The packaging design is an element that’s gaining importance in the final buying decision of the costumer: in fact, it’s one of the most important aspects. Nowadays, it’s not enough to just create a simple packaging that includes the brand and the instructions for use of the product; it’s necessary to investigate aesthetical and creative aspects in order to obtain a visually and emotionally appealling result. This will impact on the increasing of the product’s purchase because of the attention that is reached by a tactical designing of the packaging. When the costumers are buying, they directly see the packaging. Because of the multiplicity of different brands for the same type of product, it is important to work on a distintive design: if the packaging is great, the costumer inevitably will focus his or her attention in it and surely he or she will be willing to pay a higher price if the packaging is more convincing. Although there are brands that don’t risk and don’t think it’s necessary to do it ‘cause due to its quality or price they have loyal costumers, some research have shown that the costumers look for innovative aspects when they buy because repetition is boring. So it seems recommendable that a brand renews itself if does not want to be beaten by other brands that do take risks and innovate in its design. At the same time, there are designs that truly squeeze this creative side and because of that the price increases dangerously: so it’s all about equilibrium. If a person is always buying juice of a concrete brand that always use the same packaging, and suddenly a day he or she sees appealing juices like the ones from Jooze, mentioned in an article wrote by Bogdan Sandu in JavaJan, it is probable that the costumer buys it to try something new. And successively: if a brand convinces by its quality or price besides constantly innovating, it is possible that the buyer makes it his or her benchmark brand. If it does not change, the costumer will be buying that brand for a short time until it gets boring. Ultimately, it will always conflict the purchase power of each buyer, but it’s true that there is a great number of solutions that are not a part of great promotions and they are affordable.
The blog Inmentor published in 2013 an article written by Daniel Goldman where a group of characteristics and arguments about the topic reveal the reason of the creative importance of the packaging. To begin its writing, he talks about the internationally known collaboration between Chupa Chups and Salvador Dalí. That is one illustrative case of a great creative design that reaffirmed itself as a unique image of a brand, and it shows that among all the similar sweets that exist, people always tend to go for Chupa Chups. At the same time, some might say that it is a brand that uses one unmovable design, but it must be underlined that even though the brand’s logo is always the same (clearly respecting Dalí), for each flavour the global design does change, and this is a clear feature of creative design strategy. Obviously, it is a packaging that has been changing through the years, never losing its essence. This strategy it’s illustrative about the importance of striving in a memorable and innovative design.
The same article states that a consumer is exposed to 1.600 brands per day: this indicates the importance of creating an impact and work on a great initial impression. It is all about working on what it is established finding original solutions that mix concepts and functions. For example, an exceptional case mentioned in the article is the Parmesan cheese pencil of Kase Stifte: it is a pencil that is sharpened to get “shredding” cheese, but its particularity doesn’t end here. Besides, this packaging comes with recommendations of the shredding cheese needed for each dish, the calories that it has and indications to see how much cheese is left. Without a doubt, it is a packaging solution to smile about, the consumer pays attention to it and when him or her realises that it is a functional packaging and not only one appealing packaging design, he or she buys it, tired of the typical cheese. Inside the food packaging there are designs that are created with the particular will of giving more information to the costumer regarding the product, important aspect nowadays if we keep in mind the big awareness that it’s raising about the products that we eat. For example, a To-Genkyo design created a label that changed its colour when it reacted with the ammonia that the products gave off once they were starting to go bad: this allowed that, if the product was being sold in bad condition, the colour made impossible to scan the barcode preventing its purchasing. Another example was developed in France by multiple creators with the intention to show the ripeness of the packaged fruit, changing its colour according to the microbial process of the product. It seems that the food packaging it’s the most important area where the creative packaging it’s being developed, because it’s true that it’s the field where the products give more chances to innovate, and given the case that they are bought every day because they satisfy one basic need of the population, they it is probable that they are changed in order to create inside the routine. As we can see, the act to use a concrete packaging propitiates that a product mundanely consumed becomes something exceptional and can be reminded, as well as it generates an interest in the consumer thanks to its added values.
But it's true that the packaging creativity not only is centered in the alimentary packaging. For example, when making a present the costumers tend to look for something that is packaged in a beautiful packaging. We only have to realise that if the product that we buy is not packaged in a creative way, normally the costumer will buy an appealing box, an special wrapping paper, or a personal wrapping will be created. In addition, when costumers are buying for themselves, they tend to look for a package that can be used after as a decorative piece or can be kept for some reason. Other times they simply look for something easy to carry, but if it is beautiful it is bought more willingly. A Hannah Jor design presented a wrapped towel in a cardboard pencil: the eraser was one piece of the towel that protruded, associating function concepts like “cleaning” with “erasing”. These association of ideas conducted to create something new and interesting from a daily object. Another instrument used every day like the headphones can also be innovative in a simple design like the one from Corinne Pant mentioned in an ABC blog post published by Álvaro Anguita in 2014 where he talks about original packaging examples. In this design the wire formed a musical note. Another case of creative packaging mentioned in JavaJan it’s from EarBudeez brand, where the wires and the earphones formed faces. In something so normal as bags it has also been used a creative system where the handles were part of a drawing and were related to the store’s topic or brand where they came from. In conclusion, all leads to generate a funny buying experience for a costumer used to always see the same type of products, besides to answer to brand strategies that can make them stand out and be reminded for a long time.
