Manufacturers‘ demands on packaging are diverse: the product should be cost-efficient, but also needs to be packaged to meet trade and consumer needs. Packaging needs to be selected carefully in terms of storage and transportation. From a manufacturer’s point of view packaging needs to be easy to transport and with minimal space requirements. It should be of the lowest weight possible and ideally meet DIN standards, should be easy to stack, palletise and resist breakage. Packaging must also be easy and unmistakeably distinguishable by employees in production and stores as well as for packing. And, of course, the manufacturer has a number of marketing-oriented requirements too.

The trade is concerned with fast and trouble-free sales. The shop shelf is the most important interface for communication with the consumers. Presentation of the goods is a key task in trade logistics, with shelf space being at a premium. The trade is interested in uncomplicated yet attractive packaging design, with easy-to-read bar codes and easy to handle packaging. Innovative products with novel packaging are more likely to be listed by the trade than products with interchangeable product sleeves.

Packaging as impresario in brand communication
The most significant aspect is a manufacturer’s communication. The significance of brands is increasing, especially as globalisation of the markets demands more efficient communication. Four factors determine a brand: the brand name, the brand logo, the product per se, and its packaging. Comments Roland Rex of Pro Carton: “Of the four branding elements, the only one you can touch is the packaging. Without a doubt, cartonboard with its inimitable and multi-faceted haptic design is a clear favourite.“

Brand name, brand logo, product and packaging, as well as communication via advertising, PR, events etc. complement each other in terms of efficacy. The positioning message should be absolutely clear on the packaging. In an ideal world, all communication measures were aligned to ensure that that packaging and all other communication measures contained no dissonant messages to the consumer.

With today’s information overload, the messages of brands often overlap and lead to a non-specific “white noise“. As a result of this information overload in the mass media, the “authenticity“, i.e. the sensual experience of products, their packaging and their communication will grow in importance. Considerable potential can be tapped in the branding process, especially with regard to packaging, by differentiating products from competitors and increasing their fascination. Adds Roland Rex: ”Cartons are ideal for creating sensuality and authenticity without sacrificing required information on the product and its uses.”

Source: Packaging Marketing, published by Christina Vaih-Baur and Sonja Kastner, Frankfurt am Main 2010