I’ve just had a Christmas delivery. Luckily my daughter wasn’t here because if she was it wouldn’t have taken more than a quick glance to see that one of the presents she’d asked for from Santa had just arrived via a courier van rather than a sleigh.
Surprisingly the item was actually ordered via Amazon – normally criticised for over packaging but this time it seems deciding that the box that the item came in (a microphone and stand emblazoned with pictures of what was inside) was good enough.
But it really isn’t – especially at Christmas when parents and individuals alike are trying to surprise their loved ones by getting something they’ve longed for.
I’m all for under, rather than over packaging, and have to admit I’d have hated for my item to arrive in an oversized cardboard box but really are we pushing delivery that far that packers don’t have time simply to wrap a bit of brown paper around an item to avoid ruining the surprise?
And it’s not just me – last week there were similar stories of many families where Christmas gift surprises had nearly been ruined because over packaging had suddenly turned into no packaging.
You could say it’s the payoff for free delivery – but this wasn’t free. I had to pay and therefore I don’t expect any trade-offs. And I don’t expect a Christmas surprise to be ruined.
Just one more example of how consumer demand is driving expectations around packaging and delivery. To find out more about how packaging influences the consumer experience download our whitepaper on The Power of Packaging: a missed opportunity by clicking here.
Image credit: Fotolia
