7 Steps In Product Packaging Design Every Designer Should Know

Selling a new product in the market requires unique marketing strategies. But foremost amongst them is to put the product inside a unique and attractive packaging. Packaging design matters a lot since it is the first thing a customer sees on the shelf. So, make the design decision carefully by considering its various aspects.

Many product options are available on a shelf when a consumer visits a shop. Which of them a consumer will pick up depends on many factors, such as brand loyalty and usefulness.

But what drives customers’ attention to a product is its packaging. A distinctive packaging design almost compels consumers to pick it from the shelf in their hands and feel it.

For consumers, packaging becomes a part of how they experience a product. A great packaging design customizes the user experience with the product. That means the packaging is all about customers’ brand experience. Therefore, business owners must first consider how users will like and feel a product’s packaging.

Here Are The Top Considerations To Make While Creating Your Product Packaging Design

01. Get Inspiration

Do start working on your packaging design promptly. It is better to get some inspiration, which is essential for any creative work.

You can explore several design sources for inspiration. Visit award-winning designs online. These aesthetically pleasing packaging designs will trigger new ideas. Non-packaging designs can inspire you to come up with unique design ideas.

Look at online and offline packaging designs and see what is so good about them. Then, critically analyze their usefulness and other design aspects. You can also consider visiting design trends and reading blogs from reputed graphic designers.

Finally, make sure that you go through as many trendy packaging visuals online to see new developments in the field.

02. Know The Product and Its Functional Requirements

Before starting your package design, make sure you have made out a select list of the vital information on the packaging for consumers.

Find out what your consumer needs to know to use the product. For example, food packaging design should incorporate nutrition, safety, and care details. You can decide on the space on the packaging if you have such information beforehand.

Know if the packaging is about protecting or sealing the product. That also will help you determine the design. Also, it would be best to consider specific conditions that might affect the quality of your products. For instance, the product may be kept away from light or need proper ventilation. In addition, it might be essential for the product to be waterproof or stored in cool or hot conditions.

Transportation and shipping conditions also should be considered. Pay attention to a product’s size, weight, and volume requirements. All such conditions must be considered well in advance by the packaging designer.

03. Know The Target Audience

Before you design your product packaging, know more about its target users or consumers. You should research the client’s market, business, and industry to have an understanding of where the design will appear in the market. Know their potential consumers’ backgrounds, interests, etc.

Make extra efforts to get as much data as possible about consumers’ purchasing behavior, demographics, etc.

Another aspect to consider is how your audience will use the product. Again, it is essential to note. Your design decisions will significantly influence once you decide on the user experience.

Make sure that the design is such that it adds to the overall user experience and takes it to the next level. Remove all those elements that impede smoother usage. The design and material will be based on how consumers will use the product.

You should develop an innovative packaging design that helps consumers efficiently use the product. For example, resalable packs, the more effortless opening of a package, single serves, and on-the-go use could be your consideration for a pleasant user experience.

Remember that picking the right product packaging design can help its sales. Glad Wrap is an example. People wanted to avoid its new packaging, where the thin plastic wrapping sheet came out from the packing box. But many people found it uncomfortable to tear the sheet out and preferred older packing. The company then had to resort to the older packing design on the public resentment.

04. Keep It Simple

A simple packaging design helps consumers understand the brand and how it will serve them. With a simple design, a brand can convey the usefulness of its product.

To create a simple packaging design, you need to follow the minimalistic design trend that has been around for many years, and most designers, including packaging designers, follow it ardently. It helps create a simple design due to the minimum use of design elements, such as colors, fonts, text, images, etc.

So, use simple aesthetics to keep your target customers engaged with the product while shopping. An easy-to-understand design will drive buyers’ attention toward the product on a shelf. Use up to three colors, shades, and images to keep the packaging design minimalistic.

However, a minimalistic and simple design should not turn into a simplistic one. It is advisable to create well-thought-out packaging with textured patterns and other elements to make it look different.

05. Tell Your Story Through Colors & Fonts

A hallmark of a great packaging design is that it conveys a brand story instantly. The design successfully tells its customers about what your brand is all about.

A good design uses colors, fonts, and images so that these elements can beautifully convey the source of raw materials used in making your products. All such brand details should be clear to your audience at a glance at the package.

You can tell your brand story in several ways, such as collage-based illustrations. You can also tell the story using images of different stages of your product sourcing and making. But ensure that the tale using colors and other elements aligns with your brand values.

06. Make It Attractive To Stand Out

Creating a packaging design is not a big deal. Anyone can do that with some effort. But you must devote a lot of time and effort to make the design stand out.

The first thing to consider is to visit your competitors’ packaging designs and study them closely. You should list the colors, fonts, images, and other elements they mostly use. Then, determine what roles these elements play in conveying their brand personality and values.

Once you have thoroughly researched and compared various packaging in your niche, it is time to consider how your design can look different. So, avoid using the colors and fonts your competitors used. If they use light colors and smaller fonts, go for bold colors and bigger fonts to drive attention. Find out which colors are underused and consider incorporating them into your design.

Look at the packaging shapes your competitors mostly use. Picking a unique packaging shape will help your product catch buyers’ attention immediately. But ensure that the shape and overall design are industry appropriate. If the product involves risks for consumers.

07. Consider Shelf Impact

The success of a product in its niche also depends on how its design looks on store shelves. It should stand out and not blend with other similar products. But, even if a packaging design stands out, it may have little shelf impact. So, test the design for the impact.

To test the design, arrange your package physically on shelves with your competitors’ products. Your product, with its packaging design, should appear distinctly. You might make several design amendments to get that distinctive look for the shelf impact.

Make sure your packaging design shows your brand logo distinctly for authenticity and trust. In addition, the logo design should be visible upfront to the consumers from a distance to impact the new and loyal customers.

How to source your packaging design?

Now that you have an insight into what goes into creating a distinctive packaging design, you should know where to source it for your brand. As a small business owner, you can explore several ways to get the design done.

You can opt for a packaging design contest on credible sites like Designhill. First, launch your contest with a design brief for the designers. This will prompt dozens of new design ideas from talented designers. You can then pick one winning design that best suits your product.

Meanwhile, your brand may also require a unique logo that should go nicely with your packaging. A logo maker is a DIY software that you can use alone without experience. This tool has several design ideas in response to your design brief. You can then customize one idea of your choice further using the tool.

Wrapping Up

Products look distinctive and salable due to their excellent packaging design. But the packaging should be user-friendly. It should be an inspirational, unique, and simple design that customers can easily use. Such a design helps sales if it conveys brand personality, values, and the information a customer looks for.

Get Your Packaging Design