How to Use Custom Packaging as a Marketing Tool
Initially, packaging served a practical purpose, allowing companies to protect their products from damage.
As competition grew, brands used design elements—like colors, textures, and logos—to attract attention on store shelves.
Today, custom packaging is a vital marketing tool used to convey brand values, build loyalty, and influence buying decisions.
In the following sections, you’ll discover strategies to maximize your packaging’s impact on your marketing efforts.
But before we dive in, let’s explore its direct impact on consumer behavior.
Key Stats
- Packaging influences 85% of in-store purchase decisions
- 70% of consumers see packaging as key to a brand’s image
- 72% of consumers say packaging design affects their buying choices
- Premium packaging design can boost brand visibility by up to 30%
- 55% of shoppers would try a new brand because of its packaging
- 40% of consumers would share a product image online if the packaging is unique
- 47% of consumers see unboxing as a key part of their overall experience
Sources: World Metrics
Your Complete Guide to Custom Packaging as a Marketing Tool
1. Enhance Your Brand Experience
Packaging is a strategic touchpoint that must embody the essence of your brand in physical form.
It is an opportunity to tell your brand’s story, make a positive first impression, and convert shoppers into buyers.
These innovative strategies will help you develop packaging that stands alone in the marketplace.
Use Neuromarketing Principles in Visual Design
Visual cues, color psychology, and sensory elements can subconsciously guide purchasing decisions by shaping moods and perceptions.
In essence, neuromarketing principles transform your packaging into a silent salesperson that helps generate more sales.
Deepen Engagement with Interactive Elements
QR codes with exclusive features or augmented reality (AR) experiences bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds.
This enhances your customer experience and makes your brand stand out.
It also provides the opportunity to gather valuable data on consumer behavior to help refine your marketing efforts.
Turn Unboxing into a Story-Driven Experience
Elements like sequential unboxing or layered packaging provide unique storytelling opportunities. Here’s an example to illustrate.
A beauty brand could use layered packaging to reveal each product with a brief message about its benefits.
This educates the customer in an easily digestible sequence and improves product usage outcomes.
2. Choose the Right Packaging Materials
You might wonder how materials can be used as a marketing tool.
Brands have become more creative in using packaging to enhance product presentation, and consumers are picking up on these details.
By choosing certain materials, you can show your commitment to sustainability, create a sensory experience, and distinguish your products in the marketplace.
Here are some effective ways to harness the full marketing potential of packaging materials.
Attract Eco-Conscious Consumers with Sustainable Materials
Most consumers know about the most popular sustainable materials, like recycled paper or cardboard.
However, emerging solutions like BDP® Biotechnology, sugarcane (Bagasse), or cornstarch (Polylactic Acid) are poised to revolutionize the industry.
Use one of these innovations in your packaging and develop a communications strategy around it to position your brand as a leader in sustainability.
Immerse Customers with Sensory Materials
Let’s say a customer is considering purchasing your product.
The packaging design has caught their eye.
They pick it up off the shelf, and the feel of the specialized materials engages multiple senses.
This sensory experience can make customers feel more connected to your brand and choose you over competitors.
Examples of Sensory Materials:
- Soft-touch coatings
- Embossed textures
- Scent-infused substrates
Convey Luxury with Premium Materials
Translucent substrates, metallic finishes, or textured surfaces make your packaging more luxurious.
When used strategically, these materials create a higher value perception among consumers and influence their willingness to pay more.
3. Personalize Your Product Packaging
Personalization helps create a one-on-one connection with your customers.
By customizing for key audience segments, you also create a sense of exclusivity.
Here’s how you can craft packaging that makes a personal impact.
Leverage Data Analytics
Start by analyzing customer data, such as purchase history, demographics, and behavioral patterns.
This data helps identify trends and create key audience segments.
Next, use variable printing technology to create personalized messages, images, or offers based on customer profiles or regional preferences.
Refine your approach through data insights to create packaging that evolves with shifts in customer preferences.
Customize for Different Demographics
Different ages, genders, or lifestyle segments have distinct wants and desires.
Consider this when choosing colors, images, and messaging.
Tailoring your packaging to specific groups makes your customers feel valued and understood.
Be Mindful of Cultural Differences
Adjust your product packaging to respect cultural nuances in different regions.
Be aware of how colors, symbols, and language can vary in meaning across cultures.
This helps build trust and deepen connections with a diverse customer base.
4. Incorporate Functional Design
Have you ever bought a product that seemed impossible to open with the packaging?
Or maybe your purchase arrived by mail damaged, broken, or unusable.
These experiences can hurt your brand’s reputation and lead to lost sales.
Well-designed packaging with features that enhance usability, convenience, and sustainability position your brand as customer-centric.
Maintain your brand’s positive image with these techniques.
Ensure Product Safety
User-friendly packaging directly influences consumer perceptions of product quality.
Clear instructions, easy-open tabs, or ergonomic shapes minimize friction during the unboxing experience.
Add Value Through Reusability
Offer packaging that serves a secondary purpose after purchase.
For example, reusable totes or decorative boxes can give customers utility while keeping your brand top-of-mind.
5. Create a Unique Unboxing Experience
Some brands overlook the unboxing experience as a marketing asset.
This interaction can spark excitement, promote social sharing, and be used as a tool for organic growth.
Enhance your packaging’s marketing role with these unboxing strategies:
Personalize with Inserts
Inserts like handwritten notes, exclusive offers, or tailored gifts can turn a transaction into a memorable moment.
This taps into the psychology of reciprocity, makes customers feel valued, and encourages repeat purchases.
Encourage Social Sharing
Stunning designs or branded hashtags motivate customers to share their unboxing experience on social media platforms.
This increases brand exposure through user-generated content and amplifies your marketing reach organically.
6. Use Packaging for Promotion
Packaging can extend your marketing reach beyond the initial sale and turn it into a platform for ongoing engagement.
This keeps customers engaged, and drives repeat purchases even after they’ve received the product.
Try using these strategic offers on your packaging to generate more revenue.
Feature Limited-Time Offers
Print special promotions directly on your packaging.
This could include time-sensitive discounts, flash sales, or limited-edition products.
Creating a sense of urgency creates feelings of FOMO and motivates customers to buy again quickly.
Highlight Exclusive Deals
Promote exclusive deals that are available only to certain customers or through specific channels.
Loyalty program perks, members-only discounts, or early access to new products are a great way to reward your most loyal customers.
Promote Social Discounts
Use your packaging to direct customers to special discounts that are available only on social media platforms.
Encourage customers to share their unboxing experience using a specific hashtag.
Then, reward them with a discount on their next purchase.
7. Optimize Your Custom Packaging for Retail Shelves
In a crowded retail environment, your packaging must capture attention quickly.
The right design choices can guide attention, communicate value, and differentiate your product.
These approaches can help maximize the impact of your packaging on retail shelves.
Design to Stand Out on Shelves
Use bold colors, unique shapes, or innovative materials to catch the eye of shoppers as they scan the shelves.
Leveraging eye-tracking data and shopper flow patterns can help you position visual elements where consumers naturally focus.
Direct their attention to key product benefits, contrast gradients, and strategic focal points.
Communicate Essential Details
Instead of overwhelming shoppers with excessive information, focus on communicating the core benefits that set your product apart.
Behavioral insights can help you understand what information customers prioritize when making quick decisions.
With the right balance between clarity and depth, you simplify purchasing decisions.
Make the Most of Shelf Space
Packaging that fits perfectly into standard retail shelving helps secure better placement and improve visibility.
Understand the most common shelf configurations in your target stores.
Modular or adaptable packaging can also ensure your products stand out even on crowded shelves.
8. Customize Your E-Commerce Packaging for Connection
Unlike physical storefronts, online shopping is a more impersonal experience.
Your packaging often serves as the first physical interaction with customers.
It must make a lasting impact, especially on first-time buyers.
Here is how to use e-commerce packaging to create meaningful customer connections.
Personalize Based on Customer Segmentation
As mentioned in a previous section, personalizing your packaging is an effective way to create a one-to-one interaction with your customers.
So, we wanted to dive a little deeper into this strategy with some examples specific to e-commerce.
- Personalized Product Suggestions: Include tailored product recommendations or discounts based on what the customer has previously purchased.
- Customize Design: Adjust colors or themes to differentiate between new and returning customers.
- Print Customer Names: Add the customer’s name or a personalized message to create a more direct connection.
- Use Localized Designs: Adapt language and visuals to reflect the specific cultural context of each region.
Offer Tailored Bundles: Create custom packaging for frequently bought items to cater to loyal customers’ preferences.
Use Shipment Tracking as a Marketing Channel
Although this doesn’t use your packaging as a marketing tool, shipment tracking is a valuable way to engage customers after purchase.
Use tracking pages to show personalized product recommendations or special offers.
Segment customers by behavior and trigger specific offers during different stages of shipping.
This strategy is a great way to upsell customers and increase repeat purchases.
Elevate Your Marketing Efforts with CRP’s Custom Packaging Solutions
At CRP, we create tailored solutions that elevate your brand and drive real business impact.
Our team works with you to craft packaging that not only looks great but also enhances customer experience.
With a strong focus on sustainability, we help your brand align with modern consumer values while reducing your carbon footprint.
From the first concept to final delivery, our process ensures precision, quality, and consistency every step of the way.
Partner with CRP to turn your packaging into a strategic marketing asset that sets your brand apart and fuels long-term growth.
