What A Nice Idea For Shipping Stamps

Well, perhaps not completely for shipping, but indeed, for sure, for receiving them.

I received a stamp (one stamp) from France today in the mail and, whether or not it came this way from an album or not, it arrived at my door in a black background plastic sleeve. Being in an envelope with nice circular cancels also helped mind you.

This made the stamp pop right out and be noticed and I could appreciate right away what a great buy I had made and I felt good, so off I went to leave great feedback for the seller, ttototiti. Interesting user name also. (Another collecting interest of mine, ebay user names and why they are the way they are.)

Up to now I had been using little plastic polypropelene (I believe) clear plastic bags for shipping stamps, but this made me rethink that idea and perhaps investigate and choose a black background 102 card or even put a piece of black paper inside the bag to make it eye-popping and nicer and nice-emotion evoking for the receiver.

I also like to put a little happy face sticker on the back of my envelopes as a small sealing sticker. That way, when the buyer turns the envelope (sometimes) to open it he will see the happy face and smile and be happy (happier) when he sees what is inside.

The after-the-sale performance is as or more important than just the sale as regarding customer satisfaction.

Couldn't agree more Puzzler. The method of packing for shipping is very important. It kind of makes the purchase feel special when the seller has put some effort into packing.

At the risk of being accused of hijacking, let me give you my pet peeve about packing. It is the use of transparent tape "Scotch" for sealing, within the outer envelope. Unless you are very careful in cutting through the tape, the tape has a potential for damaging the material by sticking to it. It has happened to me once. Not a pretty picture. Probably as much my fault as the shippers, but if the tape had not been there, the damage would not have occurred.

about the tape on envelopes. have had scary experiences myself in opening envelopes. I think when the envelope adhesive is wetted properly and sufficiently and then allowed to dry and set up it is quite excellent. Perhaps over-wetting is the culprit here as people lick it to death to 'make sure' it sticks good. Needs more time to dry and set then.

The art of envelope licking. Good topic.

Strangely I used to do the tape thing when I started years ago but it kind of wears thin as the years go by. That's what the adhesive is for on the envelope flap.

Sometimes now I use a piece of Scotch tape to attach cardboard stiffeners to the packing slip so they will stay in place to protect the stamp(s) during shipment, but I make sure that when the paper is removed from the envelope the cardboard and tape is on the back of the paper, well away from the stamp(s) in their plastic bag.

The plastic bag is folded and then taped at the fold to the paper to keep that in place.

I know some would cringe at all this mention of tape here and tape there and I do cringe myself when I think about it.

I have seen some sellers use paper, folded over at the edges, to keep the stamps secure and will investigate this further as you reminded me about it. Thank you. I still think that the plastic pouch is good for moisture protection and fingerprint protection too but the tape has to go.

I have one of those black background things you talk about, its what I use
to take pictures of my stamps, its really nice, someone sent it to me when
i bought some Greece stamps. I really dislike when shipping is bad, no matter
how good the product is, if its bad then it makes the product seem bad too.

Yes, yes, Puzzler. All shippers should carefully consider the ramifications of transparent tape. I have damaged two purchases just getting past the tape. Perhaps I was too eager to open the package.

The use of tape inside the envelope or package should be avoided. I opened one envelope where the stamp had slipped within the glassine and touched the tape used to seal the glassine. It was just on the edge where the perfs were, but that was enough.

If you are a seller and use tape, please reconsider and find another way to secure the inside of the envelope.

When I send stamps I have sold, I use a CD mailer. These are stiff board and protect the contents from folding etc. I can't find board-backed envelopes here in Oz.

If you can find a commercial paper supplier for mass mailers, you can usually get large stacks of chipboard which is great for mailing items and can be cut to whatever shape you need. They are also much better than Staples, Office Max, etc. for envelopes - variety and cost. Most urban/suburban areas should have one or more of these places.
Will

Top idea!

I like your favourite quote.