Your goal is to ensure your shipping reaches the destination in the best form and shape, regardless of the terrain during transit, right? This can be achieved by ensuring you get the right internal and external packaging materials and at the right time.
So, how do you vet the right industrial packaging supplier while the options are unlimited? We’ve got you!
In this post, we will discuss what you need to look for and invaluable tips to make sure you get the right supplier who fits in your freight business.
Let’s get started!
1. A Supplier who Offers a Variety of Materials
Packaging products for transit requires a variety of materials, depending on your freight. Therefore, the best supplier should provide various materials for internal and external packaging.
There are times you’ll need high-quality corner boards for a fragile product or foam wraps because your product needs protection from the vagaries of weather. Can your supplier provide that?
Also, some of your products on transit are tough enough, so they do not need pricy or fancy packaging, so can your supplier also give you cheap packaging materials? How about when you need the rare and expensive?
Meeting your packaging materials under one roof saves you time and money and allows you to plan accordingly.
2. Customer Service
This is a commonly ignored factor! And you should not forget it.
On finding the contact details of your prospective supplier’s website and calling, how is the response? Is the person relating with customers friendly and knowledgeable about the products on sale?
If you find pathetic customer service, be wary, even when the products are amazing. Reason? This can mess you up, maybe when you urgently need to call, place an order and have your packaging materials delivered. The aftermath is ruined reputation or loss of clients on your end.
A good customer rep also strives to understand your needs and tell you how they can meet them. This leaves you satisfied, and you feel you are not used as a means to the end.
3. High-Quality Packaging Materials
You should always remember your goal – which is to deliver your shipping successfully to your customers. As such, you want an industrial packaging supplier who allows you to achieve that. But, of course, this can only happen when you get high-quality packaging products, which will keep your freight in place and prevent possible damage during handling.
Don’t be blinded by exceptional customer care services, a variety of products, or even affordability. All these are secondary, while quality materials remain the primary thing to check out for.
In practice, this means you can overlook not-so-good customer service to purchase a high-quality wrap foam, but you cannot get low-quality cardboard because the customer rep was friendly.
You can check the reviews online from different sites and check details from the supplier’s website to know the quality of the packaging materials.
Also, ensure that the quality materials are in stock most of the time to avoid delays.
4. Low Order Minimums
The best way to save while purchasing packaging materials is by buying in bulk. However, your storage space could be so limited that you can purchase just so much.
That’s why you need to know what’s the minimum order you can make and whether you have enough space in your warehouse to store the inventory.
If you purchase more than you can store, it may lead to inefficiencies during operations or even damages to the packaging materials. In the long run, this is counterproductive.
Take your time to understand your supplier’s ordering process and what can work for you and what cannot.
5. Customization Services
This is something you might overlook for now. You may think your business does not need any customized packaging materials. However, this viewpoint may change as your business grows and reaches new horizons. In that phase, will your supplier be able to offer that customization?
So, choose a supplier who can grow with you and adapt to your foreseeable future changes.
Changing suppliers every time you reach a new phase can be expensive since it takes time to fit in with a new supplier. Be wise, and plan ahead.
6. Their Price vs. your Budget
The best thing is, there are many industrial packaging suppliers to choose from. So, you have options, and if you take your time, you are sure to get the one who aligns with your goals.
Have a budget and look for a supplier within your range, but don’t compromise the quality of packaging materials to remain within your budget.
Remember, pricing is a metric affected by many factors in a https://getzonedup.com Amazon company, and it’s not always a reflection of quality. As such, don’t use price alone to vet suppliers. Instead, combine it with other important factors.
7. Delivery
In shipping, time is everything. So when shipping time-sensitive packages, you want to ensure you eliminate anything that can cause delays, even production delays of packaging materials.
When an order is placed, how long does it take to be delivered? Work with suppliers who offer exceptional and timely delivery services. These are the ones who understand that you have placed an order and you need the products soonest possible.
8. Sustainability
Your customers want to trust that you’ll ship their items and package them appropriately. That’s why you need an industrial packaging supplier who uses sustainable and renewable energy sources to manufacture packaging products.
With this, you are sure production and distribution will continue in the future while also maintaining the environment.
Final Thoughts
Choosing the right industrial packaging supplier is key to growing your customer base and maintaining your brand’s reputation. So, don’t gamble. Take your time before settling for the right partner.
Ensure they have high-quality packaging materials, in a wide variety, delivered on time, uses sustainable production approaches, and have exceptional customer services.
It’s up to you now! If you need more tips, be sure to follow our NORKOL blog, or better yet, request a custom quote from our team to learn how we can help you customize the right solution for all of your paper and packing needs!