Carriers will charge by whichever is greater: actual box weight or dimensional weight, and two boxes can carry the same product but ship at different rates. An inch larger box on each side can cause a shipment to move to a higher rate category, despite the fact that nothing inside the box weighed any more. Custom mailer boxes that are tailored to fit a specific carrier dimensional weight formula close that gap, rather than it being an invisible cost on every single order. Empress Packaging constructs mailer boxes strictly to get rid of dimensional weight charges for ecommerce brands throughout the USA.

Why Box Size Plays A Role Greater Than Most Brands 

Dimensional weight is determined by multiplying length x width x height and then dividing by a carrier-specific dimensional weight divisor, and the result, not the actual weight of the product, is used if it is greater than the actual weight, such as is the case with USPS, UPS, and FedEx. If a box has excess void space on any dimension, it may be classified in a higher rate bracket and could be an inefficient packaging cost that can be repeated on every single order at volume. Most brands e-commerce mailer boxes,packages for convenience or for the largest item in a product line, and that becomes a big problem when order volume becomes reality and is against the specific carrier formulas that are pricing each order.

The advantages of Dimensionally Optimized Mailer Boxes are as follows:

Shipping mailer boxes that are dimensioned for carrier weight return in five areas. Branding: a properly sized custom box still has full branding; optimizing dimensions doesn’t mean that you lose the branded unboxing. Protection: a box that hugs the product rather than being too large for convenience actually helps to decrease the shifting that leads to transit damage. Cost savings: even if just a small percentage is reduced from each dimension, a shipment may get a lower rate, which is multiplied on each order at volume. Eco-friendly materials: a smaller, properly sized box consumes less material per box, which is an added benefit of the cost-saving solution, and is therefore eco-friendly.

Dimensional weight optimization can be crucial in various industries. 

For high-volume e-commerce brands with thousands of orders per month, the per-box savings become a significant impact when applied to every box they ship. It’s easy to spot oversizing in a multi-SKU catalog, a custom shipping packaging size that’s too large for a variety of products and is costing money on the smaller ones. For brands that have multiple carriers, it is important to test packaging against each carrier’s dimensional weight divisor, as the optimum size may vary for each carrier. 

Cost Optimized Mailer Boxes Customization Options

Empress Packaging sizes corrugated boxes based on the actual footprint of the product plus the minimum amount of protection necessary, not referencing a generic size chart. A number of size tiers can be constructed for a catalog with different product dimensions, without having to fit one box to the entire line. Structural spec, flute type, and wall strength are optimized and remain proportionate to the actual weight and fragility of the product as dimensions are tightened. A dimensional weight review examines your existing packaging and rates it against each of the major carriers to identify any unnecessarily expensive box sizes.

FAQs

Q: Is it possible to resize an existing box without complete box redesign? 

A: In many cases, yes, a dimensional review will find a way to save money without altering the branding or spec of the structure.

Q: Is there a difference between box size optimization by carrier? 

A: Yes, every major carrier has a different divisor, meaning that what is optimal for one won’t necessarily be optimal for another.

Q: How many does it take to order a custom-sized mailer box? 

A: Depending on size and complexity of printing, as confirmed at quoting.

Get Your Free Quote

The oversized box silently and subtly costs money on each order. Empress Packaging’s branded shipping packaging is designed to reduce dimensional weight expenses for USA e-commerce brands. Request a free quote from empresspackaging.com, send an email to query@empresspackaging.com,  or call (888) 900-7629.