What Role Does Product Packaging Design Play In Your Marketing Strategy?
Although arguably one of the most, if not the most important element of marketing your products, in many cases product packaging design is also the most overlooked. Even after spending so long developing your product and delving into extensive market research to get a clear view of your target market, as well as analysing your competitors, it can be a last minute realisation that you need to look into product packaging. Good product packaging is essential for doing your product justice and selling it to your target market.
Why is product packaging so important?
A simple way of looking at things is that when you aren’t there in person to sell your product, your product packaging acts as your sales force. When you can’t be there to convince customers of your product’s virtues, your product packaging design needs to draw them in to its features and your brand identity, shouting out your unique selling points. Your product packaging helps to define the character of your new product.
What should you think of when designing your product packaging?
Catching the customer’s eye – Product packaging design needs to be distinctive, eye-catching and unmistakably your brand and your product. Look at your competitors and think about what you can do to stand out from them and win over your target market. If your product stands out from the crowd, it is sure to win more favour with the consumer. By spending the time and effort to create unique packaging, you stand to make more of an impression and gain a positive response from consumers, particularly younger ones.
You need to work hard on creating packaging that is aesthetically pleasing and creative to draw the consumer’s attention to first the packaging, and then its contents at the point of sale. For some products, this is of even more importance, particularly in the cosmetics and confectionary sectors where consumers are much more likely to buy beautifully designed, decoratively packaged products.
Functionality and innovation – Innovative packaging can make old products seem new, especially if it has a strong novelty appeal, for example, seasonal packaging. Unusual packaging can help to increase interest in a product and therefore boost sales. However, whilst innovation is appealing, functionality is essential for successful product packaging design. As great as a design may look, if packaging can’t stand up properly on a shop shelf, it is nowhere near as effective.
Packaging that fits the product – It is important that the packaging of your product communicates its quality. If a product is expensive and of a high quality, consumers will quickly be put off if it is packaged cheaply and flimsily. Whereas the text on product packaging is important to sell the quality of a product, if the packaging itself does not communicate this, expertly written text is useless.
If you need advice on how to maximise the marketing potential of your product packaging design, you can visit the packing experts website, or contact us by calling 01256 352415 or emailing info@thepackagingexperts.co.uk to arrange a free consultation meeting.
