As an online retailer, shipping charges often represent a large expenditure of your overall budget. On top of shipping fees, packaging costs can be anywhere from 10-40% of a product’s price. While packaging’s main purpose is to protect your product, it must also withstand the shipping process so choosing the correct package type is important. A detailed packaging and shipping strategy will ensure that the cost of getting goods to consumers will not be greater than your sales revenue.
Packaging Materials
In order to reduce dimensional weight fees, packaging materials should be as efficient and economical as possible. Each layer of packaging material, such as foam or bubble wrap, adds to the cost. For items that need protection, one heavy layer of material might be more economical than several lighter ones. Design changes to primary packaging, which are the materials that touch the product directly, can reduce volume, and therefore shipping costs. However, it is important to ensure that products are still protected even with the elimination of excess materials.
Re-design
Re-designing packaging and materials for products should not only reduce the weight of materials, but reduce the cost of them as well. The ability to improve protection of the product with a re-design will also decrease shipping costs by cutting down on damages. Depending on the type and amount of products you ship, it might be economical to carry a few selected sizes of the packaging materials you use most often.
Reduce Cost per Package
Online retailers can decrease shipping costs with the size of the packaging they use. Packages should be as small as possible given the size of the product. If you can substitute mailing bags or envelopes for boxes, shipping costs will be further reduced because their dimensional weight will be less. If boxes must be used, examine the board and liner combinations to get a lower weight and potential savings. In most cases, only two inches of dead space between the product and outer box is needed.
Consider Eco-Friendly
Going eco-friendly with packaging materials can also help online retailers save money by reducing shipping charges on the back end. Using local materials reduces shipping distances and weights on the back end which will decrease the amount spend on material transportation. Smaller orders of materials can be placed and delivered at more affordable costs as opposed to large orders shipped from overseas or across the country. Additionally, recycled materials often cost less than new materials.
Alternative Options
Conventional packaging materials such as boxes and mailers are not the only option for protecting your items. For items that do not require protective padding, coffee bags are inexpensive yet high-quality looking options. Since they keep items thin and flat, shipping rates will be much cheaper than some more voluminous traditional packaging.
By making sure that your packaging options make sense for your product line, you will be able to reduce the amount spent on shipping your products. Visit our website at www.kablefulfillment.com to explore your packaging options.