Today I wanted to share with you a couple ways to take advantage of packing tape, meaning using less and saving money too WITHOUT compromising quality of your outgoing orders!

SECRET #1: WIDTH

Packing tape comes in a couple different widths:

The most common widths are 1.8” / 2” and 3”. While 1.8” width is cheaper, IF you have to double-wrap / double-layer it because it is too short, you are actually paying MORE for it than you would pay if you simply bought the 3” width. Here at BigBrandWholesale.com we always buy 3” width.  (You can basically ignore the "Core Diameter because this has nothing to do with the width.  We will discuss the Core more shortly... )

SECRET #2: YARDS PER ROLL

This can get really sneaky so you MUST look at what you are buying! Check out these two listings:

As you will notice, although both listings are for tape and both of the tape look the same, one listing is for 60 yard rolls whereas the other is for 110 yard rolls (ALMOST DOUBLE THE SIZE!!)

So, do the math:

Price divided by Total Number of Rolls =

Then divide that number by the YARDS per roll

So if the price is $100 and the number of rolls is 36 and each roll has 110 yards, you would do:

$100 divided by 36 = $2.77

Then

$2.77 divided by 110 = $0.02

But if the price is $40 for 8 rolls and each roll contains 60 yards, you would do the same math and end up with $0.08! ← that’s OVER 3X THE COST PER YARD!!  INSANITY!!!  This means that by "Saving Money" by paying $40 instead of $100, you are actually WASTING money!

SECRET #3: MIL

The Mil is the thickness of the tape:

There’s all different tape mils and what works for one person isn’t the solution for the next however, generally speaking, the thicker the mil, the less you will need and the more secure it will be. For reference, Duct Tape is generally 7 - 11 mil. I would never advise getting 1 - 1.6 mil packing tape because it’s chintzy, cheap junk that will tear. We have tried it and I can affirmatively tell you, “NEVER AGAIN”. However, if you are trying to seal something mega lightweight, like 1 pound or less, it might be ok. Ideally you want to aim for at LEAST 1.8 mil. The higher, the better. On that note, you don’t need to go bonkers with it. 2.5 mil and higher is only truly needed if you’re shipping HEAVY things (televisions, refrigerators, super-mega-valuable-things.

SECRET #4: TYPE OF TAPE

I am about to blow your mind…

You may be shocked to find out that all tape ISN’T created equal! In fact, there’s two totally different tapes even though they look the same!:

Acrylic tape(water-based acrylic)

Acrylic Tape is used for lightweight box sealing. It is also often used during long-term storage or environments with extreme temperatures such as high humidity or refrigeration.

Hot Melt Tape(synthetic rubber):

Hot Melt tape is typically used in most sealing and shipping situations since it has higher adhesion than acrylic. It's also more flexible and provides a more consistent seal.

SO, if you need the highest adhesion, you want to go with HOT MELT.

SECRET #5: TAPE GUN OR DISPENSER

If you find yourself constantly dealing with stuck-together tape and you realize you are constantly throwing out tape wads, consider getting a TAPE GUN or DISPENSER (Dispensers are for tape like Scotch whereas Tape Guns are for packing tape). This will almost completely eliminate tape being scrapped.

Remember how earlier I mentioned discussing the "Core Diameter" measurement?  The core is what you need to know to purchase the correct size TAPE GUN: Refer to SECRET #1 to review this info.  You also want to make sure the WIDTH of the tape matches the tape gun.  

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