How packaging can help you meet customer delivery time expectations
Customer expectations of acceptable delivery times from eCommerce retailers are changing.
Amazon are driving us towards a culture of next (or same) day deliveries. The 2021 IMRG “Valuing Home Delivery Review” reported that the majority of consumers surveyed (68%) had an expectation to receive goods in two and three days on a standard delivery.
With online sales in 2020 growing 46% compared to the previous year, a speedy order fulfilment operation is imperative to meet customer expectations and deliver a great brand experience.
Packaging plays a significant role in how quickly you can turn around orders. If your packing operation is running at optimum capacity, you can process orders more quickly and efficiently.
Simplify the packing process
When you use packaging that’s quick to assemble, pack and seal, you can significantly increase your throughput of orders. If you are using boxes that require lots of taping, complex die-cut cartons that are fiddly to assemble or packs that require lots of void fill, investigate a quicker way to pack.
We estimate that if you use standard 0201 cartons, approximately 60% of packing time is taken up taping the pack. This is because both the bottom and top require sealing. By reducing (or even eliminating) the tape, you could in effect increase your throughput by 60%.
For a little inspiration on speeding up the packing process, take a look at our video:
Remove the need for voidfill
If you are using a standardised shipping pack, consider consolidating your product range or order profiles.
This helps to remove the need to add voidfill for smaller items where the box is too large, speeding up the time to pack further.
A range of boxes means that often, less packaging material is used. It can also reduce courier costs, if you pay by parcel size, as well as improve the number of parcels per vehicle.
It’s a great way to minimise impact on the environment, but only if the product is suitable packed to endure the journey to your customer.
Automate for maximum impact
When you reduce the number of touches to a product or pack, you are reducing the amount of manual handling and speeding up your fulfilment operation.
Automation allows you to handle large volumes in less floor space, with better control of costs. You can start small with a strapping or stretch machine, go medium with box erectors and tapers or go large with automated boxing and bagging machines. There is automation to suit every size of business.
Automated packing systems apply packaging consistently so use less material. Installations can pay for themselves in a few months, especially with the savings made on packaging material.
Macfarlane Packaging are here to help you meet customer expectations, why not contact us today to find out how we can help.
Read next…
How to improve online operations with the right packaging
How to pack temperature sensitive food for courier or postal networks
3 packaging tips to keep up with online order demand
