seller, an online publication that covers news and writes feature articles about e-commerce, selling trends, eBay policy, online marketing and other topics of interest for online sellers. She also manages The Online Seller’s social media efforts.
I feel you left off one of the most important shipping tips: Never, ever use tape to close inner wrappings. Use rubber bands. These are available from your local post office if your postmaster is friendly or from the USPS website. I have receive packages that were taped like a mummy-resulting in a lot of frustration as well as occasional damage when attempting to remove the wrapping.
I use plastic grocery bags as cushioning for light or not-too-fragile items. They don’t weigh much, and are plentiful, recyclable and reusable.
Any item that ships in a USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate Box is shipped with paper, and plenty of it, since there won’t be an additional weight charge. Save the bubblw wrap, styrofoam or peanuts for items that need to be as lightweight as possible, but still need to be protected.
NEVER ship a package that makes a noise when shaken after packing. There will be more chances of damage when the item or items is “swimming” around the inside of the box. It’s really amazing how many sellers ship items with little to no inner packing material. My “golden rule” of shipping is to pack items as securely as I would expect when I purchase items myself. Nothing is as bad as an item that you have been anticipating to receive arriving broken or damaged in the mail.
Selling vintage china means packing some of the most fragile items possible! Coming from a background in the record business (remember LPs?) I learned how to ensure that my ‘fine breakables’ arrived safely. Here are a few of my tips:
Reinforce your box with extra cardboard at its inside corners, and across the top before closing to help redistribute the weight and impact that it will endure on its trip ~ I go to Costco once a month or so, and pick up a stack of those double-layer corrugated cardboard strips that go between bags of chips, jugs of laundry soap, etc.
Cut those down with a utility knife so that the holes in the cardboard run upright (from top to bottom of the box), and place around its inside perimeters, with an extra piece at the bottom. Cut the piece for the top a little long so that you can score, then fold down a few inches (or more) down each side, placing the flaps OVER the reinforcement along the box’s sides ~ imagine it like a flat roof over the walls of a house ~ then close the box. This will ensure that whatever pressure your box takes is borne along its walls, and the sides & top won’t cave in as a result.
I also stuff in more styrofoam peanuts than it seems the box will hold, making sure it settles down between each bubblewrapped object and the box’s sides ~ contents settle during transit, and if your fragile pieces move around inside the box, any hard edge they encounter could be trouble!
Finally, don’t use newspaper to wrap dishes ~ it’s difficult to wad up enough that it does the job, and the ink could stain porous ceramic pieces.
I wrote a blog entry called “Pack and Schlep” where I demonstrate some other techniques ~ check it out if interested!
Your blog is very informative and useful thanks for you tips and insight.
I have a secret to packing, and it works. I agree with your useful comments and would like to post some of you material on my site look for the link to howtomakemoneyfromrubbish.blospot.com
Thanks for the wonderful tips.
I often use the contents from my shredder as packing material. Fluff it up, and it is light weight.
I sell mostly light weight metal charms. I ship with delivery comformation – so that means it has to go out first class. I hated buying a padded envelope (50 cents) and then with pay pal/ebays fees coming out to 80 cents or more – it was like I was giving the thing away for free.
A friend’s daughter said to buy a big envelope, the brown vanilla envelope kind and cut it in half. I have been doing that for a year and a half now. I get two envelopes for 1 price (10 cents). If I think the item is to fragile I wrap in bubble wrap and pin to my invoice. Still fits and cost is the same.
At the dollar store, I picked up one of those scissors that makes a fancy cutting edge, to add a bit to the envelope.
I also found out that if I leave on the post office counter they hand stamp but, if I drop off in a box it goes through a machine – even when it says fragile or hand stamp only.
Everything I read in these threads is helpful and ensures safe arrival. I plastic wrap nearly every item I send to protect from water damage using either saran wrap or a form of a grocer clear plastic bag because they’re almost weightless.
Shipping breakables, the rule is the product should NEVER touch any part of the box. It should be completely couched within.