What makes a great unboxing experience?

The way you box your products can have a significant impact on sales. Yes, you heard that right! You can capture your customers and potential customer's attention by creating a lasting impression through the right packaging and presentation.

Simply put, a great unboxing experience should be memorable.

Now, not every package is memorable. It’s important to know that you will need more than just a box with products. The unboxing experience is the excitement experienced by the crafty and attractive presentation of consumer items. This could include bespoke packaging, branded boxes, attractive inserts, free samples, and more...

Three benefits of a memorable unboxing experience

1. Brand growth

The unboxing experience is one of the ways you can grow your brand. This sets you apart from your competitors, making more people identify with your brand. But there is more for you.

To build your brand, you need to bring your customers back for a second purchase. The unboxing experience is one of the ways you can achieve this. A survey from Dotcom Distribution revealed that 40 percent of consumers are likely to make repeat purchases from an online merchant with premium packaging.

2. Customer loyalty

The unboxing experience is also a great way to earn a customer's loyalty. To them, it is not just the product. It is the adventure; it is the additional treat your products come with. They know you are going the extra mile to create an experience they will remember.

3. Shareability

In 2015, a study showed that people spent 60 million hours watching unboxing videos on YouTube. Now imagine that your brand's unboxing videos have just 2 percent of the total amount of time. That's approximately 1,200,000 hours of free marketing.

Your packaging doesn’t even need to make it to an unboxing video to be effective. Think of how much more likely a customer is to share your brand if the product they bought comes in an amazing looking package. Caring about the unboxing experience will lead to more social shares than sending something in a white bubble mailer ever will. 

Premium packaging means more sharing and more brand exposure.

What are the top strategies of a well-designed unboxing experience?

There are a few elements you should always consider in creating an unboxing experience for your brand. Some of them are discussed below.

1. Put your logo on the box

A branded box is not only cool; it is your first step to creating the best unboxing experience. You can get a custom packaging company to create your boxes. After all, there is nothing like an eye-catching box that also keeps your product safe.

When your brand is visible to the customer before they even open the box, you are setting the stage. The customer knows who this is from and that builds additional anticipation before they open the box and see the product.

Your logo on the box is the easiest way to start the unboxing experience and establish your brand post-purchase.

2. Brand all components of the package

A great unboxing experience goes deeper than just the box/package it arrives in. Every piece of packaging material you use plays a part in how your customers will evaluate your brand and the experience. 

Every brand has access to traditional packing materials like air pillows, bubble wrap, and packing peanuts. But, you can stand out by replacing these materials with ones that are more onbrand.

An easy way is to use colored tissue paper to wrap products. You can also use tissues to hold your products in place. The tissues would be used in different layers, making unwrapping fun and intriguing.

The ultimate way to fill your package is by inserting die-cut cardboard. They make your box neat and give it a very structured feel. This makes arranging the products very easy.

The last trick you can use to make generic materials more branded is to use stickers instead of clear tape. Instead of tapping tissue paper to the product, attach it with a sticker of your logo. 

All of these small touches show your customer how important their business is to you, and how important the experience you create is to your brand.

3. Make It Personal

One of the ways to add excitement is by adding thank you cards or handwritten notes. These make your customers feel appreciated for doing business with you. Who knows, you might become that friend they look forward to hearing from, again.

You can make your cards very unique and beautiful, but the most important part is what you say.

4. Give Something Extra

Giving a little extra to your customers can be your charm in a memorable unboxing experience. You can give your product samples for free, discount offers, promote your loyalty program, or even give small gifts.

You can also combine them for a better result. For instance, you can combine small gifts with a loyalty program to make your customers come back for more. You may also want to add other product samples your brand sells. This creates additional product awareness while also building brand affinity.

The unboxing experience is one of the few remaining ways to differentiate your online brand

It’s becoming harder and harder to stand out in ecommerce. Not to mention it’s way more expensive than ever to acquire a new customer, you need to work just as hard if not harder to retain them. 

The last frontier to stand out is everything you do post-purchase. You worked so hard to get that sale, don’t sell your brand short by shipping it in a generic plastic mailer. Create an unboxing experience that makes your customer feel special and makes them likely to share.