The subscription box business is booming in the U.S., making it a perfect time to start one of your own. Growing in popularity over the last few years, a subscription box is an assortment of goods that ship to subscribers on a recurring basis—monthly, quarterly, etc. Online visits to subscription box websites increased from 4.7 million to 41.7 million from April 2014 to April 2018.
A subscription box company must find a way to stand out in the (growing) crowd, and what better way than through customized shipping boxes! With careful planning, a true understanding of your target audience, and custom packaging, you can curate a subscription box that will give every customer a personalized experience.
Create Your Subscription Box Brand
In a highly competitive market, defining your audience and how your brand will serve them is key. Once you have completed your research and chosen your concept, every other step you take must feed into your brand’s message. Your products, marketing pieces, and advertising must send a consistent message to your customers for retention purposes. Going the extra mile with branded shipping boxes and customized labels is an excellent way to promote your brand. Plus, consider your custom packaging as an additional advertisement for all who come in contact with it!
Cater to Your Audience
When you have a sense of your customer base, make sure you are listening to what they want, not what you want. A product’s package should rely on your audience’s tastes. A prime example is fashion mogul Stella McCartney, who began featuring new products for kids in her boxes. To interest her new clientele, she partnered with artist Stevie Gee to create personalized shipping boxes that had a different cartoonish body part or face on the side of the box so when stacked, would create fun characters. The more subscription boxes the parent buys, the more building boxes the child has to create these characters—marketing and sales ingenuity at its best!
Packaging 101: Customized Subscription Boxes for Differentiation
Product packaging for subscription boxes has become a product category on its own as customers are making purchasing decisions based on packaging that speaks to them. A customized shipping box or a beautifully featured logo will win every time over a plain, boring cardboard box. The goal is to make receiving the box an experience that customers look forward to and share on social media.
Keep in mind that the packaging does not have to exceed your budget as there are many inexpensive additions such as colorful fillers or interesting box shapes that will still do the trick. Whatever type of packaging you choose for your subscription box, make sure it stays true to your brand; customers infer a lot from the packaging that their products come in.
The subscription box market will continue to grow as customers enjoy the experience of receiving a customized box at their door. A well-crafted marketing strategy, including packaging, is key to surviving in this market. Use your packaging to connect with your customers and promote your brand to get your subscription box start-up growing quickly. Are you using your packaging wisely?