Packaging for any product should not only be attractive to customers, but also for its functionality, especially food products. A food packaging (pembungkusan makanan) should 1) contain the food, 2) preserve food quality and act as 3) an effective marketing tool.
The food packaging must be intently thought through as it should be kept safe during transportation and best preserved during sale. Only then, the quality of the product is reinforced so customers trust your brand to provide only the best!
Don’t fret, we’ll help you decide on the perfect packaging for your food products.
#1 Find a creative partner
Hold your horses! As eager as you are, the first thing you should do is to begin your quest by finding a packaging designer that best meets your needs (Thanks in advance for choosing us by the way ;D).
Get acquainted, get rid of the formalities or be as formal as you like! Do some research of each designer’s offers and price range. Who knows, apart from a great deal, you might even have a life-long partner.
#2 What can you afford?
In other words, what’s your budget? Let your creative partner know how much you can spend so they can provide different options for you. Only then can you customize the material, size, design and quantity of your food packaging.
It’s doubly important for you to take into account the one-time costs and per-item costs.
One-time cost: Payment of original design work for the packaging, paid up-front and only once.
Per-item cost: The expense of used materials (boxes, tape, labels etc.) and labor.
| Glass |
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|---|---|
| Food-grade cardboard |
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| Plastic |
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#3 What’s the product?
Say your product is ice cream. You’ll need a packaging that can withstand its consistency and cold temperatures. It should also be sealed to preserve the quality. Another aspect is the different sizes of containers you’ll probably need; single-servings, cartons and bulk packaging.
Let’s not make hasty decisions. You may think a standard pouch will suffice, but you’ll pay for the consequences if you don’t think it through.
#4 How will people buy it?
Is it retailed? Displayed online? Sold to businesses? These factors should impact how you decide on the packaging. For example, if your product is retailed, you can focus on how the packaging attracts customers.
As opposed to products sold online, customers look for cheap prices and expect product security rather than pay attention to the packaging. So, you may simmer down your excitement on the packaging design if this is the case.
#5 More than just 1 packaging
Get your thinking caps on! You’re going to need more than just the product packaging. Some products might even need an additional inner packaging (individual boxes) and outer packaging (carton boxes).
Don’t get too carried away. The more boxes, the more you’ll have to pay for each one. Try to imagine you’re the product, the journey you’ll embark on and what ‘transport’ you need to reach a customer safely.
#6 Sit still, look pretty
Now the fun part! But first of all, do some research on how your competitors market their product. You wouldn’t want to just simply copy paste other product’s packaging, would you? Keep in mind the labels on your food packaging as well.
Put yourself in a customer’s shoes. Roaming around the aisle and something catches your eye. That effect is what you should achieve from your design. Help out your designer by providing some packaging samples and leave the sprinkling of fairy dust to them!
Ready for the next step?
Now that you know how to choose the perfect packaging for your food product, it’s time to find yourself a talented designer. Since you’re already here, give us a call.
If you need a little convincing, head over to our case studies to see our perfected projects. No pressure but we can’t wait to start on our design project together!
