With our online world and the on-demand lifestyle, it is becoming increasingly difficult to cultivate a loyal and reliable customer base. There are just so many options available to every customer today, meaning that consumers are more fickle than ever. It is a leap of faith when new users become customers and decide to convert on your website. For retailers and e-commerce companies, this is an opportunity. You have a direct link to re-market and capture an audience with your printed packaging. The packaging you send out to your customers is more than just functional to protect the goods as they whizz through the post. It is a marketing tool. First impressions count and the materials you use are the initial judgements a new customer is going to make about the physical quality of your brand. This is how your printed packaging earns you repeat customers.
Trust In Your Brand
As we just mentioned, printed packaging is the first physical representation customers will get of your brand. It is imperative that it needs to be high-quality and serve its purpose. Look at Amazon reviews; so many products are marked down or don’t achieve the rating they deserve because of ripped and non-durable packaging. This can reflect poorly on your business and could deter future, new customers (which would stunt the growth and success of your company), but also the chance of people returning to your service.
You should make sure the materials you choose are suitable for the product you are selling. They should always be durable and protective. If you are not sure about the materials you are currently using, get in touch with your supplier. Good quality packaging printers and providers will be able to talk you through each material and perhaps suggest alternatives; for example, it might be an idea to trade mailing bags for mailing boxes to boost your brand reputation.
Including Personal Touches
The things you include in the package (other than the ordered items, of course), are a fantastic opportunity for re-targeting and re-capturing your customers. Some companies, especially cosmetic, health and food brands who have a hard time getting customers to take the leap of faith and diversifying their online orders, give out free or sample items for customers to try. This can be expensive and unrealistic for an SME to provide to customers. However, personal touches are extremely low cost but effective.
A hand-written note or little thank-you to your customer helps to establish relationships. Notes that are directed at the customer, personalised with their name are extremely effective. Building relationships will showcase your brand’s personality and your USP as an SME – it will feel like your customer is getting to know you on a personal level. This positive, emotive experience makes them more likely to reconvert in the future. Customers seem to really appreciate the time brands put in when they do this, too, often sharing cute notes and funny lines on social media – perfect for user-generated content and brand visibility!
Start Building An Online Community With Physical Packaging
Whilst on the subject of social media and building up an online, loyal customer base, there are other tactics to take. Provide customers with an incentive to follow you across your social channels with a cool, printed leaflet or flyer. Something bright and attractive that showcases your brand can encourage customers who enjoy your products to join your community.
The flyer can outline why people should follow you – frequent giveaways, competitions, inspirational posts, interviews and things that are of interest to them. This is a doubly beneficial tool because the bigger your online community, the more your voice and your brand can grow. Also, it provides an ongoing opportunity to re-market and re-target those customers, all within your printed packaging!