Everything related to the word e-commerce is fashionable, and of course, e-commerce packaging is no exception. For some time now, packaging companies have advertised themselves as "experts" in e-commerce packaging, but what is the reality?
Don't Be Fooled
Let's be honest, the boxes for e-commerce and other types of packaging now used almost exclusively for this sector, are the same that have existed for many years. In the packaging sector, we have always called them folding boxes, die-cut boxes, mailing boxes, self-assembling boxes, etc. Their name was derived from their shape, assembly or manufacturing characteristics.Experience Counts
To facilitate the search for packaging solutions for this type of business, a good supplier must offer packaging for e-commerce that they know fits the needs, thanks to the supplier's own experience.So choose a packaging supplier that has a selection of the most used packaging solutions in e-commerce. The selection should be based on the experience of the experts and their work with many clients in the e-commerce sector.
What You Should Consider
Experts in packaging recommend several factors to consider when choosing the ideal packaging solution:- Age: A newly created company is not the same as a company with a history. At each business maturity moment, the resources, efforts and experience in shipments are different. Therefore, the required solutions will also be different.
- Industrial sector: Of course, this is an important factor to take into account. Depending on the industrial sector of your company, the packaging requirements will be specific to that sector.
- Positioning: When you start selling online you must take into account your brand positioning. You must be aware that the only physical contact that the end customer has with your brand is the packaging in which the products arrive. So the packaging must be at the forefront of your positioning. It must express the "look and feel" of your brand.
- Market: The Internet is global and reaches the whole world, but your future or existing online store does not. To save on packaging costs or extra shipping costs for re-shipments due to breakage or damage, you can choose packaging based on where your shipments will go. Therefore, depending on the distance and shipping time, you might choose higher or lower quality packaging.
- Budget: Finally, although we have all the previous points very defined and clear, if you do not have the appropriate budget it is possible that, in the end, you will not have the ideal e-commerce packaging solution for your business. That is why e-commerce entrepreneurs must include packaging as an item in the business plan. When your business is based on internet sales, as indicated previously, the packaging will be the only physical touchpoint with the client.
