April 2019, by Julius Abendan
The Secret to Making Your Product Packaging More Impactful
Think of a product you like that’s made even more enjoyable because of its premium or unique packaging.
Whether you’re a business that operates exclusively online or one that has a brick and mortar store, the packaging your product comes in, whether it’s a
custom printed canvas tote bag or a
branded shopping bag, is the first tangible touch point between you and your customers. It has the power to create a more memorable impression of your brand.
Unfortunately, very few businesses exploit this opportunity, even with brands like Apple making it clear that the unboxing experience is something many consumers care about.
In this guide, we’re going to show you how to leverage packaging to your brand’s advantage.
1. Keep Things Simple but Elegant
A package that comes with too many bells and whistles may seem cool and all, but it can either come across as tacky, or worse, take attention away from your actual product.
Instead, keep your package design simple but elegant. If the average person can’t figure out how to open your package or find important information in less than 5 seconds, your package is too complicated for its own good.
Apple really shines in this department. Product boxes come in immaculate white, with a single image of the product on the “face” of the box. The box itself couldn’t be easier to open, with the actual product itself pulled out by a plastic tab.
2. Aim for Consistency
If you are selling and shipping a diverse line of products all under one brand, the last thing you want is to confuse shoppers with different packaging designs. Consistency is key. You want to unify all product packages with one theme or design, which will help create a product, no scratch that, packaging recall.
A classic example of this is Pringles’ packaging. All products are packaged in a cylindrical container, a design that has since been copied by other makers of similar crisps.
3. Make Your Packaging Evoke an Emotional Reaction
According to statistics from Google, “One in five consumers report that they've actually watched an unboxing video.”
Google also found that “…unboxing videos are most often watched during the holiday season, when giddy, child-like anticipation is running high anyway. In fact, 34% of the views for unboxing videos related to food, electronics, toys and beauty/fashion happen in the October to December time frame—that's 1.5x higher than the average volume of unboxing video views in other quarters.”
The reason for this is simple: emotions.
While it’s important to keep your product packaging simple and easy to figure out, you also want to evoke a positive emotional response.
In other words, aim for a design/theme that’s simple yet still cool. If you make sure your product packaging is visually appealing without being too complicated, you can push people into making a purchase decision and sharing the experience.
Of course, this all depends on whether your product lives up to the hype generated by the package.
Bottom Line
The key with great product packaging is to deliver a delightful product experience. One they will want to share with their network of people, allowing your business to attract new customers and retain existing ones. Don’t underestimate the potential of packaging, but at the same time, don’t make it more complicated than it should be.
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