How to Pack and Ship Books for Ebay and Whatnot [Bubblewrap ASMR]

[@helpfulcommenter]

Thank you for taking the time to change outfits between videos, it helps us not get confused. Gotta appreciate the two different outfits. Book Matt and Thrift Matt's own unique uniforms are the attention to detail that makes this no ordinary Edutainment Ecosystem.

[@grahamharris7676]

You shipped me a pricey Whatnot book and my letter carrier absolutely stuffed it into my community mailbox. I had to tear off bits of the shipping envelope and reach in and remove the book. I then removed the envelope in pieces. The book was absolutely unharmed. I was impressed.

[@bookfantastic]

Thank you. This video has saved me lots of time and aggravation and money. With this method, I often pack the orders as they come in now. My variation is I cut out two slabs of cardboard which I insert in the ploy bag to protect both sides of the book. I don't need any more shipments to arrive bent and crippled across the spine. Grateful for the advice.

[@Parker307]

Lately my style of shipping books and CDs is I cut two pieces of cardboard that are an inch or so bigger than the book all around(I don't measure, I just eyeball it) Then I use this cling film shrink wrap that comes in 5" wide rolls and just go around and around until covered. The main thing is that now the corners are cardboard. Then I put it in a poly mailer. I have been using poly mails that are too big, 12x16 bigger than needed because I have them. I fold over the extra bag and use ebay tape that I got cheap using the store shipping discount. I get the cardboard for free from the cardboard only waste boxes that are behind most retail shopping centers. I get the cling wrap rolls in a box of 12 for 45-50 and the last box lasted me a couple of years. With the poly mailers I have started buy the different sizes in different colors so I can tell at a glance what it is. Here is a video idea, show how you ship suits. I would not know how to do that and would have to search for a video on it. Not that I have suits to sell but after watching some of your vids I am thinking maybe I should look at the suit section in the store to see if anything good is there.

[@btsoc1397]

This is exactly what I've been doing for years. I have so many junk boxes such as diaper boxes, Amazon boxes, etc, so just cutting the cardboard real quick to overhang the book is perfect. Especially on more valuable books, because bubble wrap doesn't prevent the book from bending like cardboard does. Gives me a peace of mind and I see much less returns from the customer.

[@andrewwashere82]

Won't adding the cardboard increase the weight aka shipping cost?

[@immortal2u]

I put mine in a plastic bag, and cut a couple of pieces of stiff cardboard to prevent bending, and tape off all four sides to brace, and then into the mailer. Bubble wrap is expensive and not necessary if you have access to cardboard. Have shipped hundreds of books with no problems. But, I aim to spend the least on packing materials as possible and use what is free and available.

[@maryward7522]

Clear, simple, effective, cost-effective. Just what I was looking for. Thank you!

[@Doing_It_Wrong]

*There's no insurance for media mail, so anything over your particular tolerance for loss (Like $50 or whatever) is smart to go by another insured method. Shipping is more, but it helps with your risk tolerance. **Nice video. I now know I'm overdoing it, lol. I normally do a cardboard wrap after the light bubble wrap.

[@dmjohnso]

As someone who has received one or two of these... I can confirm always arrives in perfect shape.

[@Linda-un6xm]

I just brought home a boxful of paperbacks from my mother's. I've been wondering how to ship them. Perfect timing!

[@parttimehustle6236]

Your last few videos have been super high-value. THANK YOU!!

[@bookfantastic]

I've twice had valuable paperbacks arrive folded across the spine. As a result, I use the clear poly bags and rigid cardboard around the outside. Then I wrap in parcel paper. I like the speed of your method, but I am hesitant to send anything without the extra protection. I get the cardboard for free, but it does take more time. I will have to put some thought into this. Maybe I can cut a bunch of standard paperback sized boards and combine with your poly-mailers. It would be great to speed up the process. So far, the poly mailers I have found are about 14 cents each. Do you have a better source?

[@gokuafrica]

Super helpful video. Didn't expect to find a nifty to the point guide to help me pack books for my business. Thank you so much!

[@empowereveryone7063]

Straight to the point and explained each step very well. Great video man i appreciate it 👍

[@GAMINGOOZE101]

Bought loads of book mailers and was using bubble mailers first just sold a book had no bubble mailers left so thought I'd try a book mailers for the first time, this video was helpful for wrapping thanks

[@DasaGain]

Perfectly informative, and money saving to see we can use polymailers too! Thank you so much for this video!!!

[@JJM3rd]

Those cardboard “book mailers” look like LP mailers. I don’t know if they’re different, depends on the size I guess, but I’m a vinyl collector of 30+ years and I’ve sold vinyl for over 20 now, so I have LP mailers laying around for that purpose. Many times I’ve grabbed an LP mailer to ship books/magazines/any item that’s fairly flat. Searching LP mailers might be the way to go, there’s no substantive difference between a record and a book.

[@RCboyzTV]

Can you please link to the desk-top tape dispenser and the tape that you use? Thanks for the video and informative content

[@leannab3865]

Thank you for your videos. I appreciate you for helping us. I have to mail books all the time.

[@shl8531]

Would you mind telling me where i can buy your tape dispenser ? Thanks

[@joseelacasse3189]

Great info. Looking forward to next book auction. I can hear Enya... sail away, sail away, sail away

[@vl2663]

Omg thank you for this video I bought a 100 pack of poly mailers from Amazon and I just sold my first book on eBay and was wondering if anyone else used poly bags for shipping books. Most of the answers and info I’ve read online have been that people use boxes or those sturdier bubble mailers for books. I don’t have boxes atm but planning on getting some soon and the bubble mailers I have only fit smaller books. The book I sold is like 11 inches tall and wide and I have more items around these dimensions which was my reasoning for getting the poly mailer bags which are around 19 x 14.5. I have bubble wrap so I’ll just make sure to wrap it well since it’s a collectible type of book

[@janejohnston9672]

Thanks for sharing your resale knowledge! Could you please share SEO words or phrases to use in eBay titles - maybe for different categories?

[@wshdkulakjsi8525]

Thx for the vid!! I’m going to be selling books on eBay so I can afford things I want. Btw, can anyone please explain the relationship between shipping fees and the final cost? I’m confused by how it works despite it being explained to me by my mom 😂

[@1whitecottagelife770]

I got the big roll of shrink wrap from Costco, 12 in x 3000 feet, I wrap the book in shrink wrap, which holds it together and protects it from moisture, and I use the 10x14 bubble padded mailers from eBay, that I use my quarterly coupon to buy. I've never had any complaints, if the book is smaller I fold it over and the book has even more protection. Sometimes I slip in a sheet or 2 of cardboard, extra protection from bending, if the weight allows it. Worked perfectly and it's simple, I got 5 star reviews down the line. I use a cardboard box only when I have multiple books to the same buyer and they don't fit in the padded envelope.

[@DempseyRoll108]

​@@justfacts1308 what do you use for water/moisture protection?

[@bl8388]

This is much better than the method the last guy who mailed me a book, used. (I'm guessing here.) Step 1: Drink too much alcohol Step 2: Drop kick the book a few times. Step 3: Put book in a bubble mailer too small for it and force it in Step 4: Mail it Step 5: Have another beer

[@stephaniemitchell5372]

Where do you buy the poly bags you are using? I've been buying from the $1.25 tree , but would love to get different sizes for 5cents each. Thanks for the video. I'm shipping a few hardcover books. Thought about bubble wrap and filling in the gaps with peanuts.

[@Levorthian]

Thanks, bookmarked this! Have a great day!

[@kathyhayward5730]

There's a better way to pack & ship books. Put the book in a plastic bag (Walmart bagel bags work well, and they're cheap), then wrap the book side to side and top to bottom with cardboard. Place the wrapped book in a poly mailer and you're good to go. No bubble wrap needed, and no special boxes. Just cut up used cardboard boxes; a guillotine paper cutter is easy to use and gives precise cuts. For best presentation, make sure the non-printed side of the cardboard faces outward.

[@marilynwilson2326]

Thanks. I take particular care of all the corners.

[@skokiereader]

Good idea! I mostly sell new hardcovers, so I would be concerned the DJ may crease.

[@jennywhisconier7777]

Many thanks for the 'back of napkin' math on the bubble + mailer vs bubble mailers . . .

[@ZoeKellerman]

Starting from scratch, how do you address the book? Are there stickers? What does the finished package look like just before you drop it in the mail box?

[@bebebrown5585]

Whats the plastic around the book before the bubble wrap

[@lisagarcia5508]

Thanks I always learn so much from you!

[@lindaennesser5389]

Thank you so much! Learned a lot, as usual. God bless! 😊

[@haircutdeluxe]

You know what you need? Automated sales of a digital information product that you market through video content. Anyone who’s considering being even a part time reseller would jump at the opportunity to pay $39.95 for four hours of video, 200 sample listings, and 30k words. You could make that in two weeks, you probably have 80% of it already. Automate the entire thing, all digital products, delivery, processing, all of it. You want to be a digital nomad and go where it’s cheap? Make your payments follow you and not be tied to physical inventory.

[@helpfulcommenter]

that's actually not a bad idea, he should consider it. package up the best nuggets of his content in one purchasable package that can live online for ordering. people who want to support his travels could buy it along with people who are finding him for the first time by searching for videos because they are looking to get into the reselling game. matt could become the tim ferriss of reselling.

[@helpfulcommenter]

this package could also live as subscription that would include updates of the menswear manifesto for life. he could also create a subscription based newsletter that he publishes direct to email for a monthly fee, if he wrote pieces about his travels and published every week, i'd pay for it. and/or just do patreon and put out travel, reselling, and/or book content exclusive to patrons. the point is, matt, there's dozens of ways to do the digital nomad thing now that youv'e got a following, it will be exciting to see what you do.

[@matrixxafterdark6704]

Hello whatsvthe best ship setting for books. I'm sure I did media mail and I just sold a book and it charged customer over $21

[@onnapoint1910]

One risk of shipping valuable books by Media Mail is that you can't buy insurance. Priority mail costs more but comes with $100 of insurance.

[@DerekUnruh-j6v]

Where do you get the acetate sleeves?

[@gobnobbla]

Came here to see how books should be properly packaged for shipping. Just received 4 paperback books from Amazon that were all stuffed raw into a single paper "padded" mailer and the results were obvious...

[@Kebwrites]

Thanks! Excellent content!

[@PreetiPriyadarshini-h4q]

What's the size of poly mailers you're using in this vdo?

[@helpfulcommenter]

I've never sold anything on Whatnot, but is shipping through them or do you have to use something Pirate Ship? If it's through Whatnot directly, can you ship Media Mail? Thanks Matt good video, I have received a book from you can confirm it arrived in good condition.

[@armandogonzalez8636]

You can use PayPal shipping for media mail

[@ThriftALife]

You ship directly through Whatnot and media mail is automatically enabled for book auctions.

[@helpfulcommenter]

@@ThriftALife oh that's cool thanks man

[@kevingladman1018]

Hey Thrift, I like to do what you are doing with books & more. Would you Not Wrap Cardboard around for like comic books? Extra protection? Long Time Subscriber-Great Video! NwHillsPicker!

[@ThriftALife]

Never sell them but yes I would

[@FormerDelusional]

Thanks Matt!

[@stanlee5520]

Love this. Thanks

[@NashTV8]

I've shipped out thousands of books. I almost always use 2 pieces of cardboard for a book, -especially when the book cost at least $10.00. I recommend buying huge flat cardboard boxes from home depot, slice them down, and then make customized boxes for a book(Takes me 30 seconds)....then you don't even really need bubble wrap. If I have a first edition Stephen King book wrapped in bubble wrap, and i drop it on the floor so it lands on a corner, -that corner is going to get dented. That's why I don't trust bubble wrap. I once ordered a $100.00 vintage paperback off of Ebay(to resell) and it was mailed in a small bubble mailer,...it actually didn't get damaged, -but I thought whoever mailed it was an idiot. But yeah, there's more than one way to skin a cat.

[@helpfulcommenter]

Don't bother with Home Depot if you're doing that, especially if you have a business license / tax id, just buy wholesale bundled sheets of cardboard and have them delivered to your house. It's blank so looks cleaner, more professional. No advertising for a huge stupid big box store. Cheaper. Less waste because you don't have seams and cuts already you have to work around. Saves time. (I used to work for art galleries packing and shipping art and prints.) You can get it as big as 4'x8' and cut it down yourself, or get any number of standard sizes. For books something like 24x36 would be good I'd imagine. Cheers.

[@NashTV8]

@@helpfulcommenter That's great advice, Thx.

[@helpfulcommenter]

@@NashTV8 You're welcome and happy Spring

[@luckydiscoqueen]

I use the free cardboard boxes from Aldi. The cardboard is very strong and durable. I just put the book in a clear bread bag and then put it between two cardboard pieces and tape it in place. I make sure the cardboard is a bit larger than the book so there is overhang. Then I put it in a poly mailer. I don't use bubble wrap since I get the cardboard for free. If it is an expensive book, I ship it in one of the shallow boxes that the helium balloons ship in at Dollar Tree. I got a bunch of those boxes free at Dollar Tree.

[@kathyhayward5730]

@@justfacts1308 I used to think your method was the best option until I had a book returned to me as non-deliverable. All the packing paper that I'd placed around the book had been crushed by the book shifting around during shipment (Texas to NY and back). It was basically free-floating in the box. So now I just wrap books top to bottom and side to side with cardboard and slip it inside a poly mailer. If it's an extra special book, it goes inside a padded mailer.

[@PlayRoom44]

Hey buddy. Starting to sell books

[@JackMyersPhotography]

From the start, your packaging has always been great. All of my orders have always arrived in perfect condition. However, I don’t recognize any of those books from recent sales. Are you selling action adventure, military books on the side!!?

[@helpfulcommenter]

Are you Jackinator

[@ThriftALife]

Sneak peak for an upcoming auction

[@JackMyersPhotography]

@@ThriftALife Fantastic!

[@PierreRiopelClone]

wow, really great.

[@cassfonnesbeck8057]

If I have a stack of books I'll just put them in a box after placing in a sleeve.

[@KatisonYoutube]

Thank you!

[@flippingjunior5890]

can you ship media mail on whatnot?

[@brndafay8518]

Can you spare a square?? 😅

[@David7pm]

Thank you

[@Hklfilmsofficial]

How I do it too! 🎉

[@Wendy-zl8kv]

Thank you!

[@melodyharas6864]

If you plan on selling your tabletop tape dispenser before you move--me please! Let me know.

[@melodyharas6864]

P.S. Would you kindly autograph it first with a Sharpie? #notjoking #hugefan

[@MrFlippingHappy]

Your her favourite voice and speech attitude her is wife thanks ehhhh good info

[@raccoonstarsmember]

Why not use cardboard backing for all of them? OR For those that don't mind using USPS supplies, you can put the book in one of the small DVD boxes and then put that in a bag, along with the bubble wrap and cellophane of course.

[@NashTV8]

Shhh, don't give away that USPS secret,...you'll ruin it for everybody(jk)

[@raccoonstarsmember]

@@NashTV8 lol

[@lorenzow]

The only potential issue with using a USPS priority box is that sometimes the post office opens media mail packages to "audit" them and if they see you used a priority box for media mail services they will either charge you or the buyer when they receive it. It's rare but could happen. I think the cardboard sandwich method is best for books under 15-20 bucks and anything over that should probably get a box

[@lorenzow]

@@justfacts1308 newspaper technically can't go media mail unless it's blank newsprint and most people don't come by FREE newsprint daily. I agree you should wrap the books in more than just bubble wrap and a poly mailer though. If a book is 10-15$ or cheaper, there's nothing wrong with cutting cardboard flats to make a "cardboard sandwich" that will actually be a perfect size for the book. Anything more expensive than 15$ should be boxed. When your doing a high volume of media, not everything would be justified with boxing it. Just my 2 cents

[@cherylgraham2817]

Thank you!