I am a frequent buyer on ebay , mostly antiques. As a dealer I buy from every imaginable source, and eBay is one of them. I also ship world-wide on my own venue. Consistently, I run in to people who just do not understand how to pack. So I am going to give everyone a few tips.
Packaging is all about physics. Yes, physics. If you have a heavy item, and it is dropped, it is much more likely to break than a light weight one. More weight equals more force when it hits the ground. Therefore, if your item is fragile, and heavy, you must pad it in all directions and keep it from shifting in the box! Use bubble wrap around the object as well as paper and or packing peanuts with enough depth all around the object to protect it.
If items have delicate features, such as a figurine with delicate arms or thin delicate details, pack paper gently around the figure, loosely, without using too much force, and then loosely apply layers of bubble wrap around that. Secure the object if needed with cardboard pieces to keep it from shifting around in the box, or double box it with a box around the object of appropriate size and then a larger box lined with a spacing of packing peanuts.
Never tightly wrap items with delicate features in bubble wrap or paper - you may make it hard for the buyer to unwrap and you may break the items by wrapping them too tightly!
Strategically place your items in boxes by making use of the corners of the box. Corners are stronger than the sides. Delicate portions of an object can face to the corner for added protection.
If an over-sized box is warranted, with plenty of packaging, then by all means use it! It is better for everyone if you spend a little more on packaging than to have a broken item and an unhappy customer.
To summarize:
1. Heavy, fragile items need plenty of packing materials on all sides! Physics is at play!
2. Delicate items must be carefully packaged so that too much force is not exerted on the delicate features, the object is stabilized in the box, and they are easy to open without damaging.
3. Make use of the strongest areas of the box to protect delicate features, such as the corners. Double box if needed. Do not skimp on packing materials!
I recently had someone pack a large, heavy ceramic figurine and send to me. It was in a box that was actually too large for the figurine, and was hastily and sloppily packaged. It was not stabilized in the box so it shifted around so that the figurine ended up against the outer wall of the box. As you can predict, it arrived broken. There was no protection against forces on the outside of the box smashing in to the figurine. The sender just didn't take the time to think that the object had to travel many miles in planes and trucks along with other items bouncing around together, not to mention people throwing it around.
Use a little common sense, and care, and all of your packages can arrive safely to your customers (unless lost, over which we have little control).
As a final note, some people believe that if you ship via UPS or Fedex, that your package has a better chance to arrive undamaged. Nothing could be further from the truth. No matter the carrier, pack with great care. However, if you are sending something via Canada Post, all bets are off. They are by far the worst postal system in the civilized world. Pack for World War III and just pray it gets there in one piece.
penguins_dont_fly is a Volunteer Community Mentor
