If you want to display your product in most retail stores, you'll need to encase it in an individual vacuum-formed plastic package for easy handling. However, especially if your product is relatively small and fragile, designing a vacuum-formed plastic package that's both durable and good looking can be a real challenge. So when you need to stuff your product into vacuum-formed plastic, remember to avoid these three pitfalls.

Not Putting Extra-Protective Paper on the Product's Sharp Ends

If you just stuff the product into the package's air pocket without first thinking things through, some of the sharp edges on the product could sink into the plastic and create a tear. This will both make it look like the product was stuffed by amateurs and invite any kleptomaniacs in the store to take your product out of the package without paying for it.

Note any sharp edges on your product and tape a few pieces of packing paper to each of them to minimize the risk of a tear. Also, design the package's air pocket so that it'll only hug the product closely on its blunt edges.

Leaving Too Much Extra Space in the Pocket Holding the Product

While you want to make sure the pocket isn't so tight that the product punches holes in it, it's an equally bad idea to make the pocket so large that the product will frequently rock back and forth. During all the chaos of shipping the product from your warehouse to a retail store, this motion could cause critical damage to both the packaging and the product itself. Additionally, even if the product is held in place with plastic ties, a very airy packaging pocket is liable to getting crushed down to size when it's shoved into an already crowded transport box. 

If it's possible, try to design the package's pocket so that its shape and size match the shape and size of your product as closely as possible.

Making the Sealed Border Surrounding the Product's Pocket Too Thin and Too Narrow

Your product's pocket needs to be well protected on its flanks if its going to be shipped without suffering damage. So once you've decided on the shape and size of your plastic packaging's pocket, make sure the plastic seal surrounding it is as thick and wide as you can reasonably manage.

Another reason to get a large seal is the fact that it'll be easier to grab onto and open when someone buys your product. The most important reason to get a good seal, however, is to protect your product from getting crushed from the sides when it's in a transport box.

Talk to a company such as Contempo Card for more tips.