In addition to achieving optimum functionality for protecting a product during its journey from the factory to the consumer, packaging plays an important role in marketing. It’s ultimately the packaging that catches a potential buyer’s eye, and over time it’s not unusual for the packaging to become the visual hallmark of a product rather than the product itself. The iconic glass Coca-Cola bottle is a great example of this phenomenon, as we tend to think of it when we thirst for a Coke, rather than the foamy brown-colored liquid itself.
It’s therefore important for packaging to play a central part in the brand recognition of a product or line of products. However, while the design of the packaging is crucial to achieving this end, it’s really only the beginning. With a little insight and creativity, the role packaging plays in branding can go far.
For instance, let’s say we’re dealing with an up and coming donut company, one with the potential to outdo Krispy Kreme if they tap into the right growth rhythm. Rather than use a traditional flat and wide 10x10x2.5 bakery box, this company packages their donuts in a 9x5x4 row box with the top-half consisting of see-through plastic.
As the company begins to expand, they will start to rely on dedicated semi-trucks to transport ingredients to various franchise locations. This presents an opportunity to expand the brand power of their packaging by commissioning the design and application of semi-truck wraps that make the trailer appear to look like a giant box of their donuts.
Another prospect when it comes to making packaging a central part of the brand is to actually make it part of the brand. Demonstrating this is the array of monthly subscription boxes available to consumers. Whether it’s Barkbox, Birchbox, Boxycharm, Zamplebox, or any of the options in between, you can see what they all have in common: the box i.e. the packaging is a central part of their brand identity.
The emotional capital which comes with the prospect of receiving a package in the mail full of goodies is seized upon by these and similar companies to great effect; simply spotting the package on our doorstep or in our mailbox is enough to trigger a sense of happiness and possibility we otherwise associate with a gift-giving holiday.
Then there is the approach which revolves around the design of packaging which the consumer doesn’t want to throw away. Picture the boxes and cases in which Apple products are packaged within, and how they almost seem like part of the products themselves.
We hold onto these packaging materials for a variety of reasons, some of which are attributed to an expectation to one day trade-in or resell the product. However, other times we hold onto such packaging simply out of an unwillingness to discard such a nice container. It might end up being used to store important papers or receipts. Or perhaps it ultimately ends up being repurposed as a rocket ship for a five-year-old intrigued by the capsule-like construction of the box a dishwasher arrived in. Either way, the box sticks around the house and so does the brand awareness it provides.
While the most important role of product packaging is to protect the product until it is purchased and put to use, the packaging is also used for marketing. If designed and utilized properly, packaging can become a powerful part of the brand recognition for that product. This double role is one of the reasons why product packaging remains such a critical aspect of commerce.
