IDS Value-Added Service: Custom Branded Packaging and Inserts
Custom Branded Packaging and Inserts: An IDS Value-Added Service
Shipping your company’s products in nondescript packaging, such as the plain brown corrugated cardboard box or the ubiquitous white poly mailer bag, is one thing. If, on the other hand, you want to stand out from the crowd with packaging and inserts, like greeting cards and personalized notes, that positively impact customers in ways they won’t soon forget, then it’s time to learn more about one the most important value-added services we offer at IDS: Custom branded packaging and inserts.
3PL Value-Added Services for Better Business Results
As your business grows and changes over time, so do the needs your third-party logistics and fulfillment partner must meet. Does your current 3PL partner deliver all your needs? What about the new and anticipated needs coming in the future, whether sooner or later? At IDS, we’ve become a 3PL industry leader due to our expertise, state-of-the-art technologies, and a robust array of value-added services our clients love. From Kitting, Pre-Kitting, and Phantom Kitting and Returns Management and Processing to Custom Branded Packaging and Packing Slips, Product Labeling and Repackaging Services, Quality Assurance Product Checks, Embroidery, Personalized Gift Messaging and Gift Wrapping, Cross Docking, and Drop-Ship Style Order Fulfillment, IDS has what it takes to meet your changing needs.
Why Custom Branded Packaging and Inserts Matter
Many businesses continue to approach product and shipping packaging as nothing more than a vehicle in which the product makes its way to the buyer. They assume all the consumer cares about is the product itself, not its packaging. The business then considers the packaging a cost to minimize as much as possible, resulting in thoroughly uninspired packaging and a huge missed opportunity.
The missed opportunity here is about customer delight. If your brand matters to you, then custom packaging matters. Well-designed custom-branded packaging is a highly effective way to extend the reach and impact of your brand. It could prompt a customer to do an unboxing video and post it to their social media. It signals to the customer that you’ve considered how to make their end-to-end experience better, and care translates into trust, which is worth its weight in gold for any business.
IDS conducts a lot of eCommerce order fulfillment for clients, and this is a point that comes up over and over: because eCommerce businesses already have fewer touchpoints with customers than brick-and-mortar businesses, it’s critical to get the most out of your packaging, including its potential impact to influence brand perception positively. You only get to make a first impression once. When your product arrives at a customer’s doorstep, you can make a better first delivery impression than you’ll get out of a plain cardboard box or poly mailer bag.
At this point in the product lifecycle, branded packaging can make all the difference by ensuring customers have an authentic brand experience from ordering your product to delivery. When done right, custom-branded packaging can accomplish the following:
- Make your brand and products stand out in a competitive market.
- Reinforce and extend your brand image, identity, story, and values.
- Inspire and prompt customers to record and post unboxing videos, enhancing your online marketing.
- Enhance the customer’s overall brand experience, boosting satisfaction and loyalty.
The best packaging provides the perfect mix of form and function, which is why it’s worth putting a lot of time and effort into packaging design, whether it’s the product packaging or the shipping packaging. Does custom-branded packaging come at a cost? Yes, of course it does. However, you can view it as an investment with a return that can more than offset the cost.
Determining If Custom Branded Packaging is Right for You
This value-added service business process from a third-party logistics provider often falls under “the umbrella of white glove 3PL services.” Only some businesses will need or want customized packaging with their branding on it. Consider the following questions when trying to figure out if it’s time to level up your packaging game:
- Are you looking to improve your brand visibility and recognition?
- Does your packaging lack a unique or memorable branding element?
- Is your current branded packaging aligned with your brand image, identity, story, and values?
- Do your customers post unboxing videos?
- Do product returns reflect poorly designed packaging that needs to protect the product?
- Are you interested in branded packaging but are concerned about the cost?
- Does your company have the in-house expertise to design superior branded packaging?
- Are you interested in sourcing more sustainable, eco-friendly branded packaging but need help figuring out where to start?
- Can your current packaging provider scale up to keep pace if your business grows?
- Is custom-branded packaging a trend in your industry that you must leverage for your company?
- Is your current packaging a competitive advantage for your business?
- Will custom-branded packaging give a return on the investment you make into it?
- Does your current 3PL partner (if you have one) offer the value-added service of custom-branded packaging?
How you answered those questions should reveal whether pursuing custom-branded packaging makes sense. You may have yet to have answers for some of the questions, in which case IDS is happy to help. Schedule a free consultation, and we’ll provide the information and guidance you need to make a well-informed decision about customization processes.
Personalized Inserts: Notes and Greeting Cards
Make no mistake: customers love individual, personalized attention from your company. IDS offers value-added services for personal notes and greeting cards we can insert into the shipping packaging to accompany the ordered product. When the package is delivered to the customer, and they open it, they will love the personal touch of a note or card with whatever message you want it to carry. The result is an immediate and lasting boost to both customer delight and loyalty. If a customer has ordered the product to be sent to someone as a gift, IDS can also do customized gift messaging and gift wrapping. There are many different ways to extend your branding and make each product delivery a personalized experience for customers. Does your current 3PL fulfillment partner offer all that? Whether you want to do any of this right now or not, would you rather be working with an order fulfillment service provider who at least has such options available in case you do want to take advantage of them in the future?
IDS: All the 3PL Fulfillment and Related Services You Need to Succeed
Whether it’s warehousing and distribution, pick and pack fulfillment, or eCommerce order fulfillment through our IDS distribution centers, we have decades of experience and state-of-the-art technologies to help you streamline your supply chain so you can focus on growing your business. As your company grows and evolves, you’ll know we can meet changing needs through our robust array of value-added services. That’s what we call the IDS advantage. Ready to work with a 3PL partner who gets the superior results you want? Drop us a line through the Contact page of our website, call us directly at 866-576-0576, or fill in our request-a-free-quote form.
We look forward to discussing what IDS can do for your business!
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