Consumerism is at its all-time high, standing out in a million other products similar to yours can be a real struggle. Now more than ever, brands are valuing their packaging and labeling a lot more than they did before. If you’re not pushing boundaries with the artwork and design of your product and packaging, take this as a sign to up your game and re-evaluate your approach. In this article, we’ll go over the steps you need to follow to create an eye-catching product label and package.
Product Packaging
We don’t often consider package design as a difficult creative job. Well, you might be surprised to learn that it does take quite a bit of effort! Blending colors, icons, logos, illustrations, and text on the bag to draw people’s attention is the job of a package designer. Beyond design, you also have a wide array of choices in packaging materials, such as folding carton boxes, plastic, fabric, and more.
There are three questions you must have the answer to before you start designing the packaging for a product.
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What Is The Product?
This question may seem very basic but it’s crucial to help you determine if there are any logistical musts for your product packaging. For example, a delicate product may require more secure packaging like packing peanuts or a sturdy box. Something that is large or with odd dimensions, on the other hand, may require a custom packaging solution instead of a box, such as a fabric bag or aluminum can.
Read How to Package Odd-Shaped/Sized Objects for Shipping?
Who’s Your Customer?
The type of packaging is often dictated by who your buyer/customer is. Is the product supposed to be used by men, women, or both? Is it for children or adults? Is it geared towards people who are environmentally conscious? To those on a budget or with lots of disposable income?
Read The Effect of Versioned Packaging on Various Demographics
By answering these questions in preparation to design your packaging, you’re narrowing down things like the materials, colors, and overall design. Products for older adults may need larger text. Alternatively, items geared towards an affluent customer will need to consider materials that create a feeling of luxury.
How Are People Buying Your Product?
Is your product easily accessible? Are people exposed to your product at a supermarket, a boutique, or online?
You’re going to want to think about packaging differently if the product is going to be sold online and shipped than if it’s going to need to stand out from the competition on a big-box store shelf.
Read 10 Ways To Make Your Product Stand Out On The Shelf
If the product is being sold online, perhaps a box in which the item will be rattled or easily damaged while in transit may be a bad idea. If you’re limited on your budget, packing peanuts or wrapping the item in bubble wrap is a good alternative to other expensive materials. Those that will be on a boutique shelf will need to catch the eye of a buyer surrounded by cutesy items in cutesy packages.
Order your own branded packing and packing promotional items
Pro Tip: If printing on packaging is out of your budget, consider custom tape to use on blank boxes (applicable for online retailers) and/or stickers with your logo!
Product Labeling
Product labeling is a part of the packaging of a product. Labeling is the written information on the packages. These written labels on the package cover important information which needs to be communicated to a customer. Product labeling is different from packaging. A product packaging might have the brand colors, the logo, and the material as well as the shape of the package, etc.
These are some of the technical details you should be considering when designing your labels.
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Colors
Following the advice above, if your product will be sold in stores then you want to use colors that will stand out and will make a statement. Additionally, when branding, you should stick to a color pallet of at least 3 colors and follow that throughout your labels and packaging. You will also need to have the CMYK values or Pantone Matching Values (PMS) colors for printing.
Read Psychology of Colour – How To Use It In Your Packaging Design
Fonts
The font should be legible and easy to follow throughout the label. Make sure it doesn’t clash with your logo if your logo is a typeface. Ensuring the font is the right size for the size of the product is also important, and you want to make sure that you have the rights to the font to avoid any legal issues.
Check Out How to Choose Brand Fonts for Packaging Design
Logo
Having your logo on the label is key, make sure it’s centered and represents your brand colors and aesthetics. For a smooth printing process, make sure your logo is a vector file.
Conclusion
It’s advised to spend a good amount of time thinking about your packaging, more often than not, people chose the product that looks cool and interesting, especially on a shelf with other competition. Be strategic about choosing your colors, fonts, and artwork. It’s best to work with a designer that can execute the artwork and placement of your label, logo, and other necessary product information.
If your budget does not allow for hiring a designer, or if you’re product is sold online, for packaging we recommend getting branded packing tape, stickers, and stamps of your logo to easily brand your packaging on a budget. You can have stickers, pins, and other promo items printed by your local print shop.
Author: Irene Floridia - Content Creator
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