Alan Gilbody

You’ve got three seconds to tell me the brand and the product.

It’s a tricky one isn’t it?

If you are the brand leader in the energy drink sector, you should be completely obvious to the consumer.

There were no easily identifiable brand assets on view and it takes a second or so even when up close to decode what the product variant is.

In situations like this, it’s an opportunity to own the fixture rather than provide an Escape Room type puzzle for your loyal consumer

Win the shelf, win the consumer.

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging

Here’s a great example of why you should check your shelf impact next to a competitor before pressing print.

There is a fine balance between following what’s right for the brand story, in the case of Go Ahead here, lightness, with making sure that doesn’t compromise any punch when your product is on shelf.

Always ask your design agency to create shelf visuals with any initial concepts before you narrow down to a lead favourite. It’s much better addressing this in the early stages of the project rather than when you have a warehouse full of stock.

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging

Getting the architecture of your packaging correct can mean the difference between standing out and completely disappearing.

Have a look at this example. We had bought it a little while ago and were so impressed with the product that we were scanning the shelves trying to track it down again, but having trouble finding it

It’s quite unusual for products to feature a landscape orientation on such a big pack as it uses up so much shelf space. In these instances normally portrait is better as you can get more SKU’s in on the available width.

To compound the issue they’ve used a centralised portrait layout on a landscape pack so creating lots of dead space to the left and right hand side that could be better utilised to make the product jump out.

When you are stacking so much information and imagery is often better to use a left right layout so that you don’t get multiple elements competing with one another.

Remember, go for the orientation that allows you to stack the shelves with multiple SKUs and always design the Pack with this orientation in mind

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging

Regular readers of my posts may remember my thoughts on the previous iteration of the Ineos packs being to utilitarian and monolithic design across all sectors making it very confusing to navigate between different product ranges. Whilst the latest iteration has moved away from some of the functionality of it predecessor in both graphics and copy, it’s created new problems in an attempt to remedy the old.

The most important aspect to look at here is the logo. The black logo type on the red texture completely disappears in the supermarket environment. Taking a couple of steps back at the fixture renters it almost impossible to make out.

One of the things they struggled to communicate last time was the plant powered aspect. A functional and very utilitarian design tends to work against this more natural proposition.

The plant powered communication has now been relegated to a much smaller area on the base of the label. This makes it hard for not only this element of the back to stand out but with its look and feel still rooted in science and utilitarianism, for it also be believed by the consumer.

So whilst the new design may be a step in the right direction in softening the industrial and scientific approach, it still misses on a few of the aspects that the redesign desperately needed to win over new consumers.

#Marketing, #Design, #Packaging, #Sustainability

Great brands have an engaging story. Without a story, you are behaving more like a private label product, and that makes it incredibly tricky to engage with your consumer.

It also makes it very tricky to qualify the higher price point than an own labelled product

I stumbled across this product at the weekend which suffers the very same. At first I thought this was a Sainsbury’s own label product.

It behaves very much like an own label product:

All of the elements such as the logo, the descriptor, and the iconography all compete for attention. They are all executed at the same size, equally space down the pack.

The naming felt generic and gimmicky rather than one that transported you somewhere.

The SRP was blank, this is a fantastic canvas that can be used to communicate the brand story, hold the brand message or contain a call to action.

The only taste cues, the coconut image was hidden behind this wall of blankness.

In short, it screamed private label.

When you are competing against the big players in any sector, it’s important that you catch and hold a consumers attention. You need to be intriguing enough to make them pick the pack up and explore all sides.

That’s when you know you’ve got them hooked.

Miss the story and miss this valuable connection.

#Marketing, #Design, #Branding, #Packaging

Here’s another great example of something I’ve mentioned before.

What is the most important part of your pack? Is it the product that you’re selling? Is it the descriptor? Or is it the brand?

In a world of own brand, it’s important for big name brands to stand out and explain to the consumer why they cost more than their own brand equivalent.

If, as in the example attached, the brand and descriptor are cramped towards the top of the pack and so collapse only exposing a photo of the product inside, then you’re not really explaining to a consumer why they should pay the extra for your product. Especially as due to the reduced visibility of your key brand components it’s going to be looking like one of the own brand equivalents that it’s trying to differentiate from.

The best place for primary communication on these sort of packs, especially in the freezer sector is front and centre so that it avoids this type of crumpling.

#Marketing, #Design, #Branding, #Packaging

Craft is all about care, consideration, experience and pedigree. The pack has to hit the consumer with all of that brewing know-how and convince the consumer of it

This means playing certain category rules and if you’re going to break them in order to force some differentiation then ensure that this craft, experience and artisanship is fostered through the packaging design, storytelling and quality of print

Consumers use all of these quickly decoded signals to make an immediate purchase decision.

If as per the rather strange example below you miss out on all of that, however good the product, are you going to struggle to convince the consumer.

In this individual products instance it’s the fact that the IPA is made with surpless fresh pasta.

Poor execution can steer a consumer away before they have had a chance to understand an interesting brand story.

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging

Never waste space on pack .

Launching a brand into a supermarket is incredibly difficult process. Once you are in there, you have to do everything in your power to get the consumer to see you and understand you.

It’s an opportunity to tell the consumer a story and explain why your product best matches their needs.

This space is a premium so why waste it? Have a look at this pack from Toilet Duck. Is often difficult to see the area behind a blister pack, it can often be very difficult canvass to work with. That said, bold statements, colour, texture and punchy iconography is perfect for these awkward areas so that the pack visible from a distance.

Leaving that real estate blank makes the pack look unfinished and misses out on a golden opportunity to talk to your consumer.

You’ve paid for the space, never waste it.

#Marketing, #Design, #Branding, #Packaging

If there’s something strange, in your supermarket shelf, who you gonna call?

I know, it’s a cheap gag, or probably verging on a dad joke but when naming products it’s incredibly important to make sure that your product isn’t misinterpreted for something it clearly isn’t.

That tends to remove credibility and authenticity.

So at the naming stage, sense check it, give it to lots of people and encourage them to pick holes in it because it’s better to find out then rather than when it’s too late.

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging

We often have challenges in fitting information on the back of pack. But when there is an abundance of room, there is no reason for text to be so small you can’t read it.

Have a look at this example with my hand as context

Consumers pick packs up in store. They read them. They explore them before purchasing. If you are selling products that require steps and stages for it to be used, your back of pack should always be accessible

Miss out on the legibility and what is bought for convenience will be seen as anything but.

#Marketing, #Design, #BrandDesign, #Packaging