| The dilemma facing most online booksellers is to | | | | packaged bricks. This inevitably leads to damaged |
| find a sweet spot where the marketplace | | | | corners on hard backed books. The second |
| reimbursements completely cover the costs of | | | | reason that bubble pack envelopes do not suffice |
| packaging and shipping the books they sell. For | | | | for some hard backs is that the corners of the |
| penny booksellers, the postage margins are really | | | | book are sharp and they tear through the |
| a part of their business model and they rely on | | | | envelope. This can lead to corner bumps as |
| making a quarter to fifty cents per book from | | | | described above, or worse, continued tearing of |
| the postage paid, so packaging is even more | | | | the envelope and the escape of the book. |
| important to them. | | | | For all of these reasons and scenarios, you need |
| There are all kinds of ways to reduce your | | | | to evaluate each book you sell and determine |
| packaging costs, but there are consequences with | | | | what the appropriate packaging should be, or you |
| most that usually mean spending more of your | | | | need to take the profit hit and provide boxes |
| time packaging to save on spending for packaging | | | | book folds for all of your books. |
| materials. Some resourceful booksellers have | | | | Personally, I prefer to strike a balance that results |
| found ways to recycle materials and have no real | | | | in the maximum protection for the books with |
| cost (except for tape) in their packaging of | | | | minimal demand of my time. This means that the |
| books. I have even resorted to fabricating boxes | | | | majority of my books are packed in self-sealing |
| myself when I was faced with shipping a valuable | | | | bubble pack envelopes, while the smallest and |
| book that would not conveniently fit into a box I | | | | least valuable books are wrapped in clean |
| already had, but this usually meant spending | | | | newsprint paper and shipped in manila envelopes |
| fifteen minutes to a half hour custom making a | | | | and the more valuable and bigger books are put in |
| box. Doing this for a $100 book may seem | | | | either a custom fitting box, or a suitable available |
| worthwhile, but doing it for a $20 book can mean | | | | box. |
| reducing the value of my time to minimum wage. | | | | Another step in preparing your books for |
| Still, there is a lot to be said for being creative | | | | shipment that is appreciated by customers and |
| and coming up with ways to adequately and | | | | added protection for your book against moisture |
| efficiently package your books while minimizing | | | | is thin film stretch wrap. This is much like the clear |
| your costs. | | | | plastic wrap used for leftover food that stretches |
| Back when online bookselling first started, there | | | | and clings to the sides of food storage containers. |
| were buyers that would not accept books | | | | The cost is probably on the order of a penny per |
| packaged in self-sealing bubble pack envelopes; | | | | book and you can buy this kind of stretch wrap in |
| they insisted on corrugated book packs.. Books | | | | three inch widths from most industrial suppliers. I |
| sent to them in self-sealing bubble pack envelopes | | | | like to wrap all new books with this with the |
| were returned. Today, the norm is a self-sealing | | | | customer receipt on the cover of the book. |
| bubble pack envelope, which sufficiently protects | | | | When you are making the decisions for your |
| most books, but does not suffice for books that | | | | business and how you will package books for |
| are more valuable, and is deficient for many hard | | | | shipment, think about how you would want the |
| cover books for two principle reasons. First, a | | | | book to arrive if you were the buyer. If you do |
| bubble pack envelope will not protect the corners | | | | not provide the level of shipping protection for |
| of a hard cover book from being bumped, and | | | | your books that your customers expect, you can |
| we all know that once our books are turned over | | | | expect negative feedback, so if you opt to use |
| to the Post Office, they are tossed into large | | | | cheaper shipping materials, make sure you are not |
| containers with much bigger and heavier items like | | | | cutting too much cost out and giving your |
| refrigerators, boat anchors, and other well | | | | customers the wrong impression. |