Earlier this week, we discussed essential supplies for an online retailer. As we were developing that list, we noticed that the most important element was in fact the box. So, this Friday we are going to break down things to look for when selecting your shipping boxes.
Shipping boxes come in a variety of sizes. They often range from about 4”x4”x4” to extremely large boxes. However, for most consumer retail stores, you won’t need to order boxes much larger than 12”x12”x12” because larger items will come packed one to a box and you won’t need to repack it.
We suggest ordering a variety of box sizes and then seeing what you go through before ordering a large quantity of boxes. The key to saving money is to ship items in the smallest box possible. At the same time, you should try to pack an entire order in one box in order to save on shipping costs.
Why is this? Well first of all, each individual box has a unique shipping/tracking code. So your customers would have to enter in two codes in order to track their packages. Also, there is usually a flat fee associated with shipping a box. Then fees are added onto the box for additional weight. So if you ship two small boxes, you pay the flat fee twice and then the weight fees. If you ship in one slightly larger box, you only pay that flat fee once.
When selecting a box, versatility is key. We suggest using a kraft colored box made of corrugated fiberboard. Unlike standard flat cardboard, corrugated fiberboard has multiple layers including the accordion-like corrugated middle layer. This extra layer of paper allows the box to have some give, which will help cushion your products and make them less susceptible to damage during the shipping process. The kraft color will make your boxes postal ready, so you won’t have to take the extra step to cover them with paper prior to shipping.
Then don’t forget to keep some bubble wrap and stretch film on hand to wrap packages and fill the empty space in those boxes in order to ensure that those packages make it safely to their final destination.
What type of boxes do you typically use? Do you have to repack your items, or can most of them be shipping in their original packaging?
