How Different Packaging Materials Can Help Boost Customer Retention

Customers care about packaging materials. While it may not be immediately obvious just how impactful the right packaging material can be, consider this: Ipsos found that 72% of Americans said that a product’s packaging often influences their purchasing decisions.

That means that if your business isn’t offering the right packaging material types, you may be losing out on a sale. What’s more, 55% of online shoppers said that they would return to a website if their purchase came in custom packaging, highlighting the importance of packaging customization in customer retention.

All that said, let’s take a look at a variety of packaging material types, and what each material is best suited for.

Bubble Wrap

Old reliable, bubble wrap isn’t exactly cutting-edge technology. Still, it’s a versatile and useful packaging material that helps keep things safe without adding weight. It’s also easily recycled, meaning that environmentally conscious consumers will be happy to reuse the bubble wrap. Bubble wrap comes in a variety of sizes depending on how large the item being shipped is and it can be an effective packaging material for a variety of products.

Styrofoam

Another classic, Styrofoam is great at adding protection for larger, rigid items. It is especially useful in protecting the vulnerable screens of electronics in transit. E-commerce businesses can also use polyethylene sheets as a thinner, more flexible option, although it offers less protection compared to styrofoam.

Rigid Boxes

Rigid boxes are different than cardboard due to—you guessed it—their rigidity. They are harder and studier than regular cardboard, making them both feel fancier (think a gift box that contains jewelry) while also holding up better during transit. The main issue is that ridged boxes are hard to store (they don’t collapse like cardboard, see below) and they are a bit on the expensive side. Still, rigid boxes are an effective packaging material for a variety of goods.

Corrugated Cardboard

The ubiquitous delivery material, corrugated cardboard holds everything from your latest Amazon order to your pizza. These are strong, lightweight, and easy to store, but are susceptible to damage via water if not finished. And their ubiquity can workagainst them: they often appear cheap to the customer.

Polybags

Polybags are the common packaging material favored by the mail. They are lightweight, thin, durable, and can carry a wide range of goods from electronics to liquids to fragile goods packed inside rigid boxes, for example. They’re also highly reusable, lowering their environmental footprint which will impress some customers. They also have a variety of quality-of-life additions like handles, hanging holes, and even security features. And as a kicker, they look quite professional compared to many other materials on this list.

Take Advantage of Polybags and Materials That Fit Your Needs with APS Fulfillment, Inc.

Having the right packaging material for your product and customer is an easy win in terms of revenue gains and customer retention. You’ll never again lose out on these easy wins when you partner with APS Fulfillment, Inc.

We offer full-service e-commerce fulfillment out of Miami that includes state-of-the-art warehouse management software (WMS) and we make inventory management and goods tracking easy. We’ll also support your business and automate the warehousing, prepping, shipping, picking, and packing of your orders!

With APS, whether you need polybags or rigid boxes or cardboard, we have you covered, so you know you can provide exactly what your customer is looking for.

Get in touch with us and one of our consultants will tailor a fulfillment plan designed to grow your business. Book a consultation by calling (954) 582-7450 or email info@apsfulfillment.com.