Packaging is as important to a brand as a cover is to a book, as
a voice is to an actor, as a fit body is to an athlete. A fit body
doesn't guarantee victory, but you don't see many
potbellied Olympians.
Attractive packaging can turn even the most prosaic product into
something special. Remember the store brands that became so popular
during the 1970s and early 1980s? It was as if manufacturers were
competing to make the chintziest packaging possible to prove that
their products were true bargains. That has changed.
One of the primary reasons private-label products are doing so
well in the 1990s is that retailers have stopped making cheaply
packaged imitations of the big brands. In many cases, they've
created such elegant packaging--from superior raw material to
glitzy graphics--that some store brands have become serious
competitors to the nationally advertised products. Stores now
believe that a private label is one of the best ways to
differentiate themselves from their competitors. If only Wegmans
sells Wegmans-label products, consumers have to go there to get
them.
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Four trends should continue to drive package design well into
the next century:
1. Special packaging, such as embossed labels, bottles
embossed with logos, and special shapes and decorations, will
continue to differentiate quality products from run-of-the-mill
brands.
2. As me-too products proliferate, it will be particularly
important to clearly communicate what your product is and what it
does. And unless you're selling bubble gum or another product
that only kids buy, MAKE SURE YOU USE TYPE THAT AN OLDER PERSON CAN
READ.
3. Less is more. Use as little packaging as possible
without making the product less easy to understand or use.
4. In a global economy, strive for the big idea. The shape
of the Coke bottle, Pepsi's signature blue and the Nike Swoosh
logo translate well into any language.
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