See that little black folder? That's the product I ordered.
And see that big box of paper and bubble wrap. That's what the product came in.
Now, I'm not being nasty about this particular business. The service was great, the product was presented beautifully, and it arrived in one piece. I suspect they wanted to get my order to me quickly, and that was simply the only box they had available at the time (I'm sure I've done the same sort of thing).
But it did get me thinking.
As a 'mail-order' business, we want our products to arrive in good condition; we want the experience of opening the parcel to be special; and we want to avoid unnecessary waste.
It's a tricky balance to get right.
So I'd love to hear from you - what are your expectations in terms of postage and packaging when you order something online? Particularly for clothes - do you have any preferences in terms of how you would like to see them packaged and sent, and what role do things like price, presentation, and waste play in all of this?
Wow, that is some amazing packaging for one little folder. I'd say it was over the top.
ReplyDeleteWhen we lived in Canada, our kids went to a private school and we had to order uniforms from a uniform shop. They always arrived at the school and it was also over the top - each item would be wrapped in white tissue paper with a little fancy sticker to seal it, then placed in a fancy paper bag and sealed with a cute little ribbon. I always thought that was WAY too much overpackaging. But then, it possibly appealed to the Hummer Mummas at the school - the surgeon's wives that drove fancy cars and lived in mansions and wore bling. But perhaps I'm stereotyping just a little bit!!
I would love to hear what others have to say, as I'm starting my portrait photography business and starting to research how to present my products. I don't want to use any more packaging than I need to because of the environmental impact, but I suspect that when people are paying big bucks for a print or photo book, they'd expect it done up nicely. ??
Thanks Alana. This is just the issue. I don't want to be wasteful, but I do want it to be special. :-)
ReplyDeleteI have some ideas, and know it can be done - but other people's views do help to put it into perspective!
That packaging is definitely a bit over the top, surely a flat envelope with a slip of cardboard in it to prevent the item from getting bent would have be fine?
ReplyDeletePackaging for me is simple. Currently I use prepaid post bags for postage but am looking at going back to basics with using brown paper as my postage packaging to save on costs for my customers.
With my orders I put everything folded up nice and neat in those snap lock bags. This keeps them clean and dry in case the postman decides to leave a parcel where it might get wet, etc. I did look at tissue paper, but this is expensive too and not something that will generally be used again once the customer rips open their parcel. Whereas a snap lock bag is reusuable many times over. You can also get them in lots of different sizes. A lot of my fabric suppliers also use cellophane bags with the self stick closure, so I re-use these as well to send my products out.
Love to hear other options as well though of what others do.
Hi Mother Hen ;-)
ReplyDeleteI recently got ONE DVD in a 10 inch square box filled with those foam peanuts....ridiculous!
A piece of sturdy cardboard around it and into a stiff envelope would have been fine!
I like the snaplock bag idea and also sealed with a little sticker is cute too. Maybe a cute Moederkip sticker ON a snaplock bag, into a prepaid satchel? :-)
Are you sure that there wasn't a fridge packed in there somewhere? YOu might have just missed it with all the packaging...
ReplyDeleteThat looks just a little OTT! LOL
ReplyDeletePersonally - for clothing and other goods that might be damaged by getting wet I like them to come sealed in a snap-lock bag (or similar) despite the fact that that is not very environmentally friendly.
A set of nifty stickers with your logo on it might be enough to jazz things up a little. I am also partial to a hand printed little card/tag or some butcher's string but even that is a little OTT.
Kate and Nelly - loving the sticker idea - such a nice little way to personalise it, without going OTT.
ReplyDeleteAnna - I was thinking about the cellophane bags, but the snaplock bags are definitely a more practical option. I know we have them for around the house, and they get used and reused many many times.
Tas - now there's a promotional idea - free fridge with every pair of leggings ;-)
I love the idea of a little card. I pop a card in with every thing I send off. A little thankyou for their order. I like personalised service, not too OTT, but a little bit to make you feel special ;) I like the zip lock bag idea too! :D
ReplyDeleteI love getting a parcel that has a sticker or something on the back to say where it's from - you can get really cute ones. I also love the ones that include a little note, and maybe a nice business card or something.
ReplyDelete