Packaging Design Tips to Help Your Product Fly off the Shelf
Posted by Julie Rotuno on 14th Jun 2022
Whether you’re wrapping a gift or manufacturing a product, the packaging matters. How you package your product will dictate consumers’ first impressions, and it can have a big impact on whether or not people purchase it. To improve the chances of people buying your product, follow these packaging design tips.
Appearance
Simple design: Simplicity is key when it comes to an effective packaging design. If the packaging is too busy, it may appear tacky and confusing. You may be tempted to get overly creative when designing your packaging, but try to remember that less is more in this case.
Transparent: If possible, use transparent packaging that allows customers to see the actual product. Instead of describing the appearance of the product or printing its picture on the box, consider leaving some transparent space on the package. Doing so is a great way to show customers exactly what they’re getting, and it will make them more inclined to buy the product.
Unique: You don’t want your product to look like everything else on the shelf. To catch people’s attention, it needs to stand out from the rest. As such, consider looking into the packaging designs of similar products and try to go against the grain—whether it’s in style, color, or shape.
Function
Keeps product safe: One of the main functions of packaging is keeping the product safe. Your packaging should be structurally sound in order to keep your product secure throughout the entire marketing process. If the packaging is too weak, the product could get damaged and the packaging itself could get dented and beat-up, which may make consumers less likely to purchase it.
Easy to open: Packaging that’s hard to open is always frustrating. Packaging should serve its purpose of protecting the product, but it shouldn’t imitate a steel vault. Try to make sure consumers won’t have to use eight pairs of scissors and a box cutter to open it.
Informational: Consumers shouldn’t have to wonder what exactly your product is. You don’t want to tattoo your packaging with an encyclopedia of information, but people should be able to determine what it is from a quick glance. The two main things that should be immediately apparent are what your product is for and what brand it belongs to. If a customer can’t distinguish these two things in a few seconds, your packaging needs to be clearer.