Packaging Design

Great packaging can't make a bad product better -- but it can make more people buy it, at least the first time. That's why packaging design is a big part of many consumer companies' design budgets. Packaging design covers bags, boxes, wrappers and labels. It also includes decisions such as "how much of the product goes in a trial size package?" and "what is the relative cost of this box vs. that box?" Packaging can be one of the more interesting freelance projects, but it also requires a good bit of knowledge and a thorough understanding of the client, the product and the market. A few rules for good packaging:

• Customers want packages that are easy to open.
• Retailers want packages that look attractive on shelves and are easy to stock.
• Customers want packages that fit the way they live -- for example, enough pasta for one or two people rather than nine.
• While convenience is king, customers do care about green (recyclable) packaging.
• Consumable products -- foods, pills, etc. -- may need to be packaged in ways that discourage product tampering.
• Most retailers require bar codes suitable for scanning on all packaging.