Even with the perfect product and operations, one of the simplest commercial oversights can be the most damaging: the tendency to treat the packaging as an afterthought. Sure, most packaging immediately finds a home in the nearest bin. However, an incredible quirk of reality cannot be ignored – in just about every house on earth; you’ll find a smartphone package lurking around somewhere.
Why? Because the most successful operations tend to regard the packaging as just as necessary as the product itself. Apart from the need to protect and preserve your product, the true importance of commercial packaging is now well known:
- The brand: When on the shelf, the packaging represents not only your product but your very brand.
- The quality: Even if a great product lies within, sub-standard packaging will give customers a sub-standard perception of your business and product.
- The competition: Most marketplaces are extremely crowded, so packaging is a golden opportunity to set the standard.
So, with all of that riding on your packaging alone, you simply can’t afford not to know precisely how to get it right. You need to protect your product from damage and spoiling, convey the necessary information and ideally represent your brand and streamline the manufacture and assembly process. But how?
Essential factors that we should consider
We think we can boil down the ideal packaging solution to the successful addressing of 4 essential factors:
1. Manufacturing
Packaging is something you can see, feel and touch, so at heart are the materials. The most common are paper/cardboard, plastics, and glass, with the right choice for you depends not only on the product but also on how you go about business. Luckily, technology is on your side with packaging materials and accessories like double-sided tapes constantly getting lighter, stronger, cheaper, and better performing, translating to lower overall expenditure, greater flexibility, and more room to focus on appeal. Just remember to also factor in flexibility for promotions, new products or product changes, and considerations for transportation and stacking.
2. Business
In this day and age, it’s no longer acceptable not to strive for a balance between commercial considerations and issues of environmentalism and sustainability. Luckily, recycled and recyclable packaging is a major modern trend, but the balance should never tip toward compromising the security of the product itself. Also, as branding is such a major consideration, bear in mind that slashing packaging costs should not affect the desired impact of the packaging or negatively affect the perceived product quality.
3. Supply chain
The product and the packaging may be equally important, but the way it will also be stored and distributed. This is where the entire supply chain needs to be factored in, including elements as fundamental as the environmental operating conditions, which in Australia can be extreme. Poor inventory management can severely affect product longevity and spoiling throughout this logistical process, emphasizing the need for meticulous labeling and coding and other waste-minimization strategies.
4. Brand
Finally, it’s worth stating, repeating, and re-repeating the same mantra over and over again: The packaging is as important as the product. That’s because, in business, it’s all about the brand – especially if your product will be on a shelf, which is precisely where the bulk of all purchasing decisions are made. To emphasize the point, compare premium smartphone branding with Australia’s plain-packaging laws for cigarettes – where pristine empty phone boxes sit for years in draws and cupboards while smoking rates have plummeted.
You should focus on design aesthetics and luxury as much as practicality and convenience and put yourself in another pair of shoes – those of your ideal consumer.
Final thoughts
So whether you’re browsing the latest exciting range of high-tech double-sided tapes, speaking with the distributor, or tweaking the graphic design, never forget the weight of importance carried by your commercial packaging considerations. To get it right, consider consulting with an experienced industry specialist.
Article Submitted By Community Writer
