During my more than twenty years in the business, I’ve learned one of the best returns on marketing investments comes from good signage. Having an attractive, well-designed, and prominently placed sign will advertise your business every time a customer walks or drives by. In the long run, it’s one of the best marketing investments a company can make.
Your packaging works much the same way. Good packaging will advertise your products every time a customer walks through a dispensary. Well-designed packaging will promote your brand, attract attention, and generate interest just like a great big brightly lit sign.
In a landmark study, authors Robert Underwood and Julie Ozanne wrote that most purchasing decisions are made at the shelf. Accordingly, the product package is the communication life-blood of a business. The packaging, sometimes referred to as the “silent salesman,” communicates key points and gets the product sold.
Product managers and design firms therefore seek to create packaging that breaks through the clutter and communicates positive messages, builds brand awareness, and conveys important information.
The ability of brands to gain attention at the shelf is particularly important in the crowded cannabis industry where competition abounds, as well as in cases of new brand introductions and repositionings.
When packages and labels are designed well, consumer confidence increases. Conversely, when packaging or labels communicate incompetently, consumers pull away from that product and brand entirely.
The fact is, in today’s connected world, brand image and consumer relationships that have taken years to build can be dramatically harmed in a very short time period. On the flip side, brands can significantly improve their image (and sales) by properly communicating with their customers via their packaging.
Many companies are currently missing valuable opportunities to develop brand equity by going beyond government requirements and creating packaging that presents images and information in ways that better engage customers in a sincere and authentic manner. Your package must breakthrough and be easy to find. This can be achieved through visual cues, including color, brand, and shape recognition. The packaging must clearly communicate with interesting imagery and meaningful benefits.
Expensive promotional activities such as advertisements and promotions are great ways to attract consumer attention, however, the real return on investment (ROI) happens on the shelf.
It takes just a few seconds for a consumer to judge a product. So, remember: The packaging of your product is your most powerful promotional tool.
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