Holiday Packaging Trends

Packaging has come into the spotlight, thanks to the rise of e-commerce. In this article, we will discuss some tips and trends to achieve marketing success through product packaging.

No matter which holiday season it is, you may have a lot of activities to do. Since customers want to entertain their families and friends through designs and value, high-end brands seem busier than ever. It could mean using highly attractive product packaging designs to attract consumers interesting in buying gifts for their loved ones.

Having that said, let’s now discuss some packaging trends.

E-commerce will continue to rise

E-commerce grew steadily before COVID-19, and it has grown drastically in the pandemic-hit world. Now, e-commerce sales are expected to gather a greater share of total retail sales around the world. The reason this e-commerce has trended that much is that it has allowed customers to stay socially distant while purchasing products they required.

According to a forecast by Deloitte, e-commerce holiday sales will grow up to 30% by the end of 2021. In total, e-commerce holiday sales will generate between $182 and $196 billion.

This demand will bring a shift in purchasing habits, which may also necessitate secondary packaging. Americans will not only purchase gifts but also ship them to their friends and family. Many of these senders and recipients may not even see each other due to the pandemic.

An optimal unboxing experience is key in the e-commerce business. That is where those businesses may need to use gift packaging designs to amuse their customers. The best thing about this shift is that it makes customers feel more valued by a brand.

Automation will be more prevalent

Automation proves to be the best option that businesses can use during the pandemic to ensure the health safety of most people. According to a survey by Ernst and Young, about 41% of managers in 45 countries are investing in business automation to prepare to fulfill business requirements in the post-pandemic era.

We all know that holiday seasons bring an influx in e-commerce demands. That is where speed and efficiency become more crucial than ever. In such a scenario, using automation options that enhance labor instead of replacing it can be quite beneficial. They can help analyze and improve consumable costs, adjust for seasonal volume peaks, reduce costs, and optimize freight.

Another benefit of automation is that it reduces warehouse space. Retailers usually have to either upgrade their warehouses or make the packaging process more efficient to meet demands. The most crucial requirement is the efficiency of packaging operations.

Companies will ditch plastic

Sustainability is a never-ending subject. According to Nielsen, the US sustainability market will reach $150 billion by the end of 2021. According to another research, 66% of consumers said that they were more than willing to pay more for sustainable products. About 84% of consumers look for responsibly packaged products.

A sustainable product comes in sustainable packaging. It means that there is an immense opportunity for the use of recyclable materials. All previous years had seen the worse of plastic due to the packaging wastes it produces. Only 9% of the plastic disposed of between 1950 and 2015.

The current scenario, however, is quite different. People are more aware of the disasters of packaging wastes. That is why companies and brands are pushing limits to become more sustainable than ever.

 

Change your viewpoint with boxes

Ecommerce is now the king of the industry.  It is what most people are getting into because that is how we are now all shopping.  The sad truth is that most of these stores were brick-and-mortar companies that have had to pivot to stay alive.  The regulations of their state have forced foot traffic to their stores to behalf at the very best and none at the worst.  In many cases, they have had to close off their main store and are only allowed to work online.  That means that they have shifted the way that they work. What they have found is that there are small ways to make big savings and sometimes a simple box is a way to do it. Now it is much more than just a box, it is the process of shopping and negotiating for the best price that can end up saving tons of money and crushing the competition.

My company works for eCommerce companies and if we can help in any way we will. Sometimes our experience in past jobs has been a big help to these companies and we are giving tips left and right to keep them on track. One area that seems to be an issue is the transition to e-commerce from a shipping perspective.  These companies need to not only have a presence online but from the warehouse, they need to be able to store more products and not spend money doing it.  Cutting down on warehouse costs is huge and can have massive impacts.

Huge companies like target use super-crappy backends.  Ya, their employees suffer, but it is cheap.  Most use a simple ABC numbering system and that was it.  They organized billions of dollars of goods that way and it was the most financially responsible way for them to do it.  I have worked at smaller companies that spent tons of money on expensive shelving systems that did the exact same thing but only were less flexible as the cardboard box system.  So this has been our advice to companies.  If they are expanding a warehouse to use this cheap system in order to cut down on costs and put that money where it matters.  It has been a big help and we have led them to packaging supplies companies that can fulfill those box orders and get the bins for the shelves organize for a low price. This has changed the world for some of these companies.

Some people cut their salesroom down.  They turned the trafficked floor into a warehouse section. They blocked off the area with a temporary wall which was something they did not even have to get a permit for in their location and then they made shelving and started to store more.  They had lost all their foot traffic so it was not a loss to sales only again on the back end.  Yet again, they used packaging supplies stores to fill the shelves with organizational bins and boxes and they were off and running. Innovation is key and doing what it takes to win is the answer. So find what works best for your company and go out there and crush it.  If you have to benchmark to survive then do it and learn fast! It is worth it to still have employees!

Packaging for the Sharing Economy, Reusable and Modular in Design

 Did you know that some packaging providers are now making their packaging sharable. Think of Airbnb hosts, and gear rentals, or even peer-to-peer lending platforms that offer different ways to share and use the items. When building an economy to share, you want to make the packaging reusable in their own way, and also modular too. By doing such, you’re able to make the items easy to give and use with others, and also, will help to keep track of the items as well. 

Here, we’ll go over how this shareable packaging works, and considerations to have when putting together such items. 

The Requirements 

With shareable packaging, you want to make sure that it’s strong.   You want it to not break down after one use, but you can get multiple mileage out of this.

Lockable is another. Lockable items are good for helping you with keeping the items safe and secure, improving the overall security of such items so nobody steals them when you borrow them.

Then of course, you want it to be easy for you to clean up when someone’s down, and also if you need to reset it for the next person, as in the case of Airbnb. 

There’s a lot to consider, but it’s not all that hard.   Let’s look at a few examples of this. 

Examples 

Some examples of this involve different items that you might have people share with others, or use and put back. 

Tool cases for example, needed to be put in a good place. A wrench or screwdriver set that you’re letting someone borrow needs to be orderly. You can create foldable cases, with real-time tracking. When made with a strong material, they won’t break down over time, but will stay strong for many uses.

Then of course, we can look at water jugs, coolers, or other rentable receptacles.   When you refill these for the next person, they get used.   You don’t know what type of person is truly boring to you, so making these refillable containers secure is important. 

Smart Features of This 

Barcode tracking is an example of this. with a barcode, you can scan it in, and then, if not returned and scanned, you can take the appropriate measures as needed. 

Compartments that are resettable with locks and whatnot, are one example of this.   you’ll definitely want to consider this.

Finally, feedback loops for packaging will help to give back feedback on who’s using this, along with real-time considerations for such packaging. When sharing, adding and adjusting smart features is important.

Possibilities 

A lot of packaging for the shared economy is changing. You want something safe and secure, but some might wonder what else you can do with this.   Some offer subscription rentals, where when one pays a price, they can use it for a period of time. This is good if you have a specific group that’s going to be using these again and again, so they don’t have to go through the same protocol every time.

There’s also rotating ownership, which means that different owners rotate around, offering you a variety of different models for you to improve your packaging. Again, with sharing economy packaging, you want to create models that are easy to ship and use around, and when you do this, not only is it reusable by design, it’s also effective, especially for putting forth designs that will stand out, and improve as well. 

Consider all of these when building such models, for your overall success and wellness of your item-sharing capabilities.

Custom Baptism boxes

 If you’re someone celebrating a baptism, you’re looking for the right decorations. From the right venue for the reception, to even the party favors and boxes, you want to make sure that everything works well. it’s an important event, and you want something that looks fun, does fit with the theme, and you also want to consider possibly adding as well favor boxes to this.

While not every person would want to do a favor box, it’s really good for those who want to give their guest a little bit of thanks for showing up to this event.  One way to do this is custom favor boxes. These are made with you in mind.

One of the most popular, and a favorite, is a double walled tray and a pull out box.  The person can pull this out, and you’ll be able to add a small favor there, perhaps with the name of the person who's been baptized. Some people like to add little ceramic animals and gnomes in there, showing a beautiful presentation, and providing the best integrity for this too.

The tray is also held together with a customized printing process, and provides protection, and a look that’s refined, providing the correct facilities without needing to get too customizing with the way that this works.  This holder also keeps the item inside, and you can even get customized inserts within these to hold the item. This is especially important if the item is breakable, as this can prevent this from breaking and being messed up any further. 

It's simple, elegant, and the cool thing about this is that the favor box is made on an ad hoc basis. The cool thing about this is that the favor box  contents are in there, and it provides a picture frame and also a floccule that shows off the different recalling of the colors that are there. you can add whatever little contents that are in there, and it can be good for this.

A cool way for this to stand out and make it custom for the baptism and the child, is the name of the baby that’s being baptized, and then as well, including the day of the baptism. 

Some people can further customize this by also including on the back of the box, a customized message, such as a poem or small note.  This holder also can have the name of the child, and a beautiful background of a light, pastel color. 

You can get this done with a four-color digital printing process to make this really stand out, and to help with ensuring that this baptism is one that’s important to remember.

While you can use this for all sorts of events, you do need to customize this based on the needs that you have. If it's for a baptism, make sure that the contents fit that. If it’s for a communion, you want to do the same, and you can include the name of the person receiving their first communion. You can even use this for parties and other fun events, giving it an impactful demonstration that’s important to remember.

A baptism is a very important event, and if you want to make sure that people remember the event, you can give them a favor to make them remember this. This customized baptism box, especially with the child's face on it, provides you with the most beautiful boxes that are out there. through this, you can make this event one of the best, and one of the most impactful moments ever.

Packaging and Graphics

For a lot of people, graphics sell everything, and you want to make sure that you’ve got the right targeted visuals.  This is essential, as the design parts of this do catch the attention of customers and do communicate the messages in their own way.

Studying is necessary in order to obtain good, effective communication, both in the realm of visuals, and copywriting.  Only by understanding the audience you’re targeting are you able to choose the correct language, graphics, and style. It’s vital to ensure that you find the correct approach, in order to seduce the clients, leading them to the purchases you wish to make.

In order to crate either generic, or even multi-targeted production in the era of customization that’s massive, it’s something that is almost needed, but that sounds anachronistic. 

Before you design the packaging graphics however, you need to find all of the peculiarities, and also need to understand the customers that are coming to your products, in order to create a target-oriented self-respecting design that’s appealing visually to many people. 

Understanding the Personas 

You need to first and foremost understand what’s called the personas. 

So what are these personas? They’re essentially people that are imaginary, a part of a very specific group of customers, with a profile that’s very real. It’s really good to understand this, and having an identikit is something that’s important, as that’s a result of the research needed, the observations, and a data analysis of this.

Creating individual characterizing traits, along with those common to different categories is important.

By defining each of the personas, you also need to have a profile for the users that are there, including the ethno-demographic, the habits, behaviors, needs, and the expectations of thus.  When you start with this, you create a visual design concept that’s target oriented, in order to make the ideal choices in style.

You want to make sure that you find the target, especially when you’re starting out, a s this is important for understanding the psychomotor and other skills necessary for your success. 

The Funny Couple 

For a lot of people, copywriting along with graphic design are more intimately connected than you’d think. In fact they are two very similar sides to each other. When you start from here, you’ll find out about how these are used in the design of packaging. 

Copywriting by definition is writing contents with the end goal of being converted with different texts that lead those observing to make sure that the specific action happens, in this case, conversion.

Graphic design is the graphics of the product, including the covers, illustrations, fonts and like. 

Copy that’s Target Oriented 

A lot of consumers usually prefer to have some sort of linguistic register in this. When you’re putting together copy, you must focus on the education, the skills of the target, and through doing this, you can define the writing and the tone, allowing you to communicate this message. In this manner, recipients do understand who you are.

You also need to make sure that you know everything being said. Messages do need to focus on the strengths, uniqueness, and the like of different products and services. You’ll also wat to look at the copy competitors put out, comparing each of these different pieces of information and registering. 

Once the research is done, then it’s time to write. 

When creating apt graphics and copy, remember you want to create communication, and also make sure that it sells to the customers, using second person as needed to help you create the best results, and secure copy that converts too.

Transformable Packaging to make Packaging Functional

Packaging is something magical, as it can transform some of the items that you have into something that’s useful post-delivery, thereby extending the lifecycle of the item itself. This is a good way to get people to take care of their packaging, and give it another reason for usage once again. 

Types of Transformative Packaging 

There’s a lot of transformative packaging options worth considering. 

One example is a box that will convert into storage bins. These are a fun one that a lot of people will enjoy, simply because they have so many great means for you to get the most out of your packaging experience.   Another one is packaging that’s used for display stands. This is a popular one that a lot of people will enjoy, simply because you can use it for promotional reasons as well. 

Finally, there is packaging that can be used for decoration, or decorative pieces. These are fun home accessories that can offer functional products for your various needs. 

Companies that Use It 

There’s a lot of companies that use this.

Ecommerce shipments are a common one. A lot of ecommerce businesses will utilize these shipments because it is easier to handle than trying to make the box disposable after one use. 

Kids toys are another. This is because lots of parents will get these boxes an if the box has multiple means to improve someone’s life, it’s a good way to ensure that the item gets properly taken care of. 

Another one, is premium packaging. This is because those who buy premium package want a premium experience.   Making the packaging useful by giving it multiple uses just help to transform it into something magical for everyone that’s involved, and it’s why a lot of times customers will choose one company over another. 

The Perks 

There’s a lot of perks that come with transformative packaging.   

It encourages long-term use, or to extend the use of the item. This is good because when you reuse these items, it can help to improve the overall adaptability of these items. 

Another benefit is that it reduces the overall waste you’re putting out.   if you have less waste, you are seen as a more eco-friendly company, and one that will provide customers with useful items that won’t screw over the environment. 

Finally, it bolsters the value to customers. So many customers like to have this extra perk to packaging, as it offers multiple functionality benefits that come with this.   you’d be surprised at how many times customers will continue to use a business simply because there is value to customers from the time as well. 

The Future of This 

Transformative packaging is still a relatively new subject. However, there are now new ways to really improve the packaging that you get. 

There’s the integration of AR technology through QR codes and the like, which offer instructions on how to get the most value of the packaging receptacle that it comes from, transforming this not various functional items that will benefit you in many regards, to offer a functional product that will really shake things up in its own exciting way. 

With packaging, you want to give it multiple usages, because when you have multiple uses, customers are excited to keep it. 

Being able to give your customers the ideal situation that transforms the items into new, functional means, can really transform your life.   If you want to make a splash with your packaging, this is the way to go, and a good thing for customers on all fronts to really take advantage of.

How Your Packaging tells the Brand’s Story

Have you ever seen packaging that’s more than just a box, but is right here, giving you this amazing sort of interactive story that you’ll love?  You’re not alone. In fact, a lot of brands have begun to realize the importance of giving their customers something of value. This is their packaging, and the brand’s story that will touch the hearts of those that are involved.

The brand’s story is important, and you can use the packaging that you have to convey this. telling the customer about who you are, and your own packaging plays a huge role, creating a vital, unique experience that will in turn offer a greater connection between brand and customer.

Here, we’ll go over the different design elements in this packaging, and different factors that contribute to the brand story’s packaging.

Design Elements 

There are a few design elements that go into a brand’s storytelling via packaging.

The first is the visuals. Colors for instance, especially using the brand’s colors, is a great place to start. Graphics are another one, as the graphics that help contribute to the brands plays a huge role in this.   These graphics will provide you with everything that you need to give your packaging the ultimate experience. 

Typography is the third.   Typography, such as minimalism, tells the people about the type of brand that you are. A bolder sort of packaging colors definitely tell the people that you’ve got a vibrant brand personality, and you want the fonts to reflect all of that. 

You want to also consider the messaging and narrative aspects. Adding your mission statement or an “about us” for instance will tell the person more about your brand, and the deduction that you have towards certain causes that are out there. 

The benefits of Storytelling with Packaging 

There’s a lot of benefits that come with this.

The first is that you look more human. These days, brands will have everything automated and it looks robotic. There’s so many products on the shelves that you do not want any of this.   what you want instead is to have brand packaging that will build connections that are emotional with customers.   Storytelling packaging offers that, because the customers will see just how important your story is.

In turn, it enhances the overall branding loyalty and the recognition that fosters from this. customers will recognize you based on the types of branding that you offer.   Customers will in turn want to work with you, and it will foster more goodwill as well. 

Design Tips for This 

When you’re incorporating brand storytelling, there’s a few things that you can do.

First, make sure it’s all aligned based on what your audience likes. For instance, if you’re a health food brand, try to utilize kraft paper, more natural looking colors (even edible inks are good) and also more natural types of packaging.

For a younger kid-friendly sort of brand, having whimsical colors and fonts are good.    nostalgia products should utilize a vintage sort of feel, touching on that point to build a connection with customers.

Don’t be afraid to give the customers a feel for who you are as a brand.   Build excitement and tell them how their contributions are contributing to better packaging experiences.

You want to make sure that the brand packaging is on point to entice customers. But more than that, you want to build a story. With brand storytelling packaging, you’re allowed to do just that, and so much more.  in turn, customers will come to you, hungry for more of your products