As a small business owner, margins are tight. As much as you’d love to create a brilliantly designed custom package to proudly showcase your brand…it just seems TOO EXPENSIVE.
Complete Packaging Solutions in Brookville, Indiana gives you cost-effective packaging options for your small business, as well as a few helpful tips.
To plan accurately, you’ll need to know the following:
A professional packaging company can walk you through it all and help you to answer critical questions. Like…
Several factors impact your timeline — namely, the material and structure of your package. Heavier, complex packaging takes longer to produce (and increases shipping costs).
Example:
Heavy, corrugated, rigid box packaging takes 20-30 days to produce and tends to be quite expensive. If you need fast turn-around times, opt for a less dense material.
Try a folded carton!
Compared to corrugated box packaging, folded cartons aren’t just eco-friendly and low cost, they offer plenty of finishing options to display your unique brand.
Between 1-3% of your total revenue. This gives you a lot of wiggle room to do what you want with your package design. Your budget needs to account for time as well.
Ask yourself:
“Okay. How long will it actually take to complete fulfillment?”
Time is money. Packaging materials directly impact your bottom line.
Don’t get too caught up on individual unit costs. One package might be four cents less than the other; but is it the right type? Is it lightweight enough to ship for a good rate?
A custom packaging company can help you make the right choice. But how do you find the right fit?
NEVER settle for the absolute cheapest option. You’ll likely get the worst results. The company you choose to work with will impact how much you’ll pay, the extent of design options available within your budget, and more.
Finding an affordable packaging company that offers (a.) plenty of design options, (b.) various printing methods, and (c.) a thorough development processes.
According to experts in the packaging industry, one of the major trends will be for flexible packaging process designs, where customers get more transparency and freedom to alter their package designs as they see fit.
A great packaging company will work with you to find the perfect design that meets all of your needs.
Find out how much you’re willing to spend, then create packaging that is within your budget.
Establish price estimates for:
Related Post: The Fast Guide to E-Commerce Packaging!
There are plenty of additional packaging options to boost your product’s appeal while staying well under budget.
Branded tissue paper: It’s a cheap and effective way to accentuate your customer’s unboxing experience while providing a little extra product protection.
Note inserts: It’s a cost-effective way to go the extra mile with your package. Note inserts can be a thank you letter or a business card printed in bulk.
Custom mailer boxes: Custom mailer boxes are some of the cheapest packaging options available, often made with nifty enhancements like dust flaps.
Logo stickers: Going with a simple sticker with your logo on it can be all you need to stand out and make an impression on your customer without breaking the bank.
Custom tape: Colored or patterned tape is a cool way to elevate your package’s design with minimal cost.
Paperboard boxes: Shipping boxes aren’t as strong as corrugated ones, but are far cheaper, lightweight, and perfect for smaller items.
Poly mailer bags: These are dirt-cheap, showcase the product to customers, and are commonly used for smaller retail items, like HDMI cords.
Padded envelopes: Plastic or paper on the outside with padded bubble wrap inside gives your product extra protection and insulation. Again, did we mention that it’s cheap?
At this point, you will choose your die-line, identify where your package will fold, or what grooves it will have in order to fit specific products or accessories.
The smaller the package, the lower the cost. Work with a designer to make sure you’re maximizing your space. Are your items fragile? They’ll likely need extra protection with padded inserts and protective spaces.
Related Post: The Small Business Guide to Seasonal Packaging
A minimalist design is your best choice (even without a tight budget).
You can get a stylish package design with your brand’s logo, colors, and fonts without paying a premium.
Your design options will depend on the manufacturer you’re working with.
It’s also highly recommended that you print within CMYK and NOT PMS color to keep costs relatively low.
The right finish or coating can add a tactile, sensory element to your box that gives it an edge above competitors. Being able to feel the package is part of an unboxing experience that gets associated with your business’s brand.
How do you do it?
With the right laminate finish!
Not only does this protect your package, but it also works with light to create a unique user experience. Leveraging contrasting coatings and finishes, like foil stamping or lamination, provides an alluring look in any lighting condition.
Most custom packaging design companies offer detailed prototyping of your package.
At Complete Packaging Solutions, we pay meticulous attention to the details of your package, to ensure there are no blemishes, typos or color bleeds before launch.
For the sake of quality assurance, we print a tangible, finished package as a final review. This is done to make sure no hidden or hard-to-see mistakes were missed in the virtual mockup.
A little extra time dedicated to proofing and product testing is done to prevent you from paying hundreds of dollars to fix the design, layout, or structure of your final package.
Let the experts at Complete Packaging Solutions help you pick the perfect package for your product and your industry. Contact us for a quote today at (765) 547-1300.
It’s Packaging Week at Maker’s Row! Get free access to our Packaging email course + $10 off membership when you sign up your brand with code “PACKAGING.“
Finding the right packaging is always a challenging project for many companies but looking for the most cost-effective option & quality service is just as gut-wrenching. Luckily, PakFactory has put together the best options for your custom packaging without completely emptying your wallet. Let’s look at some popular cost-effective packaging types you can use for your products (please note that prices are based on 10,000 quantity range).
Among one of the most cost-effective packaging option is the poly bag (or plastic pouch bag). Made out of plastic film material, it is commonly used for food, chemical, flower & magazine packaging. Poly bags have also become a common & popular choice for product packaging as it is very easy to produce. It can be fully customized and provide extra protection to the products through its locking features.
Price can range from $0.03 to $0.14 depending on the size, style, design & quantity.
A popular choice for many product packaging for its customizable options from materials, shapes, style & printing while keeping costs low. It is also lightweight but durable and can be cut into any types of structure allowing a wide range of flexibility for designing. Paperboard come in different grades allowing different types of packaging requirements from SBS paperboard to environmentally friendly material such as Kraft.
A reasonable price for folding carton/paperboard standard boxes are usually under $0.30 – $0-60 per unit. This packaging option can go as low as $0.14 per unit depending on the simplicity, size and quantity of boxes produced.
Adding special processes including foil stamping, window patching, spot UV, 2 side printing & special PMS colors can go up to $1-$2 depending on quantity.
A quick and easy packing option are paper bags for product packaging. Many retail businesses have opted for paper bags to package their clothing for its convenience and cost-effective nature. Several grocery stores also use paper bags to package their food products in order to reduce environmental issues and a way to brand themselves as an eco-friendly business. Paper bags can also be fully customizable in style, printing & shape without emptying the wallet.
Prices range from $0.25 – $0.35 per unit depending on added specialization and customization.
Finding the right packaging for cosmetic cream, pharmaceuticals, liquids and other smaller products can get very pricey especially considering the additional packaging for the bottle in order for it to be retail & wholesale ready. Luckily, small plastic & glass bottles can be an affordable option at a bulk. They are reusable, small to package & reduce shelf space in retail stores. Depending on the manufacturer you choose, they can be fully customizable in print as well.
Price range are approximately between $0.65 – $1.00 depending on size and type.
Corrugated cardboard is the most common material for packaging. It is typically used for shipping, shoe & storage boxes. It has become a popular packaging option as well for e-commerce and product packaging. Subscription (or mailer) boxes typically use corrugated material to keep products from getting damaged during shipping but still maintain the design and sophistication of the structure to attract customers. Corrugated boxes are fully customizable like paperboard except have a higher degree of durability. It is, however, still cost-effective for anyone using the packaging as both the main retail & shipping box.
Price range for corrugated boxes are $0.75 – $0.95 at the standard sizes, style and printing.
Plastic boxes have been used widely in different industries from paper clips to candles. It is popular among sharper products that can’t poke through material unlike cardboard. Plastic boxes are more durable than paperboard boxes and can withstand extreme conditions especially when storing fragile products like baked goods. Lastly, it showcases the products perfectly at any angle. The biggest advantage? It’s not as expensive as you think.
Printed plastic boxes can go for $0.75 – $0.95.
Popular among the tea, coffee & baking industry, side gusset bags are meant to create a dense environment inside the packaging to help maintain the flavour of the product and helps protect it any incoming bacteria. It has also become a popular choice for bedding and clothing products to keep it secure and tight. Food, however, is typically packaged in these type of bags to increase shelf life and prevent it from spoiling.
The price range for these products can go for $0.80 – $2.50
These are the boxes you see in many high end retail & electronic stores. They are meant to provide the best looking and most durable packaging for products. Think of the Iphone 7 packaging box, that is a rigid box. Rigid box is made out of condensed paperboard four times thicker than the standard paperboard. They are the most expensive among the bunch but still affordable enough to create luxury packaging (depending on your manufacturer).
Basic Rigid Boxes can range from $3.00–$5.00 a piece or $5.00–$30.00+ for a more lucrative style, printing & special process
PakFactory is a recommended manufacturer that provides low cost, quality boxes, and great service. We also curated a list of Packaging Factories. Use the code PACKAGING to get $10 off a Maker’s Row plan and start searching!