Unboxing: It’s All About How You Make Them Feel

From click to delivery, retailers aim to create joyful experiences that drive loyalty. Prioritising the unboxing moment—one guaranteed touchpoint—offers a key opportunity to engage and leave a lasting impression.

Unboxing can be forgettable or unforgettable—it’s up to the brand. With the right materials, process, and partners, you can turn it into a moment that makes customers feel truly valued.

Unboxing gained momentum on YouTube when influencers began sharing the excitement of opening packages. Viewers tuned in to see the reveal, the feel, and the product itself—turning a personal moment into a shared thrill. YouTube reports that in 2023 there were 25 billion views of unboxing videos.  

One advantage of the unboxing experience is that brands have the opportunity to invite any customer to become an influencer. While it’s highly advantageous to have unboxing moments shared online, it is the personal experience itself that matters most to generate loyalty.  

People want to feel valued. Early e-commerce lacked the personal touch of in-store shopping, but packaging emerged as a way to connect. While many followed Amazon’s minimal, cost-saving model, others saw an opportunity to create memorable brand moments. Etsy sellers, for example, stood out with personalized touches like handwritten notes.

Not only does unboxing delight consumers; it empowers e-commerce retailers to truly own the brand experience from click to delivery and create a lasting impression. For purchases that are gift orders, brands have the unique opportunity to impress two customers at once — the giver and the recipient. Creating a memorable unboxing experience has the potential to attract new customers and retain current ones.  

Consumers report that unboxing makes a difference:  

These numbers tell a strong story about how much the unboxing experience matters in the post-purchase journey. But it’s not the only story. Sustainability also plays a key role in consumers’ minds.  

In a Radial study, consumers reported that they care about sustainability in packaging:  

Sustainability and eco-friendly packaging directly impact e-commerce consumers, as they are responsible for recycling, disposing, or reusing packaging materials. The less burden a retailer places on them, the better. The more a retailer can ease consumers’ minds about the cost of their online shopping on the environment, the better as well.  

A great unboxing experience should be branded, personal, memorable—and profitable. It must reflect your brand across every touchpoint. Though unboxing is rooted in e-commerce, think omnichannel: extend key elements in-store to ensure a consistent experience at every interaction.

The unboxing experience is all about aesthetics and happy surprises. You want to include your brand logo, colors, and taglines/values on your packaging materials and in any additional items you include.  

Because you want the unboxing experience to be shareable, design it from the outside in. Imagine that the customer is filming the event. What do you want the viewer to see first?  

Whether branded boxes, envelopes, mailers, or generic boxes with branded stickers and packing tape — look for ways to include your logo and branding so that it is unmistakable that this parcel is from you.  

The interior is really where the good feelings happen. This is where you want packaging and product presentation to shine and to exceed customer expectations. Be sure your packaging keeps items secure and undamaged. Then focus on how it makes you feel. This is all about communicating to the customer through tactile elements and personalized communication.  

Consider:  

It’s important to keep the online and in-store experience consistent. Consider what elements might be used in order fulfillment and at the cash register. Stickers, inserts, and freebies are omnichannel possibilities.  

There’s a reason Etsy sellers can so easily personalize their unboxing: they’re small businesses with the time to do so. But how do you scale personalization when handling thousands of orders, and even more so, during the time-pressure of peak season?  

Customizing the unboxing experience can feel daunting. It will fall to whoever is handling your order fulfillment.  

There can be multiple challenges with setting up a personalized unboxing experience:  

The reality is that providing value-added services comes with additional cost. It’s important to monitor cost per order and to measure CSAT scores around an enhanced unboxing experience. It’s also important to weigh those costs against the potential for increased customer lifetime value, customer retention, customer acquisition, and the overall impact on brand marketing.  

Many retailers find that partnering with an experienced third-party logistics company, like Radial, provides the scalability, infrastructure, management, and personnel needed to provide delightful unboxing experiences for every order, every day of the year.  

Remember, the more personalized you can make the unboxing experience and the more you can connect with your customers emotionally, the more you will stand out in today’s automated world. People may not remember what you do, but they will remember how you make them feel. And that is what a great unboxing experience is all about.  

Radial offers gift services and personalization to customize every order and bring the human touch to your brand experiences.

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