Packaging: Sense – Sensibility – Desire

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Packaging begins and ends with the brand and therefore plays an important role in value creation. Packaging strategy should not only focus on design to meet the specific needs of the marketing department. A global vision is necessary, sponsored by the brand area, capable of merging innovation, sustainability, production, logistics, marketing, communication, sales… always with the focus on the customer.

Good packaging sells. No company that invests millions in developing a product can afford the luxury of not taking the necessary care in having a good packaging design strategy. However, it does happen. On many occasions, packaging is left in the hands of a mere subjective assessment, of a like or dislike.

Packaging acts as an extension of the brand and if attention is paid to brand strategy, its development cannot be reduced to a matter of mere aesthetics. Consumers tend to repeat purchase products from brands they trust. When a brand succeeds in conveying its attributes correctly across all its products, recognition is immediate. In this process, emotions play a fundamental role. The packaging that sells connects directly with the mind and heart of the customer who filters all the attributes immediately. When something catches their attention, in order for the brain to remember it, it must first connect with their heart.

Creating packaging that clearly synthesises the brand’s values through a specific personality and knows how to tell the best of the product in an instant is essential to win the trust of customers. Customers are not only looking for a visual impact, they value the easy understanding of a promise, linking it to a brand they trust.

A delicate relationship

Although corporate brands are increasingly gaining prominence in the marketplace, they have often taken a back seat to product brands, which have acted as a key link between the company and its customers. The relationship between corporate and product branding is a complex interaction. It is necessary to carefully align the two on the basis of shared values, ensure consistency of messages and establish a clear brand hierarchy.

Considering brand architecture strategies will help ensure that both corporate and product brands contribute effectively to delivering value.

With this in mind, packaging strategy should not just be limited to meeting the specific requirements of marketing or even sales. It is essential to adopt a holistic vision, led by the brand area, which manages to integrate innovation, sustainability, production, logistics, marketing, communication and sales, always keeping the customer at the centre.

Strategy considerations

Before starting to consider the strategy, at least these questions should be resolved:

BRAND: What is the brand? What is its value proposition? What is its personality? Does it have a sub-brand?
PRODUCT: What is the product, what category does it belong to, how is it made, how is it marketed, how is it marketed?
FUNCTIONALITY: What is the role of the packaging? Does it bring innovation? Is it convenient? Is it safe?
TARGET: Who is it aimed at? Who buys it? Who consumes it? How do they buy it?
COMPETITION: What is your competition? How do they present themselves? What do they leverage?
CHANNEL: Where is it sold? Does it have visibility? Does it have communication support?
PRICE: What is the selling price? Will it have promotions?
It is worth noting that each brand usually operates within a set of category conventions. Logically, it can choose to stick to the category norms, which means it will struggle to stand out, or it can choose to reinvent the category norms and stand out from the competition, which involves greater risk, though perhaps greater return.

The three levels of strategy

Sense
Packaging must make sense of society’s demands. Today, sustainability and digitalisation are driving major changes in consumer packaging, sustainability is no longer an option and any sustainable packaging initiative brings together three key variables: cost, sustainability and performance. Sustainable packaging helps companies reduce their environmental impact and increases loyalty from customers, who are looking to reward brands that are committed to the environment.

Furthermore, in the digital age, it is crucial to review how we get products to market. The internet has radically changed our world, and we now demand to be able to choose quickly from anywhere. The challenge is to understand how the online world affects the way brands interact offline. For packaging, it is not about a symbiosis of both worlds, but about making the best of each to create a differential imaginary in the customer’s mind, although the information on a pack is not so influential in online shopping, the information about the brand on its portal is fundamental, also valuing how the product arrives at home, highlighting the importance of the transport packaging.

Putting the customer’s interests at the centre is essential. For today’s consumer, the shopping experience is more significant than the mere purchase of the product. Moreover, digital advances allow personalisation of this experience, creating a direct brand-customer relationship and a sense of exclusivity. Digitalisation also turns packaging into a powerful source of information, connecting the customer to the world the brand wants to convey and ensuring the quality of the content through traceability.

Sensitivity
Living beings respond to external stimuli. Good packaging can influence customer behaviour in multiple ways, making the difference between choosing your product or a competitor’s, it can help you win a customer for life or lose them easily.

With online shopping on the rise, more customers are saying that good packaging is what excites them most when they receive a package. Unboxing videos get 10 billion views a month, highlighting the importance of packaging.

In a world saturated with noise, simplicity makes it possible to stand out. The motto of minimalism is ‘omit the unnecessary’, which means reducing both packaging materials and visual design elements. Minimalist packaging combines ecology, usability and beauty in a distinctive medium, not the absence of design, but the synthesis of the essentials to convey a brand message clearly.

Minimalist packaging avoids graphic elements that distract from the main message, allowing customers to quickly identify the item and make purchasing decisions. In addition, minimalism reduces environmental impact by reducing materials and simplifying production, promoting sustainable values.

Desire
Desire is the key tool to succeed in the crucial moment of decision in the face of a huge product offer. This battle is fought in two stages: (1) attracting attention and (2) being chosen.

The first step is related to the previous levels (sense and sensibility), which play an important role in this process. The second is linked to the trust in the brand, built on its meaning, past experiences and recommendations, elements that must counterbalance the promotions or lower prices of the competition.

Often, packaging strategies are developed with a purely tactical approach, focused on attracting attention and being visually appealing, which can lead to a temporary increase in sales. However, it is only when integrated into an overall vision based on brand strategy that engagement, loyalty and desire can be strengthened, creating true brand value.

A question of opportunity

Regardless of the product category, be it wine, perfume, clothing or soap, successful packaging design is based on its ability to establish an emotional connection with the customer. In the FMCG market, up to 80% of purchase decisions are made at the last minute, in front of the shelf where the packaging and its competitors are. The brand plays a crucial role in this choice and the packaging is fundamental in the brand building strategy. When both elements work together, a significant impact on brand recognition is generated, becoming an effective communication bridge between the brand and its customers.

Jaime Dolagaray

Partner-Strategy Director

Branward