The main function of food packaging should of course be to protect your product, but that’s not to say you can’t have any fun with it. Customers are far more likely to notice your product on the shelf and pop it into their baskets if it is attractive, so when creating your food packaging design you must think carefully about what it needs in order to be able to sell itself. Here at PMG Print Management a number of our clients turn to our design studio to help them create funky, successful packaging guaranteed to turn heads, and our design and marketing teams just love the challenge. We’ve a wealth of experience in print management and marketing which means we know every trick in the book when it comes to creating exciting packaging. Take a look at these top tips for designing great food packaging to promote your products.
#1: Reflect your brand identity
Before a customer has even tried your product they will have developed an idea about your brand – simply by looking at the packaging. It is important, therefore, that your packaging is consistent with your brand identity. If your brand promotes greener thinking, your packaging should naturally be completely recyclable, if you create quality produce, your packaging should be made using the highest quality materials. Your product should communicate clearly your company name, ethics, logo and message in its colour, size, shape and material.
#2: Ensure it’s functional
There’s nothing more frustrating than struggling to open a packet, only to succeed in scattering the products to the four corners of the room before you’ve even had a chance to try it. The styles of packaging you could create are endless, but all you need to do is choose the right one to help keep your product safe and intact in transit, be easy to open, easy to store and easy to dispose of after use. A number of companies have even begun to create packaging that can be used for other purposes after its initial use, including suggestions for upcycling on the back of the package. This is a great way to continue advertising your product once its initial use has been exhausted.
#3: Consider your audience
Who do you want your product to attract? The majority of children’s cereal packages are designed to attract the attention of kids, who marketers hope will then beg their parents to buy the cereal for them. When designing your packaging, you must consider your target audience, determining what kind of packaging would attract them to your product and convince them it is worth buying. Colours, fonts and images will all vary depending on who you are trying to attract, and it is always worth testing your packaging ideas on members of your target audience before settling on the design.
#4: Include relevant information
An increasing number of people are starting to care more about the food they consume, which is something you must consider when creating your packaging. Your customers might opt for another brand instead of your own because of the information included on the box – perhaps information regarding the product itself, the brand’s ethos or even the recyclability of the packaging it’s printed on. You need to include enough information so that you can offer your customers reassurance and help to sell your product. Remember, there are lots of interesting design techniques you can use to ensure that any text doesn’t detract from the prettiness of your packaging.
#5: Think about costs
There’s no point creating packaging that costs more to produce than the product itself, because it’s unlikely you’ll end up making a profit at the end of the day. At PMG Print Management, we make it our mission to save costs on print wherever possible, so you can rely on us to help you avoid overprinting and wasting expensive materials. When creating your packaging we’ll consider the space and the size to ensure costs are kept to a minimum without reducing the quality of the finished product.
If you’re looking for a group of print management experts to help you create fantastic food packaging that helps to sell your product, we can help. Get in touch with the team at PMG today to discuss how we can help you in more detail.
