Why Product Packaging is Now Part of The Mix

An afterthought. That’s what companies often view packaging. These companies put so much time, spend a lot of money and care for the meticulous creation and perfection of their products. But all of these efforts can go down the drain if the products are not packaged properly.

A signature; That’s how packaging should be viewed. A signature you can leave everywhere, personalized packaging has the ability to attract today’s much better than outdated sales and advertising tactics.

In the marketing world, there is a famous ‘mix’ that marketers are familiar with. This ‘marketing mix’ was conceived by Neil Borden of the American Marketing Association developed back in the mid 20th century. Its concepts may have aged but many companies today still find its relevance to their marketing strategies.

This tool includes four key elements, the 4P’s of marketing: price, product, promotion, and place. As the industry is seeing a dramatic shift toward flexible retail packaging and the power it has to build brands and attract loyal customers, packaging has now become an integral part of this mix.

Packaging as Part of the Mix

Your packaging is the gold star of your packaging mix. Why? It’s the one dictating how well your strategy is working. Packaging shows off your product in the best light. It displays the price and the value of the product and delivers the benefits of the products to the consumers. Packaging must be the main tool that represents your product in the market. It’s the first thing people see, and it has the ability to catch or divert their attention within seconds.

An afterthought? Not should be. Instead, packaging should be viewed as a key place of focus as it incorporates all other elements of your marketing strategies.

Today, many customers are no longer swayed by classic advertising and sales practices. The consumers that signs and commercials can’t catch can be reached through packaging. If you’re into marketing, maybe a marketer, salesperson, or CEO of the company, make sure you focus on the gold star of the mix, the packaging, to show off your product in its very best light.

The Three Levels of Packaging

Packaging’s three main functions are to provide protection for the product, to convey information, and to sell it to the customer. These functions are well- implemented with the three levels of packaging.

Primary Packaging

The packaging with direct contact with the product also referred to as a consumer or retail packaging. Primary packaging serves two purposes, to provide protection to the product and to contain or inform the customer.

The two most common examples of primary packaging would have to be beverage cans and pill blister packs. The bottle containing the liquid and the label on the pill blisters are primary packaging as they have direct contact with the product.

Secondary Packaging

Secondary packaging is the packaging that does a lot of talking. It is what the customers see first so it is usually attractive, print finished to a high standard, such as being litho printed with well thought out branding and design.

The secondary packaging often combines multiple items together. An example of secondary packaging is the box that holds multiple cans of soda together in one convenient pack.

As this packaging is visually enticing to attract customers, a lot of companies put its rebranding ideas at this level of packaging.

Tertiary Packaging

The packaging that is rarely seen by customers. Its main purpose is to protect the product during transportation and storage. Shipping and storage environments can present harsh conditions so tertiary packaging should be optimized to combine products as tightly as possible to provide all the protection during the travel.

It can be anything from a large box that contains smaller containers keeping multiple products bundled together. Tertiary packaging is usually unattractive as its purpose is to only provide protection to the product.

All three levels of packaging play an important role in protecting and marketing your product. It is necessary to examine the right materials and thought a unique and catchy design to level up your packaging strategy.

Sustainable Packaging- Going Green

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), packaging wastes are containers and packagings that are assumed to be discarded the same year the products they contain are purchased. Ranging from Amazon boxes to soda cans used to store, transport, contain, and protect goods, packaging can come in all shapes, sizes, and forms. Packaging waste is a dominant contributor in today’s world disposal and responsible for half of the waste in the globe.

About one- third of an average dump is made up of packaging materials! Every year, each American throws out about 1, 200 pounds of organic garbage that can be composted. Most packaging wastes that go into the ocean often come from places such as lakes, streams, and sewage. The indirect or direct impacts of packaging on the environment include soil degradation, water pollution, and the sharp reduction of scarce resources such as forests, solid waste pollution, and toxic chemical pollution. It seriously affected the sustainable development of resources and the environment.

Unsurprisingly, the eCommerce industry is one of the biggest culprits involved in the issue. This is not only because of plastic packaging but also the reality of ‘over-packaging’. As the eCommerce industry is in the rate of its expansion, we can expect that it will continuously contribute more and more to this issue over time. If these companies won’t adopt green packaging solutions, the amount of plastic waste going to landfills will increase drastically.

Sustainable Packaging- A Competitive Advantage

More and more consumers are being aware of the aftermath of pollution caused by packagings. This motivates them to patronize more eco- friendly products. According to a study by McKinsey, a United States-based management consulting firm, over 70% of customers were willing to pay a so-called ‘green premium’ for a product if it came in eco- friendly packaging. 

This means a positive impact on your business too. According to a study conducted by BBMG’s conscious consumer report, 87% of consumers in the US saw themselves as more likely to buy from brands committed to environmentally friendly practices. On the contrary, companies who don’t consider going green with their products may damage their business profile.

Go With Sustainable Packaging- Now!

Say no to over- packaging. Overpackaging not only means more waste but also costs you more. To lower your carbon footprint, why not try to streamline your packaging design.

Go with recyclable materials. Maximize the use of recycled materials in your design to keep reusable elements for longer use. Using reusable materials in your packaging also shows to your customers that you take responsibility and takes the issue seriously.

More and more companies are now taking huge steps in conserving the environment. As they participate in the global campaign of preventing tragic results of pollution, they also stabilize their company’s future by going green. Do you now feel like considering a new green packaging design for your product? Please continue, the Earth and the future generations will thank you.