As a promotional products distributor, it starts at the beginning with building relationships, understanding your customers’ needs, and ensuring their orders are taken care of. But this doesn’t end once the order is placed. Distributors also must make sure customers receive their orders, that everything is correct, and that ultimately the client is satisfied with the entire process.

One area that many distributors may not have considered is packaging and presentation. When a customer receives their order of apparel, hats, bags, you name it, what does it look like? Does it come in damaged boxes that are clearly low quality? Or does the customer receive a heavy-duty box that comes undamaged? Do your customers open the boxes to see items scattered about, with some even damaged? Or do they open it to find everything neatly bagged and protected?

     This is a huge opportunity to go the extra mile. When you work with a partner like Hightech Grafix, you can be sure that your customers will receive all of their items professionally packaged to top satisfaction. 

5 Ways to Elevate the Experience

HTG works hard to improve the presentation that its clients’ customers experience. According to Bryan Nichols, President and Founder, this is high priority for the company. “We Want To Be Different … than all the other decorators by going the extra mile with the end customer presentation,” he says. “It sets us apart from everyone else and makes our customer very happy.”

Many distributors and even decorators may not realize it, but there are simple ways to ensure that the customer presentation is a good one. Nichols outlines five specific ways that HTG fits the bill.

1)   Boxes – “We use double-wall boxes to prevent crushing during the shipping process,” says Nichols. These heavy-duty boxes not only prevent collapse during shipping, but they also protect the items inside from any potential damage.

2)   Tape – Believe it or not, something as simple as using the correct tape can make all the difference. “We use reinforced kraft tape with fiberglass yarns to keep the packages sealed during the shipping process,” explains Nichols.

3)   Bag Liners – In addition to a sturdy box sealed with the right tape, bag liners are another way to not only keep items safe, but also ensure garments are presented in a neat and appealing manner. “We use bag liners in order to protect the garment from any moisture damage,” Nichols says.

4)  Thank You Cards – Nothing screams going the extra mile better than a personal note … and then taking it one step further. For HTG, it’s all about thank-you kraft cards that are more than just the message. “We use thank you kraft cards in order to protect the garments from being cut or damaged when the box is being opened by the end customer,” states Nichols.

5)   Non Branded – “Everything we do is non-branded (white label) so that our customer has confidence in anonymity,” explains Nichols.

What to Look for in a decorator

     Each piece of this process works together to create the ultimate customer experience. “We go to these lengths so that our customer can have confidence that the product will arrive to their end customer in pristine shape every single time,” says Nichols.

That confidence goes a long way in the chain of events when building partnerships. Finding a decorator such as HTG who puts such emphasis on packaging, finishing, and shipping services should be part of any distributor’s success kit.

     Part of that confidence is built from the service provider’s end. Distributors should look for a decorator that also goes the extra mile. “We send out a survey on every order two weeks after it has been delivered,” says Nichols. “This allows our customers to provide the feedback necessary for us to continuously improve. We follow up on every single survey, good or bad. We also have a tool in all our account manager’s email signatures that allows customers to provide instant feedback.”

     Along with surveys, follow-ups, and feedback, HTG also works in other ways to ensure this part of business goes smoothly. “We also have found it extremely important to have dedicated account managers for each customer,” Nichols notes. “That way they learn and know the accounts inside and out.”

     For those promotional products distributors out there looking to go the extra mile, it might start with a simple order, but it doesn’t stop there. Making sure your customer receives their products in a professional way is an important part of the experience. Working with decorators like Hightech Grafix guarantees success from start to finish.