Why Effective and Creative Packaging Design Is Important for Your Brand

Unique, effective, and creative packaging design is a staple of brand marketing and something the largest companies in the world utilize very effectively. However, no business can expect to be Coca-Cola, Tiffany’s, or Apple or have the same resources at their disposal.

Yet, that does not mean that smaller businesses should simply disregard the importance of unique packaging. Only that different, more cost-effective methods need to be applied. In this article, we will discuss the importance of unique packaging, design, and how even small business can make it work in their favor.

So, let us start with the importance of brand awareness and recognition.

Unique Packaging Increases Brand Awareness and Recognition

In a competitive market, every business wishes to garner brand loyalty. Having a significant number of loyal, recurring customers is the business model most owners strive for. This loyalty is garnered in many ways – ideally, by having a truly unique product. Yet, it is not reasonable to expect that most businesses can have unique products.

Thus, brand loyalty needs to be created in other ways - through product quality, a good customer experience, reasonable prices, etc. However, before someone can become a recurring customer, they need to become a first-time customer, correct? That is where brand awareness and brand recognition come into play.

• Brand awareness signifies that people have knowledge that your brand provides certain products or services.
• Brand recognition are the visual (or audio) cues that people identify with your brand.

Raising brand awareness and brand recognition is typically done through high-cost marketing campaigns. Effective marketing campaigns are essential for establishing a brand, but one of the things they often overlook is a creative packaging design for shipping boxes.

Even when a substantial amount of funds is invested into packaging design for a product itself, the bland shipping boxes that a carrier provides are used. Because shipping boxes are often an afterthought, the resources invested into creative packaging design are partially wasted.

And when a third of consumers base their decisions on packaging alone, every aspect of a package needs to be considered. That also includes investing in unique shipping boxes. So here are 3 reasons how shipping box design can raise your brand awareness.  

Free Marketing

We live in the age of social media where most people share their lives (and the products they use) publicly. Thus, there is no reason not to tap into that segment of the population and use them for free marketing. Although the term ‘free’ is a bit of a misnomer, as you do need to invest in the design, it refers to the later stages.

In other words, if people like your packing boxes, they will post them online. So that part of the marketing process is free. There are many trends where people like to show off how creative they are by reusing and repurposing boxes, so there is an audience for that type of material.

While the conversions you get from people promoting your boxes online will likely be low, that is not the primary aim – again, it is about brand awareness and recognition. Thus, with a creative packaging design, which should encompass the shipping boxes, you get free promotion.  

Sustainable Packaging

To expand on the point of creative design, sustainable packaging has been very popular in recent years. If part of your brand identity is eco-consciousness and sustainability, then the boxes you use for shipping should reflect that. Consumers are more likely to promote your brand if they align with your business ideals.

Unfortunately, most people do not have the focus to read up on the sustainable practices a business has. They need something simple to latch on to. Thus, sustainable packaging reinforces the notion that your company cares about the environment. Ultimately, this can lead to recurring customers loyal to your brand.

Saving Resources

Creating unique packaging for products that people instantly recognize is ideal (think Pringles’ cylinders), but it is often impractical. It takes a lot of resources and market testing to design such a package, resources most businesses do not have. It becomes even more impractical if you sell many different products.

Consequently, package design is often not cost-effective, but designing unique boxes is. Boxes may be of different shapes and sizes, but the principle is the same. You can apply the same design to each box you use, getting all the benefits of a creative packaging design, without investing many resources.

The Practical Aspect – Protecting Your Goods

Then, unique packaging design is not just about promotion, it is also about practicality. While most common shipping boxes are relatively sturdy, they provide limited protection. Specifically engineered packaging that prevents your goods from being damaged will increase customer satisfaction.

It can also save you money on replacing items. Naturally, the cost-effectiveness of protective packaging will depend on the type of items you sell – if you only ship items that are very difficult to damage, it may not be a worthwhile investment. Conversely, it may save you money in the long run, depending on your situation.

Unique Product Packaging Does Not Need to Increase Your Overhead

Until now, we have discussed the benefits of unique packaging for your brand. But there is still the issue of how it will increase your overhead. And we are not talking about the design part – that is a one-time investment that should not be too much of an issue. We are talking about the recurring costs of producing your unique boxes.

Fortunately, producing unique boxes does not need to impact your overhead significantly. With the technology currently available, most small- and medium-sized businesses can produce boxes with their own brand design. Creating specific protective boxes, on the other hand, may increase overhead.

But that is something that would need to be determined on a case-by-case basis. Again, only making shipping boxes with a unique design is not something that should have a notable impact on the finances of a company, while it provides most of the benefits discussed above.

We Can Help You Impress Your Customers

Creative packaging design is one way to make people remember your brand. But another important facet of customer experience is when their packages are delivered on time and undamaged. And that is where UNIVAL Logistics can help you.

We provide logistics solutions for shipping high-value items across the US and internationally. When you ship through UNIVAL, you get access to the fastest and most secure shipping routes, real-time package tracking, and full-value insurance even for the most expensive items.

If you are interested in how partnering with UNIVAL can help with all of your logistics needs, feel free to contact us.