Over the past several decades, many businesses have worked tirelessly to eliminate waste from the traditional retail store model of packaging. But with the rise of e-commerce, they have to make even more changes. Some companies have found the transition to e-commerce-ready packaging easier than others. But failing to change with the times has consequences, including higher costs and a less than satisfactory shopper experience.
Brands Are Rising To The Challenge
While it’s not easy designing packaging for flexibility versus just scale, innovations such as inflatable protective packaging are proving how creative companies can be. The three key elements of e-commerce packaging design include fit, quality, and an ability to withstand damage. Consumers notice these details, and they actually shape a buyer’s brand perception.
Appropriately sized packaging is a must and plays a vital role in a product’s protection en route. Using inflatable protective packaging reduces the chance that your product will shift. This is important because shifting leads to damage. On top of that, packaging quality impacts the customer experience when they open it. E-commerce-ready packaging gives you another chance to showcase your brand.
Customers Notice Everything
Sometimes a package sustains damage en route through no fault of the manufacturer. Regardless, customers can make instant negative brand associations. In fact, when a parcel is late, lost, or damaged, 41 percent of customers develop negative feelings toward the brand and a reduction in brand loyalty. Additional negative outcomes of insufficient e-commerce-ready packaging include increased logistics costs and negative social media comments.
Innovation Is The Name Of The Game
The sooner brands start changing their packaging, the sooner they’ll reap the benefits. Using inflatable protective packaging for laundry detergent, for example, reduces the chance of the detergent being damaged in transit versus if it were packaged in the rigid containers seen on store shelves. Further possible damage with traditional plastic packaging includes loosening thread caps, dented cans, and cracked or broken package caps.
Think Customers Over Store Shelves
E-commerce ready packaging works because it puts the customer experience over the retail experience. By taking care of things like packaging fit, along with quality and protection, you safeguard your product and your brand’s reputation.
You can even go one step further and negotiate a service level agreement with your carrier. That means if your carrier is responsible for damage, you’ll get compensated. But this isn’t realistic unless you have already done due diligence on your end by reimaging your packaging in an e-commerce friendly way. The most successful manufacturers will be the ones who respect their customers via the manufacturer-to-customer chain process.
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