What to Consider When Choosing a Package for Your Product
Your packaging is an important part of attracting customers to your products. It communicates your brand, the product’s perceived value, and can help you stand out amongst your competitors. With endless design and material options to choose from, it can be hard to figure out what’s right for your business. Here are the most important things to consider when choosing your packaging.
What Are You Selling?
This may seem obvious, but step one is thinking about your product. Is it liquid or solid? Does it need to travel and store well? Does your packaging need to meet shelf life or safety requirements? Who is going to be using your products? Understanding your product requirements, customer needs, and industry standards will give you a jumping-off point for determining your package concepts and materials.
What’s Your Budget?
It may be tempting to select high-end materials and printing techniques, but it might not be the most cost-effective. Techniques like dye-cut patterning and foil stamping certainly look beautiful, and for a small run might seem worth it. Multiply that cost at scale however and you may see your budget balloon. When thinking about your budget, you should also consider the cost of hiring creative talent to design your packaging, not just the manufacturing.
What Does It Need to Do?
Does your packaging need to jump off the shelf and be eye-catching? Should it also allow your product to remain safe during transport and handling? The most successful packaging considers both form and function. It should protect the product and travel well, but it should also entice the product inside. Your packaging will also need to communicate key messages about your brand, and any instructional or legal information required.
What Are Your Competitors Doing?
Consider your competitors. What are the key elements that should stand out about your product to help you compete? How can you differentiate your particular product or offering to consumers? Make sure your best value propositions are front and center on your packaging. Eye-catching designs and inventive features can also help you stand out from the crowd. Think about what you might be able to offer customers via your packaging that others don’t.
Remember, creating your packaging design should be fun! Good packaging design can help your products stand out, build customer loyalty, and effectively market your value propositions. Keep these four considerations in mind to balance form and function in your packaging concepts, and you’ll achieve great results.