A glimpse into modern packaging design

Learn how good packaging influences sales and why it needs to be moved up in the hierarchy of aspects that ensures the success of new product launch.

There are many aspects of how designers conduct packaging design. This piece will talk about the why and how of good packaging design.

Does this give you a feeling of milk chocolate flavored toothpaste? That is the power of packaging.


Branding and packaging

Branding itself is a concept that packages the idea and presents it to potential consumers and all other stakeholders. For many products, the package is branding. This proves why big retail brands keep a big chunk of the capital investment for the packaging design because the return on investment will be higher with good packaging as compared to vigorous marketing. Talk about branding and sales.

This difference becomes even more significant when it comes to products that have to be sold in a space like a supermarket where the consumer is exposed to thousands of packages.


Packaging in the entrepreneurial space

Startups face difficulties in designing good packaging for their first product because they usually do not have a pre-existing identity to adhere to. They have to start from scratch keeping in mind that they might expand in the future and create a malleable design identity that is extensible and maintains brand consistency.

Instead of deliberating whether entrepreneurs should invest in packaging, the actual debates should take place while designing the same. Packaging is undoubtedly necessary. A consumer eats with their eyes before they consume the product.

Entrepreneurs might underestimate the power of good packaging design because of the lack of fund allocation priorities, basic misconceptions or both. There are packages good and bad stacked in shelves at the supermarket, but the ones that fill shelves at home are only the best of the lot.

Packaging design may be a costly affair but it is more of an investment rather than an expense. The fact that firms invest in packaging despite its cost proves its significance. It is a one-time investment if done right. You might want to consider going to startup and SME branding studios for a quote that matches your needs in your budget. There is no temporary packaging. It has to be mindful.

Even businesses that invest in packaging sometimes make big mistakes that directly affect the sales and product perception in the market. Design is at the core, right beside the idea and vision of the brand. It is not something that is applied at the end of the process. Good packaging design is the reason for the sales.

The utility of (good) packaging

There would be only a few products that do not need packaging. Examples could be fruits (ignoring the stickers they have now), antiques, etc. Basically, such products are rare. Even products like furniture usually need cushioning packaging. Although, it does not need design.
So what are the basic purposes of packaging?

• Protection
• Containment
• Loading and transportation
• Information
• Promotion


And all of these can be tied together with the art of packaging design. Which means, an ideal packaging will not just protect and contain your product but also make it easy to load, transport and display, with all the necessary information on it, presented in a way that promotes its sales. If designed well, it will entice the human to pick it up, influence them to put it in their cart, create a micro-experience while unpacking it before use and in a perfect scenario, motivate them to even keep the packaging as a collectible touchpoint after use.


The need for (good) packaging

You don’t have to find good packaging but design it to ensure success in the market where thousands of products are fighting to get that consumer attention. A study found that an average human spends 4 seconds per product when going through an aisle and these are just the products that fall in the viewing periphery of the strolling customer. The attention span is getting smaller and smaller with more and more stimuli for consumption.

A Forbes study proves that 95% of new products fail. Hence, to be 5% of the 30,000 products that are introduced in the market every year, good packaging design becomes a must.

You eat with your eyes first.

To further prove how poor packaging can result in a dramatic fall in the sales graph, let us take the example of how Australia tried to reduce smoking habits by attacking the packaging and branding rights. In Australia, not only Marlboro is refrained from using its logo, but also can’t use its typeface. The packaging is also covered with health warnings and imagery of its effects.

This packaging law resulted in the biggest decline in smoking habits of Australians in almost 20 years.


To wrap it all up

Vaguely, the packaging process is divided into three parts:

• Research: Proper in-depth analysis of the consumer demographic, their choices, their lifestyles, etc. Basically, an ideal customer persona that might spend on your product. This data along with proper research of competition and their packaging habits to make sure your product stands out in the crowd.

• Material: What type of material favors your product in the most ideal way, also considering the packaging cost and the environmental sustainability of the packaging.

• Information design: This is where the content strategy and placement will come into play. Information hierarchy, space to content ratio, typography, and use of colors, legal guidelines of the region, etc. Are points of consideration for this phase.

Ensuring perfect approach towards these phases will ensure that your product will not only have visibility among the pool of choices that your competitors provide, but it will build trust with your consumer in a way that they might choose your product over a cheaper alternative.

This is a minor glimpse into the elaborate art of packaging design. If you are looking for a professional packaging design service for your brand, drop us a line. We ensure a ‘bubble-wrap-popping’ like experience.


— by Manas, Content Strategist, Slangbusters Studio