We know how important slick delivery and parcel tracking is to your brand reputation however, the last mile of a product arriving in one piece is not the final step in the customer journey. This blog looks at the world of unboxing.
Customers want brands to help them be more sustainable and eco-conscious when it comes to their purchasing. Unboxing can provide a new opportunity for brand reputation by creating an experience that lasts in the mind the customer while making use of eco-friendly secondary packaging. 

Creating a memorable experience for the customer around the big reveal of the product is an opportunity to leave a long-lasting impression that could be the difference in them coming back for more.

A new opportunity.

Secondary packaging can serve a much greater purpose than just protecting your product to ensure it arrives in one piece. 

Why not combine increased ‘wow impact’ for the buyer at the same time as reducing impact on the environment by customising your packaging?

Customers want brands to help them be more sustainable and eco-conscious when it comes to their purchasing. Retailers can seize two opportunity birds with one stone by creating an unboxing experience that lasts in the mind and maybe even the homes of your customer.

  • 98% of retailers say packaging sustainability is important to their business values 
  • 94% of retailers say packaging sustainability is important tot heir customers (Internet retailing)

Marketing your sustainability​.

The outer packaging is the first impression the customer has with your product, especially if it’s a gift and the recipient has never engaged with your website but it’s more than just how your packaging looks.

Beautifully customised, branded and packaging is an effective marketing tool and not as expensive as you think in the world of digital printing. Re-thinking packaging as a marketing cost could pay off when done right.

If the attractive packaging is also very clearly made from sustainable materials, encourages the customer to consciously recycle or even better, reuse, you are closely associating your brand with sustainable practices thus boosting trust with increasingly eco-conscious consumers.

Sustainable packaging is one or all of these:

  • Made from recycled materials
  • Single-material that’s easily recyclable
  • Uses as little material as possible
  • Encourages the recipient to reuse it
  • Can be repurposed into something else

Show them you care, encourage them to share.

Putting extra care and attention to detail does not get missed by the customer. This is why sharing the unboxing experience on social media and on Youtube is so widespread. 

Unboxing has the potential to offer businesses a post-sale marketing tactic to generate further sales. User-generated content going viral is priceless at the same time as being free!

Vloggers & influencers filming and sharing the live unboxing recreates the physical experience for viewers, it boosts sales and trust and that all-important anticipation. 

Ways to boost your box:

Branded boxes
Digital printing – a versatile option that allows creative freedom with the look of packaging
Brand story – printed on the inside rather than on additional materials 
Actively encourages shares and user-generated content
Void filler mood killer.
Products that are overpackaged annoy customers and can earn a brand a reputation for being wasteful. It’s worth taking a step back to examine the massive impact extra materials and worse, empty space, has on the environment and your company costs.

  • The average eCommerce package is 40% too large
  • In the U.S., unnecessary eCommerce packaging equates to 5.8 million tons of paper annually, coming from an extra 98 million trees
  • Transporting empty space requires an additional 24 million trucks to ship all that extra volume, burning an extra 1.7 billion gallons of diesel.

Global shipping volume is set to reach 200 Billion parcels by 2025. (Pitney Bowes) With this in mind, it’s a no brainer than packaging as well as more sustainable delivery has to become a priority for retailers. 

It makes sense for merchants to leverage new technologies and materials and customise their packaging to fit products. Customers expect online retailers to take responsibility for the amount of packaging and waste they produce and have no problem publicly calling out companies that they see as being irresponsible.
Sustainability initiatives result in ROI.
It may seem like a huge undertaking to overhaul these practices but the good news is that sustainability initiatives result in positive ROI. Even if it initially requires some trial and error. Reducing packaging reduces your costs at the same time as reducing your carbon emissions. And of course, looks sleeker to your customers. What are the benefits?

  • Huge savings on packaging materials 
  • Massive reduction in shipping costs
  • Enhances customer trust and reputation

By educating your customers on your innovative initiatives and the progress you’re making towards sustainability you actively boost trust and ROI.

ECommerce continues to grow but growth and sustainability shouldn’t be mutually exclusive. Forward-thinking companies have the opportunity to make a difference while delivering experiences that their customers will love. 

Sources: Strategic-packaging, multichannel merchant, Forbes, Big Commerce, GWP group, Internet Retailing, Pitney Bowes, 

Author: Laura Roche, Marketing Coordinator, Scurri. Find out more about how Scurri connects commerce and optimises your online ordering, shipping and delivery to be simple, effective and adaptable to your needs. Check out their blog at www.scurri.com.