Everyone remembers that special moment on Christmas morning tearing through the gift wrapping, or the simple moment of tearing the foil off a jar of coffee to get that first hit of aroma as the foil peels back. Nobody removes the sheet of paper inside the tin of Altoids. Why are these moments so important? These “opening ceremonies” are rarely included in client briefs to understand or enhance the consumer’s experience with the brand and product. I believe that these moments are fundamental in the interaction of our senses with the brand at a deeper level.
Today is a different world. A vast majority of all retail shopping happens online and, therefore, the typical in-store experience of handling the package is becoming eliminated. There is a new distance between the brand and consumer. And regulations such as tamper-evident packaging are having a significant impact on the kind of opening ceremony recalled above. For food and pharmaceutical products, this is seen as a real advantage when safety and ingredients are crucial. When thought through as part of the brand delivery, tamper-evident packaging can add significant value to the consumer opening ceremony.
A great recent example of this was the overwrap design solution for Orbit gum in the USA. The protective film was transformed into part of the opening ceremony from solely focused on brand messaging to a fashion statement with flavor cues. It’s also a must for shipping products where packaging is designed with security and chain-of-custody in mind, such as cell phones or other consumer electronics. Here’s an example; as a test I recently ordered my usual weekly commodity groceries and favorite comfort food cereals from an online shopping supplier. When the delivery arrived not only was my cereal incorrect, the boxes were damaged. The disappointment factor was immediate. This would not have happened in the store, especially due to the fact that cereal selection for me is such a delicate and particular process!
· Millennials see their purchases as emblematic of themselves. In other words, they choose brands that say something about “me.”
· What doesn’t play with Millennials is “Basic.” To call someone basic is essentially to call them boring. This demographic loves specialty product ingredients and they love packaging. They’ll gravitate toward custom packaging according to Supermarket News. “Think of Coca-Cola’s initiative to put people’s names on the bottles.’
