Product packaging isn’t everything, but it’s certainly worth more than many business people care to know. It could raise the value of a handful of homemade biscuits; it could also turn potential buyers away from otherwise quality soap bars.
It’s the customers’ first point of contact with the things they buy. And it’s so important that even the sphere of ‘unpackaged’ goods (staple foods for instance) is being shrunk all the time. We haven’t always had packaged garri for instance.
But what sets great packaging apart from mundane or downright poor ones? And how can you ensure that your products get couched in your industry’s most eye-catching wrappers?
Here are a few steps to arriving at packaging that brings you customers.
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1. Bring the Big Determinants Together
Think about the following:
•What your customers want to see. If you’re attentive to these sorts of things, you may be able to pick up differences in the preferences of customers from different age groups, levels of education, etc. If your typical customers are conscious of what their packaging looks like or have a more-than-average keenness for form and order, you may want to pay extra attention to how you package what you’re selling.
•The sort of product you need packaging for. The kind of packaging you choose will also depend in part on the kind of product you’re selling. Thin transparent wraps may do for bread; fruit juices will be better preserved in bottles, and fizzy beverages, in cans. This is a basic point, but it’s also important.
•The things that popular designs in your industry have had in common. Winning packaging from the recent past may tell you something about what works for packaging in your industry or location. We’re not advising you to steal someone else’s designs; we only suggest that you study the best ones to see what makes them tick. Find out from people what delights them about those covers.
•The material you’ll use. The material you use sends a subconscious message to the buyer about what they should expect from the product when they finally consume it. So whether you’re going with paper or low-density polyethylene, be sure that it’s high-quality stuff. If your material looks too cheap, people may think your product is also low grade.
•Aesthetics. Things like colour, shape, and text font, are all crucial too. While you might want to shift the responsibility of deciding this to a graphics designer or branding outfit, you should let your knowledge of your target audience’s preferences come to bear as well. Again, you’ll have to study what has resonated with them in the recent past to get a good grasp of what you should be offering their eyes.
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2. Decide on Something that Incorporates these Concerns
This assumes that you are involved with the design of your product packaging, as you should be. An ideal cover or wrap for your product will satisfy the need for the aesthetics and sentiments of your typical customer; it will be quality material; it may also have some of the elements that have propelled preexisting packaging to success on the market.
3. Constantly Reinvent Your Packs
Be open to feedback from customers and the wider public. If there are points that get raised repeatedly, you might want to see if they’re about something you should add, tweak, or remove.
You’ll always be reinventing your product’s packaging as preferences evolve. It’s how you keep up with your customers and stay top of mind with them.
Featured image source: Steven Depolo/Flickr
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