Five Steps to Make Your Unboxing Experience a Success in 2024
- Written By: Hendrell
Hendrell
The most wonderful time of year is almost upon us, but alongside the festive joy, the holidays can be a high-pressure time for ecommerce retailers.
Ultimately, the holidays are a time where you want to acquire new customers, retain your current ones and build brand loyalty to last beyond December. But what’s the best way to ensure you do this?
An unforgettable unboxing experience, of course! Unboxing experiences are a crucial component of an ecommerce brand’s toolkit. They provide the first tangible experience of your products and transition your brand experience from online to offline.
Just how popular is the unboxing experience phenomenon? According to Google, the amount of time people have spent watching unboxing videos just on their phones is the equivalent of watching the movie Love Actually more than 20 million times.
When done right, they are the ultimate word-of-mouth and referral marketing tool for people to spread the word about your brand, as 40% of online shoppers would share an image of their purchase on social media if it came in branded packaging.
This holiday season, make your products feel like a gift for customers by giving them a beautifully designed unboxing experience. Here’s five steps to follow to do so below.
1) Choose your unboxing vehicle of choice: a box or mailer
First, it’s time to choose which type of exterior packaging you want to encase your products in. While a box gets a mention in the title, mailer bags can achieve a great unboxing experience, too.
Whether a box or a mailer bag is best suited to your brand all depends on what you’re shipping and how much protection and space your products need.
Generally speaking, boxes have the advantage of more protection. They’re more durable because of the structure and materials used (such as rigid cardboard) so they will keep products safely in place in transit. This also means you have more control over the presentation of your products and can have a good idea of what the customer will experience when the box is opened.
@almost30podcast and @huni.and.bea
Mailer bags are also made of durable materials (like recycled plastic or Kraft paper) but products cannot be secured in place within them. This means there’s less control of what product or packaging the customer experiences first when the bag is opened, but they are more flexible in terms of what they can fit within them. Many ecommerce brands use them for their efficiency and flexibility.
2) Use packaging design and placement to enhance product presentation.
Mailer bags are also made of durable materials (like recycled plastic or Kraft paper) but products cannot be secured in place within them. This means there’s less control of what product or packaging the customer experiences first when the bag is opened, but they are more flexible in terms of what they can fit within them. Many ecommerce brands use them for their efficiency and flexibility.
It also serves a functional purpose tool, too. Tissue paper can be used for stuffing or cushioning your products to secure them in a box or bag, ensuring they stay safe during the shipping process.
We’d recommend using a custom design that displays your logo or brand name for ultimate brand recognition and recall – plus it looks great if your customer snaps a picture for their social media feed, too!
@boisthelabel
3) Identify the outside of your unboxing experience with stickers or tape.
The holidays are a time where shopping skyrockets, so ensuring a great unboxing experience starts with making your parcel stand out from any other purchases delivered over this period.
If you’re keeping costs down by using stock mailer bags or boxes, you can always identify who the parcel is from by adding some finishing touches to the exterior of your packaging.
Custom stickers, stamps and tape are a great way to add a pop of branding to the exterior of your package and let your customer know right from the moment they receive it who the parcel is from.
Displaying your logo or brand name in the design, or even a happy holidays message, shows you’ve gone the extra mile to get their attention.
@thekindcurator
4) Include a personalized note as the final touch.
You’ve got your interior and exterior packaging layered and ready to go alongside your products, and now you’re wondering what the final step to an unforgettable unboxing experience could be.
The answer? Personalization. People want to feel as though this experience is unique and one-of-a-kind, so having a personalized message included with every order will make it all the more memorable.
@amymariahdesign
The easiest way to do this is through a custom card insert that includes a message specific to your brand. There is ample opportunity to get creative here: it could be a thank you note, a message about the holidays, a token of appreciation for their purchase such as a discount code, some background on your business story, a space left where you handwrite their name – the list goes on!
This gesture won’t go unnoticed and will make your customer feel like they’re the only person in the world who got this experience.
5) Don’t forget about sustainability.
While we’re on the subject of layering packaging for the ultimate unboxing experience, it’s important to be mindful of the waste created.
The holidays can be a very unsustainable time of year, so don’t leave your customers feeling disheartened by excess packaging and materials that don’t break down after being used.
Opt for packaging materials that are either recyclable, compostable or reusable for your unboxing experience and include end-of-life instructions for your customers that guide them through the correct way to dispose of it.
As well as this, you can share the impact they’re having by shopping with you when you’ve used sustainable packaging. This adds even more credibility to your brand in a customer’s eyes and shows you’ve done your homework when it comes to sustainability.
@endofjunevintage
Final words
A great unboxing experience isn’t complicated, but the more time and thought you put into it, the more special it becomes!
These holidays, take the time to craft an unforgettable unboxing experience and watch your brand reap the rewards in the months to follow. Best of luck for the busy season ahead!
By Elly Strang, Content Manager
Want to find compostable, reusable or recycled packaging for your unboxing experience? noissue lets you design your own branded eco-friendly tissue paper, stickers, tape, and more. Simply upload your design, logo, or illustration, and we’ll do the rest. Learn more about our packaging options here.
