Father Christmas isn't the only person who carries out international deliveries.

The huge explosion of people shopping online has completely changed the retail marketplace. It has provided an opportunity for small businesses to not only sell goods to local buyers but to offer their products to buyers internationally too.

With the low-cost international services of eBay and Amazon, it is now possible to promote products both nationally and worldwide. However, marketing your goods is only one part of the business puzzle involved in meeting customer expectations.

Your goods need to be delivered in good condition and on time. Below are some useful delivery and packaging tips that will help you if for example, you need to send a parcel to America or if you are looking for a dedicated courier service to take your goods to Italy.

Make sure the courier service you choose provides online tracking. When your consignment has been despatched, ensure that you send the information to your buyer so that they can track their delivery too.

• Check the courier company's transit time and ensure that this meets the expectation that you have set for your customer.
• Take numerous photos of the dimensions and weight of the parcel along with the shipping label attached. The carriers will both weigh and measure the package and sometimes raise incorrect extra charges. If you’ve got the information, it means you are in a position to question these charges.​
• Ensure the courier service you use has a telephone customer service line so that you can speak with a real person about any queries you may have.
• Check review sites such as Google or TrustPilot to see what the delivery service provided by the carrier is really like.
• If the consignment is being delivered internationally, check if there will be any import duty charges due. It’s advisable to let your customer know in advance if possible so that there are no surprises or negative feedback left for you.
• Either yourself or the customer should pay for extra insurance the shipment in case of loss or damage to the parcel in transit. The insurance company will only payout for damage to the item if it has been correctly packaged. You should use a strong box, with plenty of internal protection such as bubble wrap or polystyrene chips so that the item does not directly touch the sides of the box.
• Chech the courier will transport the types of goods that you want to deliver. Each courier will have a list of prohibited and restricted items that they will either not accept, or that is excluded from their goods in transit liability.
• Send your goods using the right logistics service for them, for instance, if it’s a fragile item, temperature-sensitive, or of high value, there are specialist delivery services that can meet your requirements.
• The cheapest courier services are usually supplied by large, international carriers that have their own staff in both the collection and delivery destinations such as DHL, FedEx, and UPS.