When should you use polythene mailing bags verses flat postal boxes? It all comes down to what you are sending and how much protection you want. Here we take a look at the advantages of each – and find that they can also work really well together.
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When is it best to use polythene mailing bags verses flat postal boxes? As more people are looking to send more goods through the post and via courier – all over the world – what to pack things in is becoming ever more important.
The first question you need to ask is what is being sent and where is it being sent. Items that are relatively flat and likely to go through a letter box are perfectly suited to flat postal boxes. Things such as computer keyboards, or framed pictures or even things such as homewares and arts and crafts.
For these things cardboard postal boxes offer excellent protection from impact, dust, dirt and some moisture. They can also be padded out inside with other packaging materials such as bubble wrap.
Polythene mailing bags, on the other hand, are very good for soft, lightweight, non-fragile items, particularly clothing and apparel. They are also waterproof.
While postal boxes, then, are ideal for more delicate items that need impact protection, waterproof bags are ideal for moisture protection. Perhaps this isn’t and either/or decision: perhaps the ideal mailing solution for your more fragile items is to use both?
Say you are sending a computer keyboard, or a clock to a customer in France. You want to be able to pack that in a box with bubble wrap so that it is protected from vibration, impacts and isn’t free to move about. But you also want it to be protected from moisture.
Putting it in the postal box and then putting that in to a polythene mailing bag can make for the ideal packaging solution: impact protection and waterproof. The poly bag may even give it a handy handle to help the deliverer carry in more safely.
Polythene mailing bags offer a number of benefits. Standard polythene mailing bags, as we have seen, are waterproof, so they can protect against moisture. They are also made from tough polythene and have tamper-proof peel and seal openings, so that they also offer a good degree of security – something enhanced by those bags that are grey or black opaque polythene which precludes anyone seeing what is inside the package.
Being flexible, they are also ideal for soft items such as homewares and apparel and are increasingly becoming a staple of the online fashion business as their toughness also makes them suitable for being re-used for returns. Their toughness also makes them ideal for other uses. Clear polythene bags and clear bags with write on labels are often used for sending out brochures and catalogues, displaying the goods inside and allowing for the label to be clearly visible to the courier.
Mail bag polythene envelopes with handles are also quite useful for delivery of clothing and other soft items, protecting what’s inside and making them easy to carry.
For protecting more fragile items, such as jewellery and some homeware items, polythene bubble mail bags can be used. These offer the same advantages as other mailing bags, but are lined with bubble wrap which adds a whole extra layer of impact protection and makes them a viable alternative in this regard to flat pack postal boxes for some items.
Flat boxes offer a range of benefits too. Flat mailing boxes are ideal for protecting fragile objects, since the think card from which they are constructed offers excellent impact protection.
Flat pack postal boxes also come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes – and some feature some novel ways to offer flexibility around what you want to send as well as enhanced protection.
For example, double wall, flat telescopic boxes come in a wide range of sizes and form factors and are ideal for sending pictures, mirrors and other flat glassware that needs total protection and flexibility around size.
These telescopic boxes can accommodate a variety of sizes, since the lid of the box can slide up and down the main part of the box. Large foldable flaps, meanwhile can create a box that offers an extra layer of protection to delicate items, with the flaps folding over to create an extra barrier. Both these and telescopic boxes also have the advantage of offering a pleasant ‘unboxing’ experience for the recipient – something that is increasingly important in the competitive ecommerce field.
One piece, five panel wrap boxes not only come in a range of sizes, but also offer a one piece wrap-around experience. They also have reinforced corners, making them even tougher and impact resistant.
Flat cardboard boxes also come in a range of sizes and shapes to suit almost all types of goods and to allow some leeway for adding extra packaging materials around the goods and within the box to give what’s inside even more protection.
Polythene mailing bags and flat postal boxes have some common traits too. We have already seen that the choice between flat cardboard postal boxes and polythene mailing bags is not necessarily an either/or choice: working together, they can provide total protection for goods in transit, tapping into the benefits of both.
They also have a lot in common. They are both lightweight and can be used for many of the same things: some apparel, for example, can be just as easily sent in a box as a bag, and it can lend an air of luxury to the product.
Likewise, using bubble wrap or bubble-lined bags, some delicate items such as watches and other electronics can be sent in plastic.
Both are also recyclable, with both the cardboard and the polythene being recyclable once used at any recycling point.
In addition, both are also available made from recycled cardboard and polyethene – a win-win.
Poly mailers. Bubble mailers. Poly bags. Plastic bags. Mailing bags. Poly bubble mailers.
Whatever you call them, they have gained a lot of popularity in the ecommerce shipping world.
Choosing the right packaging or mailing envelope for shipments will determine everything from shipping costs to whether products arrive safely at the customer’s doorstep.
If you’re paying too much for shipping, you may never get a positive return on your customer acquisition cost. If a customer orders from you and they realize a product is damaged during the unboxing experience, they may never order from you again.
While you may associate cardboard boxes with online shopping, many orders don’t come in a box at all.
Poly mailers are a common packaging option because they can protect certain products with built in cushioning at a lower cost than corrugated cardboard packaging.
In this guide, we’ll go over how poly mailers work, when to use poly mailers instead of boxes, and how to get poly mailers.
Poly mailers are lightweight but sturdy plastic bags designed to ship products. They have a self-sealing foldover lip so no tape is needed, and a shipping label can be directly affixed on the bag. They are thin, yet durable so they don’t take up much space on a truck while in transit.
Poly mailers come in many sizes and styles with some being padded with bubble wrap so they don’t require additional dunnage like many boxes require to hold items in place to prevent shipping damages.
Boxes are a staple for shipping, but they can be unnecessary for shipping certain products. For example, shoes are often packaged in strong cardboard boxes, so shipping them inside another cardboard box wouldn’t make sense.
Apparel is also a great option for poly mailers as clothing isn’t susceptible to being crushed or broken without a box. Here are a few reasons why you might consider using a poly mailer instead of a box.
While corrugated boxes are sturdy, cheap, and resistant to damage, poly mailers provide protection while reducing shipping costs. Due to their light weight and small size, poly mailers cost less per shipments when compared to boxes.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website custom packaging bag.
One major factor in the pricing of shipments is dimensional weight, a pricing technique used by shipping carriers where they charge whichever number is greater: the actual weight of the package or its calculated dimensional weight.
This way, carriers can charge more money for a lightweight package that takes up a lot of room on the truck. They also have surcharges for heavyweight shipments, so keeping packages small and light is in any ecommerce company’s best interest.
Poly mailers take up less space than boxes, so they help reduce dimensional weight to help you save even more on shipping costs. The more shipments that go out in a box that could go out safely in a poly mailer, the more shipping costs will eat into your margin over time.
Since poly mailers are made out of plastic, they’re much easier to store from a warehousing standpoint. Their small size also means they take up less space in carrier’s vehicles, so you pay less for shipping too.
When it comes to delivery, poly mailers can sometimes fit in a mailbox, which reduces the chance of theft as compared to a package that’s sitting on a porch.
Custom packaging that uses your branding helps your shipments stand out. Like boxes, poly mailers can include your logo, colors, and imagery if you desire a sleek look.
While you might think plastic poly bags are a terrible option for the environment, there are many packaging companies that provide eco-friendly packaging options for poly mailers.
If your brand foundation is built on an environmental-conscious mission, it wouldn’t look suitable for your brand to use standard plastic mailers. You can use everything from recycled poly mailers to biodegradable poly mailers.
Shipping damages are an unfortunate reality that can be prevented in many cases. Some poly bags come with a bubble-lined interior to maximize security. These bubble mailers provide an extra layer of protection for products, though they won’t fully protect fragile items, they can be a good alternative if you’re worried regular poly mailers may damage certain items.
Poly mailers are a good option for any products that can’t be crushed like apparel or fabric, or useful for products that are already in sturdy packaging like shoes that you don’t think will stay sealed while in transit. If it passes the test of ‘Will this product be okay if a carrier throws the poly bag into a pile that gets heavy boxes tossed on top of it?’ then you can use a poly mailer.
Poly mailers should never be used for fragile items like sunglasses, foods such as chips that can be smashed and crumbled, and products made out of glass. Unless these products are already in sturdy packaging, stick to boxes.
Poly mailers are great for apparel because it’s hard to crush clothing. When fulfilling apparel orders, you want to use poly mailers for products like jeans, shirts, or footwear that aren’t at risk of being crushed while in transit. However, if you sell dresses with intricate beading or ornaments on them, they’re better suited for boxes.
“Before ShipBob, we used a fulfillment center that frankly couldn’t scale with us. This speed and scalability is important, because as soon as we announce a new pair of shorts, they sell quickly. Since moving to ShipBob we’ve grown 30% year over year, which is a testament to their scalability, service, and technology. I feel really fortunate to have found ShipBob when we did.”
Carl Protsch, Co-Founder of FLEO
Like apparel, most products made of cloth, cotton, or any type of fabric are good candidates for poly mailers. Ideal products include swatches, yarn, face masks, and bedding products like sheet sets.
Books are a good option for poly mailers as they’re often already sturdy. A bubble-lined poly mailer can provide the extra security needed to prevent rips and dents in the book when shipping books with a poly mailer.
Fulfillment for health, beauty and wellness products can be done in both boxes and mailers, but it’s ultimately dependent on the product’s packaging and materials.
Liquid products like face wash and products in glass aren’t good for poly mailers, but shipping vitamins and supplements, nutrition products, and cosmetics (e.g., shipping makeup like a tube of mascara, liquid eyeliner, or lipstick) may be done in poly mailers so long as the they are sealed tight and already encased in materials that won’t break when dropped or thrown.
One of the reasons brands use poly mailers is to ship products that are already in sturdy packaging. It’s often overkill to ship products in cardboard boxes if the product is already packaged in cardboard.
Other examples of sturdy packaged products include:
There are several types of poly mailers available, and the type you use will depend on your goal(s), whether that’s to save money, showcase your brand, be eco-friendly, or play it safe and add more protection.
These standard plastic poly mailers have no bubble padding. They are your most cost-effective option and best suited for products that don’t need more cushion like bubble wrap. They cover the product and don’t offer much protection.
These poly mailers come bubble-padded on the inside to provide extra security for any high-quality products that require it or for those that you are worried could get scratched.
These are your heavy duty poly mailers, made from strong polyethylene and designed to protect products from moisture during shipping. They are puncture, moisture, tamper, and tear-resistant and feature padded bottoms to allow for thicker items.
Eco-friendly poly mailers include biodegradable and recycled options. For eco-conscious brands, these are the poly mailers to use as they minimize waste, maximize the use of renewable energy during production, and are safe for both consumers and the environment throughout its lifecycle.
Poly mailers are available for purchase at just about any location that sells shipping supplies. Some of the most popular places to get poly mailers include:
If you choose to work with ShipBob for outsourced fulfillment, we provide poly mailers for shipments at no extra cost. If you want custom branded poly mailers, our partners like noissue can help.
With ShipBob, you get best-in-class ecommerce fulfillment services, support, and technology. You can choose between poly mailers and boxes on a product-by-product basis. Even if you have a diverse set of products, you can still choose boxes for more fragile products or combinations of fragile and non-fragile items.
“We use ShipBob’s locations that optimize and reduce the distance traveled to get our products into our customers’ hands faster. When shipping glass bottles, especially in the winter, the longer the transit time, the more likely it is to break. We see that our customers are getting their packages safer, with fewer frozen bottles exploding.”
Lindsay Louise, Fulfillment & Retail Manager at Synchro
We also have custom packaging vendors who can help create branded poly mailers for you to help your brand stand out even more.
ShipBob has a unique custom box algorithm that predicts the best packaging option based on the product weights and dimensions as well as the merchant’s packaging preference they set in our proprietary software.
To help optimize costs, when our fulfillment center staff are packing orders, they get a validation message that makes sure we are not placing orders that could potentially ship out in a poly mailer or bubble mailer in a box.
Not every product has to be shipped in a box. Poly mailers are a great packaging option for small ecommerce businesses shipping to save even more money while ensuring products aren’t damaged.
Contact ShipBob by clicking the button below and learn more about how ShipBob can help you with retail fulfillment while growing your ecommerce business.