Any retail expert can tell you how important an excellent product packaging design is for your business. A good product is indeed important for business, but if you do not have any unique and innovative retail packaging design, people will fail to notice your products. In this article we discuss 5 Amazing Retail Packaging Tips That You Cannot Ignore.
First impressions are important, and your packaging is just that for the customers. The retail packaging that you use to provide your customers with the products is something that will reflect on what your business is.
When it comes to receiving products, quality packaging can go a long way. No matter what product is inside the package, the minute it arrives at your customer’s doorstep, his/her experience has already begun. A customer views the packaging of the product first and then opens it up to see the product.
How much you are willing to invest in retail packaging shows how desperate you are for your product to be taken seriously.
Many people underestimate the importance of packaging design, and they make a mistake by doing so. Packaging is the initial step you take to communicate with the customer.
A package that is well-designed, and has great quality, will stand out from the crowd. It is not only about appearances because if your product is packed carefully, it will also arrive in perfect condition. This will get your message across that you are a brand that can be trusted.
Today’s retail environment is challenging, and there is intense competition your way at every turn. People have more choices than ever and can change brands whenever they want.
In times like these, you have to focus on your retail packaging if you wish to have the upper hand. So how can the retail packaging of your products thrive in that competition instead of getting knocked out by the more successful brands?
We have some tips we think will help you outmaneuver your competitors, and with it, your profits will increase.
Table of Contents
1. Packaging Should Stand Out
The time of boring glass bottles and plain Jam jars are behind us and the competition is increasing whether it is the food industry or the cosmetics industry. Companies are becoming fierce and growing fast, and if you need to catch up, you have to do something. You cannot expect to keep up with the pace by following the same old formulas.
You have to come up with original ideas and ideas to add something flexible to your marketing strategy. Nothing offers better flexibility than flexible retail packaging. With so many color and stylistic options, flexible retail packaging is something you should consider.
Blending in is not an option! When a customer is surfing the online websites, or when s/he is surfing the shelves at a retail shop, your product needs to stand out.
Good packaging, whether it is food packaging or supplement packaging, is a promise that you will deliver on and maintain their trust. A lot of the packaging companies spend their focus and energy to develop high-end packaging that aims at capturing the attention of customers.
You should also join those companies. While this element is important, you need to remember the other elements of the market that drive customers to your product. Consumers want easy to use, and efficient packaging and innovations that speak to the masses will be more likely to increase your sales.
2. Aesthetically-Pleasing Packaging Design
Retail packaging is supposed to increase the beauty of the customer shelves in stores, and that is what it should do. Packaging your product in a card box is a mistake you don’t want to make.
A card box is not something that is at the top of the list of things that attract customers. Boxes take up a lot more space than they should and aren’t pretty, something that you should aim to achieve. Pretty packaging grabs the customers’ attraction, and you can only do so much when it comes to a card box.
Sometimes less is more and going overboard with packaging may not always be the best idea. The results can be ineffective in regards to cost and customer response.
Your customers may have a negative consumer perception towards sustainability. Minimalistic design will prove to be not only cost-effective, but it will also be visually attractive to the consumers.
The demand for eco-friendly options across businesses is increasing, with more and more people being self-conscious and aware. Having a simplistic packaging strategy will not only satisfy this demand, but it will also positively contribute to the environment.
3. Eco-Friendly Packaging
As we mentioned above, consumers’ perceptions are changing as they are becoming more self-aware of their environment. People are trying to live lives that are more eco-friendly, and it would help if you helped them in that mission.
The buying decision of a lot of the customers is affected by this mindset, and you need to make sure your packaging is not at the wrong end of that argument. We should always be concerned about the environment, but recently there has been an increasing number of customers who are concerned and are taking recycling quite seriously.
Recent studies have even shown that customers will look down upon the brands that don’t really make any effort in using environment-friendly retail packaging.
However frightening that may sound to you, providing your customers with recyclable protective packaging is not as difficult as you think. Many brands are taking the initiative of introducing environmental friendly packaging, and that is attracting a huge number of customers.
This kind of packaging is completely recyclable and can be remade into everyday items with plastic. Even if your customers do not choose to recycle, you will still be helping, and that is a worthy cause that will bring attention to your noble efforts.
Times are changing, and you have to keep up with contemporary ideas and movements. When your packaging is environmentally friendly, it will take less space in the landfills.
If your brand can make the slightest difference in the amount of waste that is being deposited on a daily basis, then that is a win, both for you and your environment.
When you are willing to show your customers that you care about the environment as much as their needs, it will have a positive effect on the way consumers see your product.
4. Functionality Comes Before Aesthetics
Your packaging needs to have unique advantages. A packaging that is easy to use, and offers distinctive branding, has more chances of success. Products that are packed in preferred packaging are more likely to be purchased again as compared to products that have packaging that creates nothing but frustration and disappointment.
Even though the packaging of your product is something that should have a great design, it should never forget its primary function, which is to protect your product.
A pretty packaging means nothing if it cannot keep your product in its original form. The purpose of packaging is to protect what is inside, so the product is delivered to the end-customer undamaged, whether it is the distributor or the buyer.
Less is definitely more, but it should not come at the cost of your product’s safety. Make sure that the packaging strategy you choose serves and suits your products safely.
5. Study Your Buyer
Customer mindset is constantly changing, and it is very different from what it was a few decades ago. Now it is not about what you want or what is best for your company, but what your customers prefer and need. Protective packaging tactics may have worked long ago, but they are not appealing anymore.
The way people are leading lives is evolving, and people’s lifestyle has become much more diverse. Keeping up with consumer demand is the one rule you need to follow.
- How are you going to understand what your customers want?
- By studying them! Are your buyers always on the go?
- What is the age group of most of your customers?
Analyze these elements to put thought and effort into your packaging’s design element.
Your packaging needs to be convenient, something that is easy to open. You do not want your customers to feel annoyed or frustrated just because it takes time to open up the product.
Most of the companies develop their products after significant customer studies, so why not packaging as well? It may not be as important, but it does have a hand in your sales and customer response.
When you start to understand what brings success for the consumer products, you can apply those findings to your packaging strategies.
If your customers are going to buy the product in retail packaging, they need to note it in a sea of unlimited options. Good retail packaging should be attractive with complete information mentioned on it along with the precautions, price and basically everything that your customer needs to know about your product.
Follow these helpful tips to see your business and sales skyrocket!
Author Bio
Mark Berry is a seasoned designer & creative director with ten years of experience in Chicago, IL. Food Packaging Agency. In his free time, he writes blogs about amazing packaging tips and tricks.