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We've all heard the
saying, "don't judge a book by its cover." However, in
the world of branding, a product's "cover", or packaging
design, can speak volumes about what's inside and who is
behind it. In the ever-changing world of
branding,
packaging design must evolve as quickly as products do.
While a top product may be effective,
cutting-edge, and unique, its packaging design must support that.
Packaging works to
tell a product's story, and powerful design can
separate great products from average products. To stand out in a sea
of brands striving to be seen, brands should be asking themselves
how to design packaging people want.
If you're looking to take your
product, and
brand, to the next level
and
achieve greater customer success, see these ten tips and
answers to what makes a good package design.
1. Keep It Simple
With so much information about
products and brands clouding advertisements, products can benefit
from clean, minimalistic, simple package design.
If a product looks to be overly
complicated and clustered with details, data, and designs, consumers
may be discouraged from buying it. Simple designs with complementary
colors and easy to read words can encourage consumers to pick your
product up off the shelf. While keeping packaging simple,
necessary information can still be portrayed in a tasteful,
effective way. In design, less is often more.
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2. Choose Colors
Wisely
Colors in package design are crucial
to the message your product portrays. What do your colors say about
your product? What do they say about your brand as a whole?
Depending on what your product is,
your packaging colors should reflect it. For example, if you're
selling tasty fruit gummies for kids, bright and vibrant colors may
help portray the product. If you're selling a calming tea for
stressed-out adults, pale and cool color choices may help support
the message.
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Color
Psychology
Brand
Appeal
Design
Thinking
Benefits
of Design Thinking
Design
Thinking Process
Customer
Insight |
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Choose colors wisely when it comes to
product packaging. Colors should be unique enough to gain attention
while making sense of what you're selling.
3. Be Mindful of
Typography
One of the most important aspects of
package design is typography. No matter the product, typography on
packaging should always be legible and concise. If consumers have
difficulty reading a product's information, they will also have
difficulty in purchasing it.
Overflowing text and hard to read fonts will only push consumer
attention to your competition. Typography should be consistent
across the brand and match with overall packaging design.
4. Make It
Interesting
Sparking and keeping the interest of
consumers should be a top priority for any brand. One of the best
tips for designing packaging is to think outside of the box. Do
something with packaging that has never been done before.
Beverage brand Martinelli has taken
the internet by storm with its apple juice bottle packaging. What
looks like a normal bottle has actually become a viral sensation for
its unique effect. When biting down on the plastic bottle, it sounds
exactly like biting into an actual crunchy apple. While it may seem odd to think of
someone biting an apple juice bottle, there's no denying that this
unique packaging design has boosted Martinelli sales based on the
virality of their idea.
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6. Prioritize
Functionality
While packaging design can look
beautiful, adding a factor of usability takes it even further.
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Customer
Experience
Plan |
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Think about how your consumers will
interact with the packaging. Will it be easy for consumers to carry
and store?
If your packaging is used to hold and
protect your product, commit to making this a priority. Add handles,
padding, wheels, and any other feature to add to its design and
usability. Consumers will appreciate the extra effort.
7. Don't Forget About
Texture
While well-designed packages may be
beautiful to look at, don't forget that they are meant to be picked
up and held, too. The goal of packaging design is to motivate
consumers to pick up your product. Create packaging that is pleasant
to hold.
Whether matte, glossy, silky-smooth,
or rough, packaging texture should align with the other components
of its design as well.
8. Use Transparency
to Showcase Products
If you're selling food or drink
products, designing your package around transparency can be a smart
choice. Consumers like to know exactly what it is they're
purchasing. Transparent aspects of packaging design are clean,
simple, and highly effective.
Consider using transparent design on
products not typically sold that way. For example, creating a
transparent coffee ground package or a transparent lipstick tube
shows exactly what consumers are purchasing while also catching
their attention. While transparency in packaging is not usually seen
as flashy, it can undoubtedly be a head-turner.
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9. Be Extensible
Packaging design should be unique but
simple enough to be extended. Remember that in the future, your
product line may be expanded. If your product is salad dressing, you
may eventually introduce new flavors. Make sure your packaging
design is product-variation-friendly. Do this by designing with the
future in mind and implementing packaging that is easily adapted.
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Design Thinking
Approaches
7 Must-Dos
Futures Thinking
Approaches
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