If you’re looking to take your small business to the next level in the year ahead, you’ve got many options. One simple yet significant strategy? Upgrade your packaging.
Many people underestimate the impact of packaging on the user experience. However, the reality is that every time someone handles your packaging, it’s a direct interaction with your brand — and an opportunity to raise brand awareness, build trust, and delight your customers.
Here’s a closer look at three specific ways to creatively use packaging to boost your brand and improve your bottom line.
1. Lead with Sustainability
Today’s consumers are more informed than ever before; they also have higher expectations for the businesses they support. One demand we hear again and again? Sustainability.
According to global strategy and pricing consultancy Simon-Kucher & Partners’ most recent Global Sustainability Study 2021, 85% of consumers now favor companies with sustainable practices when making purchases. Not only that, but 50% of them rank sustainability as a top value driver, and a significant portion of them are willing to pay a sustainability premium.
The takeaway for your business? Sustainability isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s the smart thing to do when it comes to courting consumers.
There are many ways to incorporate sustainability into your business model, including switching out traditional packaging for environmentally-friendly packaging. Your customers WILL appreciate your effort and reward you for it with their continued business.
2. Embrace Trending Design Elements
Packaging is the first thing consumers see when they receive your item. Keeping up with the latest packaging trends ensures that your shipment stands out from the crowd and makes a fantastic impression.
Well-designed packaging can even tip the scales when encouraging a consumer to choose your business over another. It can be a selling point in and of itself. Not convinced? Consider that EMPTY authentic Hermès boxes are a popular item on sites like eBay.
Which begs the question: What’s trending in packaging at the moment? According to the design experts at DesignHill, key packaging trends of 2021 include the following:
• Minimalism
• Color gradients
• Transparent designs
• Simplicity
• Use of flat illustrations
• Black and white designs
• Vintage designs
• Fluid and geometrical shapes
• Bold typography
• Free-flowing designs
• Metallic effects
• Touches of realism
Of course, all of these may not be a fit for your business and brand. However, incorporating one or two design elements into your custom packaging can go a long way toward delivering a unique and satisfying customer experience — one they’ll want to share and show off.
3. Consider the Unboxing Experience
Say "goodbye" to wasteful packing peanuts and "hello" to other options for filling your boxes for shipping. In addition to other conventional fillers like newspapers, bubble wrap, and air pillows, other possibilities include butcher or kraft paper, raffia palm ribbon, and shredded paper in the colors of your choice.
Consumers are interacting with your brand long before they start using your products and services. While delivering a positive experience across every touchpoint has always been important, it’s especially vital now in the era of social media and “unboxing” moments.
Factoring the unboxing experience into your packaging strategies can help ensure that your customers feel the way you want them to feel when they receive and open your product. Cultivating an exciting unboxing experience adds an enticing and unforgettable element of drama, suspense, and anticipation for your customers — and for the people who follow them on social media.
According to a Square survey, here are a few of the things consumers are looking for when recording and sharing their unboxing experiences:
• Eye-catching wrapping
• Personalization/handwritten notes
• Product samples/coupons
• Branded stickers/pins
• Environmentally friendly materials
• New product brochures
Also integral? Personalization — both for your brand and your customers. A well-designed and executed unboxing experience helps build brand awareness and generate consumer trust. Add in the level of personalization today’s shoppers crave, and the potential impact of unboxing cannot be overstated or overvalued.
The good news? There is a way to combine all three of these strategies into one easy yet effective solution: DIYPack. Bring your packaging dreams to life with just a few clicks with our online design studio.
Not only that, but we offer a variety of small business-friendly benefits, including no minimums. Looking for small business packaging ideas but need to keep costs low while still delighting your customers with mindful packaging? DIYPack has you covered.
DIYPack’s custom boxes help you put the power of packaging to work for your small business. Use our 3-step online design process to create your custom boxes today.
