Step 1: Consider Your Products
First, you need to consider your products. Fragile products like glassware would require a different packaging material than products like clothing, for example. Food items may also require a sealable packaging material.
Materials like corrugated cardboard are ideal for fragile items, poly or plastic bags are ideal for non-fragile items, and glass or aluminum is ideal for many food items.
Step 2: Consider Your Brand
Next, you need to consider your brand. Your packaging says a lot about your brand, who you are, and what you care about. If you’re not sure what you want to say with your packaging, you should think about your brand personality and values.
For example, if you’re a trendy and hip brand, you may want to use hip packaging like aluminum or poly bags. If you’re a green brand that cares about the environment, you may want to use recyclable packaging materials like corrugated cardboard, aluminum, and glass — avoiding materials like plastic that are not easily recycled.
Step 3: Consider Your Customers
Obviously, you also need to consider your customers when choosing your packaging material. After all, they’re the ones who are going to benefit from it the most! For starters, you want to choose packaging that’s easily opened. Packaging that’s impossible to open can quickly ruin a customer’s unboxing experience.
You also want to choose a packaging material that’s going to appeal to your customers’ values as well. So if your customers indicate that they care about the environment and are willing to pay more for sustainable packaging, you should listen to them and make green choices.
Fill empty spaces in your packaging with paper or cardboard fillers as opposed to plastic packing peanuts or bubble wrap, for example.
Step 4: Consider Your Shipping Method
One factor that’s often not considered when choosing your packaging material is the shipping method for your products. Packaging for products that need to be shipped from one end of the country to the other looks different from packaging for products that need to make it home from the store.
If you’re a direct-to-consumer brand that ships all across the country or even the world, you can’t really go wrong with corrugated cardboard packaging that’s durable, lightweight, and affordable. However, if you’re a retail brand, you can be more creative with other materials like glass, plastic, paperboard, and more.
Step 5: Consider Your Budget
Sometimes you might think that you found the perfect packaging and product moving supplies, only to find out that it doesn’t fit within your budget. For this reason, it’s always a good idea to establish your budget upfront so that you don’t waste time considering materials that you can’t afford.
If you’re looking for the most bang for your buck when it comes to your packaging material, you really can’t go wrong with corrugated cardboard, paperboard, or poly bags. Conversely, premium materials like glass, aluminum, and plastic are going to cost more.
Step 6: Consider Custom Packaging
No matter which packaging material you choose, you should definitely consider customizing it to take your packaging game to the next level. This advice applies to both retail and D2C brands. For example, if you’re a retail brand, you may want to consider a custom paperboard box, whereas if you’re a D2C brand, you may want to consider a custom mailer box.
Customizing your packaging helps you achieve your packaging goals by promoting your brand and protecting your products. Branded packaging that incorporates your company logo, colors, and fonts is a great marketing tool. Custom packaging in the right dimensions promotes a snug fit for your products and offers protection throughout the shipping process.