Several weeks ago, I wrote an article with some suggestions for combining Priority Mail boxes to fit large and irregularly shaped items http://www.auctionbytes.com/Email_Newsletter/27/28/28.html#priority. With the recent price increase in Priority Mail shipping, perhaps it would have been more relevant to focus my article in the opposite direction: reducing the size of Priority boxes and eliminating excess weight in packages.

I consider myself to be a conscientious seller. I take as much care packing a $5 item as I do in packing a $500 item. But shipping an item safely doesn't mean adding unnecessary weight to the package. There are cases where a few ounces can mean a difference of several dollars in shipping, depending on where your item is going. Here's an example:

** A 4lb 15 oz package going from Boston to Beverly Hills (my favorite area code - 90210) will cost $7.55 to ship Priority Mail.
** A 5 lb 1oz package making the same trip will cost $10.35

I save nearly $3 by reducing the package by only two ounces! For lighter items, it may be worthwhile to trim an ounce or two off the weight of a package to take advantage of the new 1-lb Priority Rate for $3.50.

I realize that 2 ounces doesn't leave much room for error. Trying to get our scales at home to jive with the scales at the P.O. can only be done when the planets are in perfect alignment. But keeping the weight of a package safely under a more expensive rate CAN be achieved quickly without jeopardizing the safety of the item. And it can earn you glowing feedback and everlasting respect from the online auction community at large!

So with that in mind, here are a couple of tips to reduce the weight of your packages that involve just a few swipes of a razor knife and a quick trip to a local store. (Don't combine the two...swiping a razor knife IN a retail store never makes a good impression.)

Let's take packing material first. Peanuts good. Paper bad. This may be an environmentally unfriendly statement, but it's the truth. As a packing material, there's no comparison to foam peanuts. Here's a picture of 2-1/4 lbs of peanuts next to the same weight in newspaper. http://www.auctionbytes.com/images/packing1.JPG. A picture says a thousand words.

Peanuts, when used properly, enable you to immobilize an item in the center of a box, without double boxing - yet another weight guzzler. Peanuts won't compress like crumpled paper, keeping your item safely away from the sides of the box. And peanuts don't leave newspaper ink on items.

For those of you who say, "Yeah I wish I could afford to buy packing peanuts," I can't empathize. In two years of doing online auctions, I have yet to pay for a bag of peanuts. There are retailers, auto parts stores and department stores that pay to have their packing material removed, and are happy to give it to you to recycle in your auction business. Just leave your razor knife at home.

Another way to save a few ounces is by re-tooling some of the available Priority Mail boxes. Overall, the Priority mailers are great. They make your products look like they've been professionally shipped and the materials are free. There are some limitations in the available sizes, however. If you are shipping an item that is over 12" long and deeper than 3" you may have trouble finding an appropriate box. You COULD combine two #7 boxes and get a box that is 16"x 12"x12". You'll also be creating a package that weighs 12 ounces EMPTY.

Or you could try "moving" the folds to create a box of a different dimension than intended. For example, a #0-1095 is designed to measure 15-1/2" L x 12-1/4" W x 3" H. By making your own score marks and folding according to these new creases, you can effectively change the width and height of the box. You can also adjust the length. In the following example, we are creating a box that is 15-1/2" L x 10-1/2" W x 5" H. Here's a step-by-step pictorial of the process: http://www.auctionbytes.com/images/priorpkga.JPG

First, adjust the width/height.
Use your trusty razor knife (finally!) and a straight edge and score (not too deeply) a #0-1095 Priority box lengthwise about 2-1/2" from the factory crease. You'll have to score across all faces of the box so that when you fold it along the new creases, you'll have a box that is 9" wide x 5" deep x 15-1/2" long (21-1/2" L to the very edge including the flaps).

Second, adjust the length.
Figure out how long you'll need to make your box, subtract the necessary length from 21-1/2 and then divide that number by 2. That's how far your want to measure from the edges to score new end flaps for the box. Let's say you want to make your box 16" long. Subtract 16 from 21-1/2 and divide by 2. That means you should measure 2-1/4" from each side, and score across all faces of the box. Cut the flaps apart from each other and fold them over on the new score marks. Depending on the size of the box you're making, you may have to cut small cardboard rectangles to fill the gaps on either end, because the end flaps may not meet now. (This is because the box was designed to be 15-1/2" long after you fold the flaps over.) Make the filler as narrow as possible, because you're trying to SAVE weight! Tape all the seams and you will have a light, yet strong, mailer for your item.

These quick modifications to a #0-1095 Priority Mailer will save your customer 8 ounces in shipping weight over combining two #7 Priority boxes. This procedure can also be used with a Priority Mailer #0-1097 to make similar boxes on a slightly smaller scale.

Online auction users are extremely savvy when it comes to safely packing and shipping their items. These are just some suggestions of how to shave excess weight from your packages. If you have other ideas that you would like to share, post them at http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php

Order free Priority Mail supplies at the USPS Web site (it also has photos of each size box): http://supplies.usps.gov.