Ep. 123: Balikbayan Boxes Update

Welcome to the Secret Sauce of Outsourcing podcast that's dedicated to making you better at working with OFS online Filipino specialists. This is episode 123, Balikbayan boxes update. This is going to be weird, I'm just telling you right now, and weird for multiple reasons. So this is a cultural podcast episode where I'm just going to talk about some culture things in the Philippines. So recently I had a podcast about Balik Bayan boxes. It's an easy way to ship a whole bunch of things to the Philippines. It's used typically by families who live overseas to send things home to their family. It's a cheap way to do it other than sending electronics. Like, you can't send. You can't use this to send a laptop. It doesn't work. I had a podcast recently about it. I also sent a newsletter about it, and I got a really great response from Edward, whose wife is from the Philippines, and they regularly send stuff to the Philippines. And he had a lot of really good tips for us. And actually he just kind of laid it out really well. And so I'm going to read what Edward sent me. So just so you know, this is gonna sound weird, and I'm just telling you up front, it's gonna sound weird to you, and it sounded weird to me. And it's kind of things that, like, I would never send these things to my workers, at least until I got this email. Like, until Edward explained this, I never would have done this. So here we go. Edward says, we've sent Balikbayan boxes to the Philippines, to my wife's relatives. Things that make the most impact are there's just so you know, there's like 12 bullet points here. Number one, canned meats, spam, Vienna sausages, corned beef, canned chicken, roast beef, tuna. Meat protein is very expensive in the Philippines. A single tin or two is sufficient to feed an entire family. Since it is always eaten with a plate full of rice, make sure to limit to two dozen of each to minimize the risk of customs opening the box. Also, while canned fish is everywhere in the Philippines, the percentage of fish in the can is much smaller. Sometimes half the tin is comprised of oil or water. Super interesting. Next. Spaghetti noodles, sauces, craft dinner. Although not too much craft dinner as they take up a lot of space. Next, toiletries, toothpaste, makeup, eyeliner, perfume, soap, shampoo and conditioner, deodorant, lipsticks, lotion, note seal with tape, the lids of anything that can leak. Again, I said this was gonna be weird, but super interesting. To see, like, what makes an impact if you're gonna ship something to the Philippines. Next. Fruit preserves, fruit jams of every kind, especially strawberry and raspberry. Next. Vitamins and supplements, OTC medicine, Tylenol, aspirin, cough, cold, flu medication. Clothing and shoes. Use socks and T shirts as packing. So that's an interesting one. Like, you know, you're filling this box and you have some extra room. Rather than sticking peanuts in it, you can stick socks or shirts. That's cool. Cheap handbags. My wife bought a dozen Coach and Michael Kors handbags with her. Brought a dozen Coach and Michael Kors handbags with her when she went home a number of years ago since it was too risky putting them in the Balikbayan box. Candies and chocolates, especially the large Toblerone bars from Costco during Christmas. Batteries, Duracell or Energizer keep them in the pack. The ones sold in the Philippines are crap. Flashlights and headlamps. A good quality high lumen light is invaluable over there. I don't even know why I'm assuming. I mean, power goes out there regularly. I know that. So wow. American made tools, screwdrivers, wrenches, socket sets. The Chinese stuff in the Philippines is junk dollar store knickknacks to stuff the box to the gills since weight is no object. Stationary pens, pencils, crayons, markers. This is to show the inspector using the scanner that the box's contents is for family and not a business. Super interesting. He continues, make sure the Bulik Bayan box has the recipient's address and phone number printed in huge bold font and taped to the box, at least on two sides. Use lots of packing tape and do not leave any corner untaped. Wrap the entire box in 18 inch plastic wrap. He says, I don't understand your OFS's prohibition on batteries. They're not a problem as far as he knows. Do not send any alcoholic beverages. That's a huge temptation to the inspectors. Same with expensive electronics like smartphones, tablets, laptops. Don't bother with household cleaners. They're everywhere in the Philippines and very inexpensive children's toys are the same quality. They all come from China. Thank you, Edward. That is a fantastic summary. And it's like so much culture in that email that I had no idea, right, batteries are crappy in the Philippines or you need a headlamp. So I sent this email, Edwards email to my ofs and she responded to me about some of these things and some of the contradictions she had said. So number one. She said send alcohol. She meant, like, the mini containers. But then she agreed that maybe it's probably better just to not. She also said that toys, she specifically meant like, Legos or better toys, because in the Philippines, often they have knockoff things, like knockoff Legos. So, like, more expensive toys would be, would be for her. Because she said, yeah, anything that's made from China, that's just anywhere, it's the same. Same garbage. So, yeah, I told you this podcast would be weird. And it, it was weird. I can't imagine sending canned meat to one of my employees, but maybe it would be effective. I've never done it. Maybe I'm going to try it, though.