The market for goods n the eCommerce realm has changed drastically, with many people wanting more and more packaging to handle logistics and shipping, with the market value expected to be over $61 billion by the year 2025. For a lot of businesses, that means your competition with fulfillment and shipping, and it does represent a more direct point of touch, along with a customer connection, and it’s one of the most underused types of marketing.
Product packaging is important because it protects these items when shipping, but if you only focus on function and overlook the marketing impact of these can impact your sales. Branded packaging and unboxing are a big part of the customer experience, and for those who are looking to deliver products that are functional and memorable, this is a way to do it.
About product Packaging
Product packaging is used when designing, looking at, and creating a container for products. A lot of online retailers like branded packaging for the sole reason of it makes customers happy and improves profits. Branded packaging is about choosing the right packaging materials and shipping in order to give a nice value to products that are shipped. This does bring extra value to customers and businesses by creating a good, positive impression of the brand that’s sharable and memorable.
Product packaging is really good because it gives online retailers a chance to communicate with customers and offer a tactile experience that’s hands-on with their products. It’s important to look at different points of touch and create a bitter experience for your brand. Most customers will come back to companies if they get premium packaging from them. Packaging is an extension of a brand. Look at apple and other companies which have glossy, refined packaging. It’s good to have a design that looks good, doesn’t cost a ton, and will make customers excited.
Some companies even use packaging that dissolves when placed in water, and this type of “eco-friendly packaging” delights customers of all kinds. A lot of people like to share the experiences that they have as well. Do a quick search of unboxing videos, where you’ll find posts, videos, and images, with a lot of people talking about this. Packaging is integral for branch launches, getting the name out to others, especially when there is a packaging that really stands out from the crowd.
Choose the Packaging wisely
There are a few ways to package your products, and they are:
- Envelopes and bags
- Corrugated cardboard boxes
- Mailers that are padded
- Packaging that’s custom
Corrugated boxes usually are the cheapest one. They’re sturdy, don’t add too much weight, and are recyclable, and there are so many different types that rely on help to enforce better product packaging. Second thing is padded mailers, good for delicate or flat items such as jewelry, handmade goods, even electronics. You can also protect these with bubble wrap, but that isn’t as eco-friendly. You can use bags and envelopes for lighter products that aren’t fragile. They’re strong and easy to put items in, and they’re self-sealing. You can even get branded envelopes and bags for zero-waste packaging.
Finally, there is the custom option which can involve tissue and gift wrap inside, even custom packing slips and a whole lot more. You can even print all of these to represent the brand in its own ways, creating the best customer experience.
So as you can see, there’s a lot of options for packaging, and you should choose the packaging that’s best for you to use.
How to Avoid Packaging design Errors
Packaging design is sometimes not perfect, and this may cause product recalls.
The top ways to avoid this include:
- Don’t use wasteful packaging
- Look at specs and materials
- Test rigorously
- Consider your design
Packaging that’s custom is important for businesses, that much is obvious. It’s what sets you apart from the rest since the right custom packaging will improve the customer experience. Because of how important it is for the brand, it’s vital to make sure you reduce packaging errors since it’ll save you a bunch of money and stress. To avoid mistakes with custom packaging, here are some ways to perfect it, and what you can do.
First, Avoid Packaging That’s Wasteful
The first thing to look at is how wasteful your packaging is, and what materials make the right custom box and packaging, and if the design is completely optimized to be functional. Does your packaging require a lot of extra filler that will likely just be thrown out? When designing custom packaging, you should look at how to reduce the sheer amount of waste to keep the product safe and secure. For a lot of eco-conscious shoppers, they don’t want wasteful packaging, so you should make sure that you have the packaging professional and custom, and try to reduce the packaging filler, by ensuring that it has a tight fit, so it doesn’t jostle when moved about.
Explore Specs and Materials
Next, look at the material that you’re using, and the specs of it. If you use the wrong type of material, it can make it hard for transport. In the same vein, the wrong specs will make it harder to transport, resulting in damage. If you’re shipping items for a long-distance, you want a material that’s durable and can withstand harsher conditions. Corrugated boxes and folding cartons are some good examples of such. You need to make sure that you choose ones that fit the product, not just those that are popular or less expensive. You need to make sure when putting together custom packaging you consider whether the material will protect the packaging and will be kept in one piece.
Focus on Design
You need to make sure your design resonates with the type of packaging that you’re making. You want to make sure it’s not dated, and make sure that it also doesn’t look like it’s communicating incorrect messages. You want the packaging and label to look good and leave a true, lasting impression on your customers as well. Remember that customers like it not only when you have precise labeling going on, but you also have a design that has the right brand narrative on the carton as well.
Testing
Finally, you want to make sure that you do test your packaging so that there is quality control there. Many companies are not abreast with the advancements in packaging, with a large number of them still doing manual packaging production and inspection which leaves room for errors. That’s why machinery and testing the packaging there is important. If you do it all manually, it’s not effective, t’s risky, and the result is oftentimes total packaging recalls due to the nature of the human error.
The consequences of this definitely show that when you do set up packaging, you want to make sure that you set it up so that it’s not only automated but doesn’t leave room for errors. With that said, make sure that these four points are touched upon with testing, for they make a difference in the overall state of packaging that one must go through too.