When I first started selling a friend's Coke collection on eBay, I drained my brain trying to figure out the best way to ship them. One guide I read said that it was really hard, cutting up foam to fit the bottles. Yikes! I sure couldn't spend my time doing that. A great way, after much trial and error, evolved into the following:
1. I always use the USPS Priority flat fee box that measures 11 x 8.5 x 5.5 inches, which I get free from usps.com. Just register on the website and put in an order for however many you want (up to their limit), and a box of them will be delivered to you within 7-10 days, totally free. You can fit 1, 2, or possibly 3 bottles, 10 oz. or smaller, full or empty, into this box.
2. Wrap each bottle in one layer of bubble wrap, to protect the surface, then stuff the box with newspaper. At first I used just newspaper, because it's a good, but heavy, filler and a flat fee box may weigh up to 70 lbs. And I had plenty of used newspaper! But newsprint can also leave marks on some items. So now I protect the surface of the bottles with bubble wrap first. Cushion each bottle well with the newspaper, and shake the box before sealing it to make sure that nothing will move even the slightest bit in transit.
3. Print your priority postage from PayPal or on the USPS website and ask for carrier pickup. Notify your customer that their package is safely on its way, and wait for their good feedback.
4. Now that packages with international destinations can be sent Priority, the above also applies to all my customers from other countries. The international flat fee is high, but will be the same for 1, 2, or 3 bottles.
5. Using the flat fee box exclusively is an incentive for customers to purchase more than one bottle at a time, because, as mentioned above, the shipping rate will always be the same. This has worked well for me!
I hope this guide will help anyone who needs to ship Coke or other bottles to their customers.
Guide created: 06/05/07 (updated 09/04/09)
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