Share Your Shipping Secrets/Tricks Here

Retired from the USPS....as is my wife. One of her jobs was to repair damaged parcels. Care to guess what the biggest problem was? Poor packing by the shipper. You leave an open air space in the package you have just created a crush zone. Once this happens the chance of package ending up bursting opens sky rockets. People need to realize that anything shipped thru the larger carriers are no longer handled by humans any more.
Damn near every phase of the shipping process is automated. Does not matter what to use to fill the air space in the box, as long as it is filled. One thing that works very well if you are shipping something that may be able to puncture a cardboard box no matter how much stuffing you put in the box is line the box with Styrofoam. Take one of those cheap disposable ice chests and line the box with it prior to putting anything in it. Depending on how much weight you are shipping those Styrofoam coolers themselves make pretty damn good shipping containers...providing that they are filled with packing material and VERY securely taped.