How Does Product Packaging Influence Consumer Behavior

Many small businesses assume that packaging is just something that contains their products, but it’s really so much more than that! In fact, if you haven’t thought about packaging as a way to reach out to consumers about your products and brand, then you’re definitely missing out. This is because product packaging can actually influence consumer behavior in a variety of different ways. 

Knowledge is power, so read on to find out how you can work with BoxGenie to harness the power of packaging and influence how your consumers perceive your brand. 

Color Affects Emotions

One way that product packaging influences consumer behavior is through colors. Believe it or not, but colors can actually affect your emotions and tie into the brand and the product itself if done correctly. Colors can tell a potential customer a lot about your brand, so choose wisely! 

Here’s some helpful info regarding the psychology between different colors that you may want to consider for your product packaging:

• Red: This color has been proven to increase the heart rate and stimulate the senses. As a result, it creates a sense of urgency and energy—leading consumers to make an impulse buy. 
• Orange: This color conveys effectiveness, fun, and adventure. This is a great color to use if you have an entertaining product and want to appeal to fun-loving consumers. 
• Yellow: This color conveys feelings of happiness, optimism, and positivity. This bright color also grabs your eye and can help set products apart from competitors. 
• Green: This color can either signify wealth or natural products, depending on what side you’re on. Either way, it’s a great color for those looking to appeal to eco-friendly consumers. 
• Blue: This color is extremely popular among both males and females, making it a solid bet for packaging design. This color evokes feelings of trust, security, and dependability. 
• Purple: This is a “royal” color that conveys luxury and exclusivity. Lighter shades of purple can convey calmness and freshness. 
• Pink: This is a feminine and romantic color that conveys sophistication and beauty. For this reason, pink is a great option for fashion, cosmetics, and beauty products. 
• Black: This is a strong and dominant color that conveys power, control, and luxury. This can be ideal for high-end products to enhance the perceived value (more on that later). 
• White: This color is a safe and neutral option that conveys purity, cleanliness, and simplicity. This is a great option for cleaning products. 

Connect Brand Image With Packaging

When developing your brand image, you need to incorporate your custom brand packaging into a cohesive look that consumers are going to recognize on the shelf. For example, a tech product with a brand image that’s sleek and modern also needs packaging that’s sleek, modern, and neutral. In contrast, a kid’s product with a brand image of fun and excitement will need packaging that’s bold, unique, and eye-catching. Everyone thinks to go with a standard rectangular box or mailer box, but sometimes a one piece folder or triangle mailer box can make your brand stand out.

From there, different products should maintain similar packaging so that they are easily identifiable by consumers who are browsing tons of different items on the shelf. Consumers will be more drawn to your products as they will stand out more amongst a wide field of different options. This also helps to build brand loyalty, as consumers will be easily able to pick out your products amongst the rest and choose to buy those instead of another random product.

Connect Perceived Value With Packaging

Another way that product packaging influences consumer behaviors is that you’re able to connect the perceived value of a product with the packaging. For example, if you have a high-end product, you wouldn’t want to skimp out on well designed packaging. This would cause a consumer to reconsider paying a premium on your product since the packaging doesn’t reflect the perceived value. 

So even though it may be tempting to choose the cheapest packaging options to save money upfront, you should always consider the fact that cheap packaging may turn off many buyers and actually end up costing you sales in the long run.

If you’re looking for other ways to increase perceived value with your packaging, consider things like offering “limited edition” products or even showing off celebrity endorsements. Both of these tactics increase the perceived value of your product through packaging alone. Overall, if you want customers to value your products, you need to value the packaging first! 

Create An Impulse To Buy

We’ve all experienced an impulse to buy a product that we never considered buying before we walked into the store—some of us more than others! In many cases, this impulse is inspired by packaging! After all, when we go into a store, all we see is packaging. This happens more than you’d think, especially among certain groups. 

That’s why it’s important for your product packaging to actively market your product as being able to solve a problem or fill a need—even if it’s not urgent. Maybe your packaging will convey that this item may become useful in the future, and therefore, you need to have it on-hand now, just in case. Or maybe your packaging (or product itself) is so exciting and inspiring that the consumer just has to have it. 

Obviously, this is easier said than done when consumers are rational thinkers, right? Maybe not so much. In fact, there are lots of arguments out there, for example, in Psychology Today, about how consumers aren’t exactly the rational thinkers that they’ve been made out to be. According to this source, consumers act based on a perceived “connection” between a brand and themselves. With your ideal customer in mind, you should be able to design packaging that can foster that connection and inspire impulse buys. 

Appeal To Certain Values

Another way that product packaging influences consumer behaviors is that packaging is able to appeal to certain values that a consumer may hold near and dear to them. One big example of this involves eco-friendly packaging. These days, many people are prioritizing products that don’t harm the environment, are made sustainably, and are able to be recycled. Not only should you prioritize this in your packaging in order to help out Mother Earth, but it could also benefit your business as well. 

That’s because an eco-friendly brand will appeal to many consumers and drive them to make a purchase based on this information. It can also help set you apart from competitors who may not be so eco-friendly or even justify slightly higher prices. 

That being said, this doesn’t necessarily apply to all customer bases, which is why you need to have a good idea about what your target customer looks like and cares about before you begin developing your packaging. For example, someone who buys vegan beauty products will probably care more about eco-friendly packaging than your typical consumer. In that case, your brand should prioritize eco-friendly packaging. 

How To Develop Effective Product Packaging That Appeals To Consumers

Now that you know how product packaging can influence consumer behavior, it’s time to actually develop effective packaging with these factors in mind. Here are some tips to help guide you through this daunting process:

• Consider your brand image and persona and incorporate this into the packaging - for example, if you are a beer brand follow these packaging tips
• Consider your ideal customer by building a target customer profile based on what they would likely respond to. 
• Consider your product and any unique packaging considerations that it may require. 
• Consider your competition and what your packaging will look like on the shelf next to tons of other products. 
• Consider your budget and how much you can spend on packaging based on the product value. 
• Test out your design and get feedback from people who know nothing about your brand or product. 

Consulting The Experts

If you’re really looking to design packaging that’s practically made for your customers and invoke a response in them every single time, then you need to work with the experts. 

BoxGenie has been working in the packaging realm for almost 50 years, so they know what people respond to. They are always willing to take into account your brand image, ideal customer, and unique products to develop the perfect packaging solutions for your business. By engaging in such a partnership, you’re able to reach your customers and push them to buy without spending additional resources elsewhere—a win-win scenario for everyone! 

Final Thoughts

As you can see, product packaging is able to influence consumer behavior in a variety of different ways that you can take advantage of! At the end of the day, your packaging should be strategically designed based on these factors so that you can appeal to the most consumers possible. Don’t forget to consult with experts like BoxGenie if you really want to get the most bang for your buck when it comes to developing packaging that will hit the mark with your customers. 

Sources:

1. https://www.verywellmind.com/color-psychology-2795824
2. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/inside-the-consumer-mind/201603/the-myth-the-rational-consumer
3. https://www.businessinsider.com/sustainability-as-a-value-is-changing-how-consumers-shop