Outperform Other Amazon Sellers with Your Retail Packaging

What separates your product from all the others on Amazon?

Shoppers usually have at least a dozen options for every item they are looking for .

So what catches their eye as they scroll through search results?

The answer may surprise you.

Amazon buyers are influenced by product reviews – we all know this – and the basic priorities are pretty obvious:

• Does the product meet expectations?
• Does it work the way it’s supposed to?
• Are there capabilities missing that would make it better?

But there are a few additional ways to ensure your item stands out.

Packaging quality is important, and standout retail packaging that not only ships well but also impresses consumers delivers a higher perceived product value in the eyes of the buyer.

Here are a few ways you can set yourself apart from other Amazon sellers with retail packaging that’s both high quality and eye-catching.

Improve Reviews and Increase Conversions with Litholam Packaging

Goods purchased online fare better in consumer reviews when they arrive in attractive packaging. When they don’t, consumers will write about it in their reviews.

Don’t believe me? Read through several reviews and you will see - packaging matters to buyers.

This is important because reviews influence new, potential consumers. Impressive packaging could help you score a five-star review, which will then lead to your next conversion.

Litholam packaging is quite versatile when it comes to enhancements you can add to your design. The design can include foil treatments, film lamination, a UV layer, and oil stamping. Any combination of these applications, along with high-quality and full-color graphic design, will help your litholam box make its way into the buyer’s online shopping cart.

Avoid Packaging ‘Fails’

Great packaging will get you review stars. By the same token, packaging ‘fails’ will help you lose them.

Some packaging design traps you should avoid include:

• Excess waste. Big boxes can help an item stand out on a retail shelf in a brick-and-mortar store. But that won’t work for online shoppers. Consumers don’t want a box that’s way too big for the item, and anything bulkier than it needs to be is sure to be noted in a review. Make sure your goods are shipped in size-appropriate boxes by carefully adhering to Amazon’s special inventory shipping guidelines. To promote waste reduction and prevent poor reviews, familiarize yourself with Amazon’s certified “Frustration Free Packaging” program, which has saved over 83 million corrugated boxes so far, according to Packaging Digest.
• Poorly constructed packaging. No one wants to deal with returns from damaged goods. Drop and shipping testing can prevent this from happening. Your structural engineer can help ensure your packaging design can endure transport by scheduling these tests and tweaking the design as needed.
• Unattractive appearance. There is nothing less exciting than receiving a brand new toy in a clear plastic bag. Except maybe receiving a brand new toy someone ordered off Amazon for you in a clear plastic bag. The days of shipping goods bought in online stores wrapped in plain packaging are over. Attractive packaging wins the hearts and minds of consumers today.

Capture Your Packaging in Its Best Light

Packaging designed for items sold in physical retail stores is visually tested from a few different distances—ten feet away, three feet away, and one foot away. Online packaging doesn’t have that luxury. Typically, product packaging shown in a digital Amazon listing includes just one photograph taken at midrange. Fine details and smaller fonts may not be visible. Keep this in mind when you design for online shoppers, and make sure the photo you use is of high graphic quality.

Try Something New in Retail Packaging

Another creative decision is whether to emulate market leaders in terms of their presentation, or go a different route and differentiate your product from the other sellers.

Your decision will be determined by the nature of your product and your customer demographics. If you’re looking to sell some sort of generic product variant and are competing on price, emulation is a valid strategy. If you’re looking to disrupt a market, you may want to invest in a unique packaging design that sets your product apart from its competitors. Being an early adopter of a new trend can go a long way, especially in a retail space like Amazon, where visuals count.

Video boxes, new environmentally-friendly substrates, holographic images, and hand drawn sketches printed onto packaging are just a few new trends that are hot right now.

What is the Unboxing Experience Like?

Admit it. Even when you order something unexciting from Amazon, it still feels a little like Christmas morning when you open it.

Keep this ‘unboxing experience’ in mind when you design your packaging for online retailers. A pleasant unboxing experience that impresses the consumer increases the perceived value of the item, reinforces buyer decision, and can help you get better reviews.

As the online retail space becomes increasingly competitive, it’s more important than ever to put some serious thought into how your packaging is perceived and experienced by buyers. Thinking about the buying experience from start to finish—from browsing to unboxing—will help you come up with a design that has a real impact on customers.

Many retailers are only now coming to terms with how important product packaging is to online sales, especially on Amazon. The sooner your company embraces these best practices, the further ahead you will be.