Packaging turns potential into profit

Packaging can often be viewed as a functional tool to safely and effectively get products into the hands of consumers, but to truly fulfil its potential, packaging must deliver a commercial return too.

No product is on the shelf without packaging, and no packaging is on the shelf without a product. This symbiotic relationship is compounded by the science of packaging design and the role of the subconscious mind in buying behaviours, which drive purchasing decisions and consumer preferences for specific brands, products and services.

This makes it a necessity to keep all the requirements placed upon a product and its packaging in perfect equilibrium, to deliver function, value and, ultimately, a commercial return.

P-P-Pick up a pack

To properly gauge this, it is necessary to go back to the beginning.

Protection is the first of the three (four?*) accepted Ps of packaging; protection in terms of safeguarding contents from external elements, knocks and shocks. Contamination, spoilage, and damage might occur at any stage of the supply chain. This gives packaging a critically important role from the outset. Choosing the right format and design essentially depend on the product to be packed and its fragility or susceptibility.

This leads to the second P, preservation. Ensuring product quality and integrity. This is another essential, and as relevant for FMCG items and fresh food as it is perfumes and dermatologically tested creams and oils. Consumers always want the best experiences when using or consuming a product, so preserving its core flavour, taste, aroma, appearance and essence are top priorities. You could have the best packaging, but if your customer opens the box/bottle/bag to find the product stale and unsuitable to use, that’s a major problem. Glass and metal containers provide robust barriers that can help preserve a product. When coupled with the canning process or sterilisation, an extended shelf life can be achieved. Flexibles are constructed with barrier characteristics that limit a product’s interaction with external influences, although in some instances, controlled interactions are required – degassing valves that allow products to “breathe”, for example.

P three – promote – then follows. As the main visual and physical interaction your brand and product have with consumers, packaging is important to securing sales, building brand loyalty and delivering repeat business. Take a walk down any supermarket aisle or inspect a grocery store’s shelves closely and it quickly becomes abundant just how impactful packaging is. Toothpaste is the classic example. Initially, there were just a few brands to choose from, each with only one or two varieties. For a long time, that’s how the market was. Skip forward, and there’s an almost endless array of toothpastes, each designed to satisfy specific consumer preferences and tastes. Brands such as Arm & Hammer, Colgate, Corsodyl, Crest, Macleans, Oral-B and Sensodyne each offer any number of products to make teeth whiter, shinier and more sparkly, flavoured with more types of mint than you can pick the leaves of, packed with odour neutralising crystals, and/or offering to repair and protect enamel. Each has its own packaging and design, intended to capture the attention of consumers, making toothpaste a perfect example of how product proliferation and promotion has been facilitated by packaging. For a modern-day equivalent, head down the pet food aisle. Cat, dog, budgie and rabbit owners among you will attest to the staggering variety of brands and products to choose from – not that fickle pets themselves care. They aren’t as easily persuaded by the appearance and feel of packaging as their owners are. That’s one of the reasons why pet food is such a hotly contested market and brands in that space go all-out with their branding and packaging.

*Personalisation could be considered the fourth P, but for now it remains a niche area in the vast dominion of packaging.