Here’s an interesting fact for marketeers. A 2005 study conducted by the Paperboard
Packaging Alliance showed that in the minds of consumers, product and package are one and the same. Whatever a package says to a shopper – through words, graphics, material, size – is exactly what its contents become, be they a bottle of perfume or a bottle of milk. An interesting fact for distributors: choosing the right size and material for your packaging could cut your logistical costs considerably. Wherever you are in the supply chain, your department needs to think hard about packaging: an under-discussed but increasingly important factor in commercial success.
In her paper investigating product packaging, Bo Rundh lists the external influences on package design that show it to be a continuously developing part of business. Over the past decade, changes in consumer behaviour, environmental concerns, globalization, distribution, marketing and technology have turned effective packaging design into a fine art. Designers must now be aware, for instance, of current cultural opinions on healthy living and lifestyle choices, of the latest policies on green business practice, and on local preferences in the different regions they sell to. They must also consider unit costs, as well as the durability of packaging materials for the purposes of shipping and handling. Balancing these considerations carefully is central in establishing competitive advantage.
It is important that businesses do not just equate packaging with branding, although any successful marketing department will be well aware of this valuable link. Packaging needs to be thought through from every angle of the supply chain, and each department should share their concerns throughout the business to find a design that meets all expectations. The packaging supplier, for example, will be most concerned about how easy it is to produce and how cheaply it can be done, whereas the marketeer, coming to the problem with ideas of brand competitiveness, novelty and luxury, might have ideas that create a conflict of interests. Packagers, fillers and distributors will need to think about the durability of the package, whether it can cope with hot and cold products and whether it can be filled quickly and easily. For retailers, the shelf space needed per item will be an important consideration, as will a package design that resists tampering and wear and tear. The consumers, at the end of the chain, will want to be convinced that a package will keep a product fresh, that it is light and easy to carry, and that it communicates brand values that speak to them. Getting packaging just right, then, can be a more complicated business than it may seem.
Rundh briefly discusses five ‘‘corporate stories’’ that illustrate effective packaging. Common to them all is an active effort to understand and appeal to the consumer in a crowded marketplace. Understanding that cost is less of an issue with their customers than it once was, but that quality and brand experience have become more important, Chokladfabriken in Stockholm developed packaging that equated their chocolates with the refined tastes of