Selling Online: Some Considerations When Sending Through The Post.

Britain was once described as a nation of shopkeepers, and this is now more true than ever, albeit we are more of the virtual kind. As the High Street as we know it continues to wither and die, a whole raft of virtual entrepreneurs have found that they can sell online, whether it be used and preloved items on eBay, their own designs and creations on Etsy, a spin off to a popular blog with an online store, or actually focusing on setting up and creating an online business. But where, in a regular physical store, you can stop some of the worrying once the item is sold, with an online shop you now have to consider getting your wares from A to B. In this post, I am going to tell you some things you should consider when it comes to transporting your wares.

Packaging

Although we have to now be more environmentally savvy when it comes to packaging, we still need to ensure that items arrive in one piece. Lil Packaging, which is a great source of custom mailing boxes UK, offers a great range of mailing boxes that come in all sizes and have a plain design which has proved to be more discreet making them safer in the post.

Their boxes are self assembly, which also makes them easy to disassemble and either reuse, or recycle. Transporting something in a box rather than a bag, particularly high cost items, gives a better impression when the item arrives, and leaves your business less likely to suffer returns due to breakages.

Courier or Royal Mail?

When it comes to deciding whether to send your items through a courier service like Hermes or DPD, or through one of the Royal Mail services, the choice really is up to you. My suggestion would be to consider the cost of what you are sending, and whether you can afford a courier, or to send it registered or recorded. Also worth considering is how quickly you need the item to get to its destination, for a faster parcel delivery drift couriers are a good option.

Read customer reviews of the services provided, and remember, you can mix it up, sending smaller, less expensive packages through the Royal Mail, and larger, or more expensive parcels through a door to door courier.

Remember to factor the service into the post and packaging cost you pass onto your customer, or this will be coming out of your profits.

Do you need online insurance?

It is an additional cost, but if you are selling physical objects online then you may need to consider some sort of insurance. This could cover you for lost or damaged items, or times when you have to offer a refund.

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