Packaging plays such an important role in product marketing for all businesses. From food, retail, and consumer goods to industrial and the world of E-commerce, packaging is a voice for a brand, and its first impression to a customer, so it is essential that you make a good first impression.
However, did you know the shape of the packaging can influence a purchase? It is important to plan your packaging and product with your target market in mind whether you use shrink wrap machinery or any other type of packaging solution. We have put together this useful guide to help you make the most of your packaging and to really entice your target audience in.
Shape
The thinking behind a customers buying decisions is extremely interesting. Simple tweaks in messaging on a package design can actually have a huge impact on sale.
You can speak to your consumers without saying anything, but instead, by how you choose to present your product on or off the shelf. The actual shape of your packaging can say a lot about your product and you can use this to your advantage. Masculinity, for example, is most often implicitly associated with angular shapes and designs, while femininity can be visualised in curved shapes. You can use these methods to speak to your target market through your packaging design.
How long your product lasts once in the hands of the consumer should hold some weight as you design your packaging. Again, use your packaging to speak to your consumers. Consider the size, shape, colour and align these items with your target market and your products intended use to create a truly remarkable packaging design that will delight your ideal consumer.
Colour
The colour of your packaging can speak to a target markets age, nationality, and location. Here are some of the top colours and what they can do for your product packaging if used tactically.
Colour, distinctive graphics and brand identity work together to eventually become iconic if consistently maintained. Imagine seeing a soft drink can in signature red with a white swirl, missing its brand mark: “Coca-Cola”. Would people still recognise the product? Surely just about everyone, the world over, would.
Many brands are instantly recognised due to their signature colours. Cadbury’s identifying purple is so important to the brand; the company sought to trademark it.
When a brand uses a strong colour, it should be carried into its packaging. Signature colour, package structure, imagery along with a strongly placed brand logo creates an “ownable”, one of a kind message. In well-executed packaging, all of the above prompts the “buy” response from customers.
Because colour actually has psychological effects, companies often choose category colours deliberately, as a tool to relay information and to prompt an emotional response.
- Many natural products end up packaged with plenty of green and rich earth tones.
- Black, gold or silver are used alone or in combination for luxury brands.
- High-tech products are often deliberately packaged in minimalist black.
- Simple, clean products with fewer ingredients tend to be packaged in white.
- Bright colours used with black evoke sophistication and edgy brands.
Use your packaging to really make a lasting impression on your customer. Look into the size, shape, colour and align these items with your target market, and your products intended use, to create a truly remarkable packaging design that will keep your customers coming back time after time.
