Product packaging trends are indicative of larger cultural and artistic styles, consumer spending patterns, and new tastes. Despite the common perception that packaging design is hardly more than a “throwaway” niche of design, it represents a unique combination of art and science that produces some wildly innovative, unique, and compelling creations.
If you purchase something because of the striking package, you will be contributing to one of the following packaging trends dominant in 2018:
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Reduction of global product and food waste.
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Improved ecommerce experience through enhanced packaging by online brands.
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Practical and clear packaging due to consumers’ preference for minimalism.
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New format for the presentation of nutritional information.
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Marine conservation due to developments in packaging technology.
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Modern packaging formats will ensure the center-of-store go mainstream.
If you wish to know more about these trends and how they affect brands, consumers, and manufacturers alike, read on:
Packaging as Means to Minimize Product and Food Waste
We live in a world where a throwaway culture is prevalent. But that will give way to one that not only understands but wholeheartedly embraces the importance of packaging in reducing food and product waste worldwide. It comes as no surprise that consumers tend to treat packaging as something that is unnecessary and disposable.
However, this view is rapidly diminishing in light of new innovations in packaging technology that benefit customers around the globe. Now, the right kind of package not only keeps food fresh for a longer period of time, but ensures careful delivery and preserves the taste, flavor, texture and nutritional value of the ingredients.
However, it is the responsibility of the different brands to adopt on-pack communication tools so that their customers might be educated regarding the benefits of modern packaging. After all, who doesn’t want to offer safe and efficient access to important products in both underserved and developed parts of the world, or extend the shelf life of eatables?
Role of Packaging in the Ecommerce Experiences of Consumers and Brands
The online shopping industry is thriving across the world as more and more consumers are making the switch from brick-and-mortar to digital. In fact, some markets have adopted online as the go-to mode of shopping. But even though the key purpose of ecommerce is convenience, customers often expect a lot more from the brands of their choice. That’s why it is important that the design packaging visible on the Internet and the transit packaging to be opened once home delivery is complete both reflect the expectations of the consumers from shopping with a particular brand in-store.
Packaging Goes Clean and Succinct
Brands should focus on packaging design that encourage consumers to make purchase decisions. On the other hand, they should not go for design approaches that offer either too little or too much information as it confuses shoppers instead of informing them. The truth is, the consumers of today make it a priority to learn all they can about a particular brand or product. But bombard your consumers with too much information, and your chances of getting rejected increase tremendously.
That’s why it’s best to adopt the “essentialist” principle of design that encourages transparency and authenticity without going overboard on the details. This strategy toes the fine line between not enough and just enough of what is required by consumers to make a confident and enlightened purchase decision. Brands should rope in the latest iteration of clean label in packaging design to offer a moment of clarity and calm to buyers in an increasingly hectic retail industry.
Introduce the New Nutrition Facts Panel in Packaging
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in May 2016 unveiled a new and updated Nutrition Facts panel. This includes various changes to the old version, such as the need to specify added sugars as well as the increase of serving sizes from 8 to 12 ounces. A few months later, the FDA announced its decision to increase the compliance deadline to 1st January, 2020, for organizations that earned more than $10 million in annual revenue. Anything below that, and companies would have an extra year to comply. But the sooner you change the nutrition labeling on your products to comply with the new rules, the sooner pre-press houses and package designers can meet the increased demand for design services.
Protect the Seas With the Right Packaging
The amount of plastic packaging in the oceans worldwide not only harm the environment, but directly and indirectly affect health and the economy as well. This has led various brands to rethink packaging in a way that consumers are better able to act upon.
Questions about the safety of packaging have slowly begun to sway the perceptions of consumers and influence their purchase decisions. Only when brands work towards a solution for this problem will this ever-increasing rift to purchase be resolved. Though collecting the waste plastic from ocean waters and recycling new packaging improves consumer awareness, it is not a long-term solution to the issue. To eradicate plastic from the sea, a fresh effort towards circular economy is required to keep packaging material relevant and in use.
Focusing on the New Segment of Shoppers
Brands are slowly going to turn towards modern packaging formats in an attempt to pump life into center-of-store aisles that are not usually visited by Millennials and other shoppers of less age. Keep in mind that large numbers of young consumers “shop the periphery”, visiting chilled and fresh food aisles around the perimeter instead of ambient, processed, and frozen options in the center of the store. However, the use of new-age designs, transparent packaging materials, unique shapes, and recyclability can help attract younger consumers to the center of the store, making it as lucrative as the periphery.
Concluding Remarks
2018 is a great time to be a part of the packaging industry. With new breeds of customers emerging in the market with unique shopping choices, brands must rely on the above mentioned trends if they want to stay a step ahead of the competition.
Editorial Note: This post was shared by a member of the BXP community and edited by our editorial staff. Do you have news to share with our readers or a package design project that you are especially proud of? Click here to learn how you can become a contributing member of the BXP Magazine community.