It ends up in the trash within 60 seconds, so how important can packaging really be? As an online seller, your primary focus is on what to sell and how to sell more, but did you ever think that packaging or the way you ship your products says something about you, your products and your business? For more information on how to plan, build and execute your entire marketplace seller strategy, download the Marketplace Sellers Guide.

Unlike in stores, online shoppers need to be wowed twice: once when browsing your products and again when the purchase arrives on their doorstep. Packaging and shipping services are some of the best opportunities you have to communicate with your customers and remind them why they should be shopping with you instead of somewhere else.

Let’s take a look first at why packaging is important:

• Win the Amazon buy box – Getting a high seller feedback score improves your chances of winning the Buy Box. Give your customers a great reason to provide strong feedback for your products.

• Encourage repeat business – Make the unveiling of your products a truly exciting event. According to the 2013 eCommerce Packaging Survey of U.S. consumers, 52% of consumers are likely to make repeat purchases from an online merchant that delivers premium packaging.

• Stand out among the crowd – Your item may be commoditized with multiple merchants selling the exact same item. If you want to convert one-off customers into repeat customers, make their experience memorable.

• Promote social sharing – The eCommerce Packaging Survey found that 4 in 10 consumers would share a photo of a unique delivery, 83% doing so on Facebook.

The merchandise MUST arrive in 1 piece (unless you’re shipping a jigsaw puzzle of course) so make sure it is wrapped and sealed well. Once you’re sure the product will ship in good condition, it’s time to consider packaging aesthetics.

Check out these simple ways to wow your customers:

• Think Green – Consumers want to feel good about their purchases. Using sustainable materials, such as organic, fair-trade or recyclable paper, will send an environmentally positive message about your brand.

• Re-purpose Your Packaging – Use packaging that can have a second life, that is to say, that can be later used for other purposes. Payoneer once gave away dri-fit running t-shirts. Rather than sending the shirts out in the standard plastic bag, we packaged them inside branded tins. Those same tins have been reused as a pen-pot, cup or even as a child’s drum!

• Jazz Up the Generic – Even if you have no choice other than a standard brown box, try to take whatever steps possible to personalize it.
  • Seal the box with colorful branded tape
  • Insert a cool thank you flyer expressing your gratitude and encouraging them to engage with you online like Everlane
  • Place the items carefully so that it looks awesome when you open it like this delivery from Trunk Club
  • Wrap the item in a pretty paper just to make it that tiny bit more special like this Bravissimo lingerie delivery
  • Place a branded sticker on the wrapping paper even if it’s just standard brown paper to give it your own personal touch

• Try Handmade Touches – It’s fitting for businesses that sell handmade items to include handmade elements in their packaging. Packaging says a lot about the thought and care that goes into creating a product, and is a great way to make your business stand out from all the others.

There are sites specifically dedicated to showcasing gorgeous packaging on the web, like Lovely Package, the Nice Package Flickr group, and The Dieline.

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It’s late November and for Amazon marketplace sellers, the holiday sales season is well underway. To make the most out of quickly approaching holidays like Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas, your business needs to have a solid fulfillment plan in place. For more information on how to plan, build and execute your entire marketplace seller strategy, download the Marketplace Sellers Guide.

Amazon offers a service called “Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA)”, where it handles third-party sellers’ back-end operations, including storage, fulfillment, and customer service. Sellers simply ship their inventory to Amazon, which then manages the entire fulfillment process once an item is purchased, giving sellers the space to concentrate on improving their bottom line.

Here are 7 benefits of FBA that can increase your sales this holiday season:

1. Products in Amazon FBA have access to Amazon Prime members: More than 20 million Amazon customers subscribe to Amazon Prime (about 10% of its customer base). And on average, Prime members spend twice the amount on Amazon per year as non-Prime shoppers. By using FBA, sellers get prime real estate in front of Amazon’s most active shoppers. Sellers can also place an Amazon Prime widget on their webstores, to increase buyer trust.
2. Your products are more likely to win the Buy Box: Amazon’s algorithm gives strong preference to products whose sellers meet Amazon’s high standards of customer experience. Because products in FBA are fulfilled by Amazon’s own teams, sellers are guaranteed a quick, consistent fulfillment experience for their products. Become a featured seller and win the Buy Box to immediately improve the trust of your buyers and increase sales.
3. Exclusive access to last-minute holiday shoppers: The holiday season usually brings a wave of last-minute shoppers. Amazon’s Fulfillment Centers are used to seeing last-minute orders during the holiday season and are fully equipped to handle them, so you can run last-minute holiday promotions with confidence!
4. Improve customer service: Customer service excellence is at the core of Amazon’s success. Customers can contact Amazon customer support via phone or email day or night and this service is provided at no charge to you. Sellers can count on FBA to handle shipping issues and returns and to offer a growing selection of customer benefits such as gift wrapping.
5. Fulfill orders from other sales channels: With Multi-Channel Fulfillment you can fulfill orders from other sales channels using your inventory stored at an Amazon fulfillment center. Amazon FBA allows you to streamline your fulfillment operations and manage orders from various other marketplaces or your own webstore all in one place.
6. Increase international exposure: FBA sellers can leverage Amazon’s advanced global fulfillment network to easily reach international customers at no added expense and far less hassle. Amazon currently enlists no extra FBA charge to sellers for international delivery; therefore, sellers can use this program to gauge the interest of certain products in various countries.
7. FBA is more cost effective than outsourcing 3^rd party shippers: Identifying a handful of shipping centers in strategic locations can be an overwhelming task. Every drop shipper has unique requirements/ pricing, and sellers are responsible for getting products to these locations and managing relationships with each of them. Amazon FBA allows you to streamline operations for both products sold on Amazon or elsewhere.

The holiday season is well underway and it’s important you make the most of it. According to Amazon, a 2014 survey revealed that 71% of FBA respondents said their unit sales on Amazon.com increased by more than 20%. Utilize the FBA Revenue Calculator and determine whether “Fulfilment By Amazon” is right for you.

Need fast, low-cost payments from international marketplaces like Amazon, Lazada, or Wish? Sign up for Payoneer – it’s free!