Portrait packing materials

[jdaly]

What all do you include in your portrait packaging? I have some envelopes on order. For 8x10's do you also include some kind of cardboard insert for stability? - keep things from bending. Thinking this may be a good thing. but not sure where to find this. Any ideas?

This will be my first time sending out portraits. I won't need to mail them as I can just drop them off at the dance studio I was shooting for. Parents will pickup at the studio.

Was also going to include a business card and maybe a one-page flyer/business advertisement.

[Faolan]

Consider it a discrete advertising opportunity. Put in a flyer with offers and services. Make sure it's well designed and laid out otherwise it'll detract from the purpose.

A business card could be considered redundant, but again there's nothing really to lose just paper clip it to the invoice.

Something else to consider when packing prints is to use polythene bags in case the packaging gets damp/wet as well as card.

[Karl Johnston]

I've been using roll tubes and boxes ..I find the cardboard in mail letters idea just too weak and I got an order shipped back because it had bent badly.

[Mike30D]

Portrait Boxes, much better than envelopes.

DNL Photo Packaging (http://www.dnlphoto.com/)

Paper Box and Specialty (http://www.paperboxandspecialty.com/)

[Karl Johnston]

I don't like that first website; where are the prices? ???

[jdaly]

Thanks for all the feedback. I think for this latest job, I'm going to stick with the envelopes. There are many with just 1 8x10 or a 5x7, things like that. Good to see all the other options out there.

[Karl Johnston]

As for the other link...those boxes are far too expensive. I wonder why they're so expensive.

[Mike30D]

As for the other link...those boxes are far too expensive. I wonder why they're so expensive.

They are sold by the case.

As for DNL, you have to contact them for a pricelist.

[RDKirk]

I have found that the packaging of portraits is extremely important. A couple of points on that:

1. Most portrait buying decisions are made by women.
2. Women love unwrapping pretty packages. There have been surveys indicating very strongly that the unwrapping of the package is actually a significant part of the "purchase experience" for women. That's why expensive stores like Nordstrom's pay such close attention to the bags and wrapping--all that tissue and stuff.

I always package my work in nice black leatherette portrait boxes that carry my studio "brand" logo and my studio brand colors (black and gold), with a metallic gold band securing the box.

Within the box, each unframed picture from 4x6 to 11x14 will be in a folder--which also carry forward the logo and black and gold coloring. The folders are wrapped in black tissue and placed in the box.

Wallets will be in their own small black box that will also carry the logo.

I'll deliver the box in shopping bags that are also in my studio colors with my logo on them, just like Nordstrom's.

Prints larger than 11x14 will always be framed--I don't sell them any other way. Those are delivered in relatively inexpensive "frame bags" sized to the framed portrait up to 50x60 that I get again in black with my black and gold logo on them. The bags run me about $6.00 each, so they are "giveaways" with the purchase.

The ladies will have spent hundreds to more than a thousand dollars on these portraits, so I can't really deliver them in brown paper.