The Ultimate Guide to Designing Your Product Packaging!

Packaging keeps our daily life organized and “together”. Whether it’s a packet for your M and Ms, a basket for your dirty laundry, or the bottle that holds the delicious liquid particles of your drink together, the things we put things in are important!

On the surface, Product Package Design seems really simple: You come up with a layout, put together some colors, and slap some text on it. Boom you have packaging design. But is it really that simple? How do you know if this design will connect with your target audience? How do you guarantee that it will actually look like what you designed when it’s printed and ready for the shelf? These questions—all of which need answers—illustrate that there’s quite a bit more to the packaging design process than simply slapping together a few layouts and logos. It’s a rigorous process that needs attention every step of the way. As such, The Wit Agency, a branding company in baner,thought we’d dive into the details of packaging design and give you an end-to-end look at the process, from early designs to final print.

Step 1: Answer these 3 questions.

1. What is the product?
2. Who is buying the product?
3. How are people buying the product?

Once you have a concrete answer to all of these questions, the road to creating the perfect product packaging becomes much easier.

Step 2: Ensure you have the information you need.

• Before creating the product packaging, you need to consider the brand portfolio that already exists. What colors have you been using? What fonts? And the most important: The Logo.
• Content that will go on the packaging: Written copy, Imagery, Required information (contents, usage details)

Step 3: Decide what your Budget is.

• You’ll want to have a ballpark idea of how much you’d like to spend before you start the design process. Keep in mind that cheaper isn’t always better; paying a little bit more for your materials could up your presentation (and your selling price) by making you stand out from the competition.

Step 4: Dive right into the Design Process!

Once you’ve gathered all of the information, it’s finally time for the fun part: The Design! Remember how you want your packaging design to tell a story? The choices you make in the design process are what’s going to help you tell that story.

          1. Understand packaging Layers:

• There are three “layers” of product packaging: outer packaging, inner packaging, and product packaging. Your product may need one or all three of these.
• Outer packaging is what will protect your product from the elements. This can be the box it comes in or the shopping bag.
• Inner Packaging is what keeps your product nestled safely in the outer packaging. This can be tissue paper, foam, newspaper, etc.
• Product packaging is what most people think of when they think of packaging: it’s the box the toy comes in, the bottle with a label, the tag on a garment, and the wrapper of a candy bar.
  

  2. Choose the right type of packaging:

• There can be many different types of packaging available for your product:

• While the choice between a bottle and a box may seem obvious, sometimes it’s not. If you have a product in the form of a liquid, don’t let that force you into a corner! Other than a bottle, you can put it in a can, a sachet, a juice box, etc. Literally, think outside of the box!

        3. Create your Information Architecture:

• Think back to those 3 questions, specifically who’s buying your product and where are they finding it. You’re going to use that to create the information architecture for your package.
• You may have beautiful photos of your product in action, a witty tagline that explains how you’re awesome, and a great graphic showing customers how to use your product. But when a shopper looks at your packaging they’re probably only going to remember one thing. What do you want that to be?
• Pick the one absolute most important thing you want customers to know about your product. That should be the centerpiece of your design.
• You can then add 2-3 things you want to show once they’ve picked up your product (or clicked on your link) that will close the deal. Let’s look at a few examples:

Chitale Bandhu focused on the fact that it this pack of Bakarwadi is “Easy to Carry”. That would be the most important thing for the consumer.

Dorito’s brand name is the most important thing, with the flavor name.

         4. Evaluate the design package and get feedback.

• You have some wonderful ideas! Now it’s time to evaluate and get some feedback. Ask yourself these questions:

1. Is it clear what your product is?
2. Is the packaging an honest representation of your brand?
3. What will this product and packaging look like in stores?
4. Is your packaging reusable?
5. Is your packaging versatile enough to be used for different products under your umbrella?

Product Packaging Design is an intense process. One that will take time and true introspection on your brand.

You don’t have to do it alone! The Wit Agency’s mission, as a branding company in Pune, is to create efficient, gorgeous designs that can truly depict your brand and company.

Download The Website Growth Bible for the guidance

(Download Link)