Summer may just be starting, but it's never too early to start preparing yourself for the busiest time of the year for most manufacturers, distributors, and retailers: the holidays. The sooner companies start to prepare for the influx of orders, the better equipped they'll be to handle them. And with online shopping having completely changed the way people buy, shipping and packaging is set to continue to grow by leaps and bounds.

chevron cs 1The peak season brings a lot of challenges for companies, and this time is essential to be not only cost-effective, but efficient, as well. As a business owner, you want to keep the amount of claims to a minimum through the holiday season since many packages are time-sensitive. Failing to send a package with the correct protective materials could lead to unhappy customers.

Instead, it's smart to start organizing and thinking about your shipping process now. Here are five tips to help your business prepare for peak-season packaging, from one of our key vendors.

1. Be smart about amount of packaging materials: The amount of packaging material means a lot to customers when their products arrive. According to UPS, it's smart to use less packaging material to save money. Additionally, over-packing your items adds expense and can even lead to damaged products. To know exactly how much packaging material is appropriate for your goods and services, work with a trusted packaging partner. Teaming up with industry experts will help you determine the most cost-effective way to go about your packaging materials so you're not overspending this peak season. You'll see the biggest reward when implementing cost-effective strategies into your peak delivery times.

2. Be efficient in crunch times: With events like Cyber Monday, companies see a huge spike in orders. Those who make it successfully through these specific sales days are those who have quick turnaround, a report by Kurt Salmon, a global management consultancy firm, stated. Researchers in the report found that Cyber Monday (the Monday after the Thanksgiving weekend) is the largest online shopping day, which puts more pressure on getting items out of the warehouse faster.

"Many retailers are still playing catch-up with the omni-channel movement and are investing heavily in their in-store Black Friday promotions, but aren't similarly preparing for an influx of online shopping over the course of the Thanksgiving weekend," Michelle Bogan, a partner in the retail and consumer products group at Kurt Salmon, said. "For the past two years, online sales have outpaced in-store purchases during Thanksgiving weekend, and while Cyber Monday remains the biggest online shopping day of the year, Black Friday is quickly catching up." Staying efficient during these crunch times is absolutely critical to brand loyalty and returning customers. With more companies offering faster shipping, it pays to be well-organized during this hectic shipping period.

keep-calm-its-24-days-until-christmas3. Prepare for the worst: Another great way to excel in the peak packaging season is by being prepared for everything to happen. The more prepared you are for these issues, the better you will be ready to handle them. By planning ahead with your packaging solutions, you'll have the know-how if any problem were to arise. Limiting downtime in these peak periods is just another way to be cost effective. David Abney, CEO-elect and chief operating officer at UPS, spoke to Logistics Management about the importance of peak season preparation.

"One frequent topic of discussion has been our preparation for peak season," Abney stated, according to the source. "We've had meaningful conversations with customers about our plans. These discussions provide the foundation for a joint commitment of forecast volume enabling UPS to better manage how large accounts impact our network. We have made changes to UPS technology that will improve communication with customers."

4. Choose the best cushioning and containers: In your packaging strategy, the cushioning and containers can make all the difference, UPS reported. Goods that need a box should always be surrounded by 2 inches of cushioning to give enough protection and durability. Even if you're reusing materials, it's critical to ensure your protective packaging contains no weak spots. Corrugated cardboard can lose up to 50 percent of its strength each time it's used, which means you have to be smart about what you're reusing during peak times.

5. Automate simple processes: In the packaging industry, some facilities still spend several man hours taping, assembling boxes, void-filling boxes, packing, labeling and moving products out the warehouse door. With the peak season quickly approaching, look for automation opportunities that reduce package handling. This will increase throughput, reduce labor costs for temporary employees and allow you to focus more on customer satisfaction.