Common packaging design pitfalls that Sydney brands should steer clear of.
For many items, packaging is the only selling point – particularly in the crowded supermarket shelves or on the pages of the internet. However, even the best-funded brands make avoidable mistakes that slowly sap their sales. We have seen countless packaging solutions to date before we start a new redesign at Palsa Design Studio and it is the same handful of issues that keep recurring. So, here are the most common packaging design Sydney pitfalls and how professional packaging design agency Sydney brands can help you steer clear of all pitfalls.
Packaging failures and the expense associated with them.The cost of packaging failures and why.
One packaging error does not fit small boots. If a label is confusing, you’ll likely lose sales at the shelf. A structural flaw can create returns or damage to stock or compliance issues. If the design is not flexible for different SKUs then it could cost you a lot if you need to re-print the design when the range expands. As packaging is involved in all three aspects of manufacturing, retail compliance, and brand perception, the error in one area can negatively impact the other areas and that is exactly why it is so important to get packaging design Sydney brands right.
The following are some common packaging design errors Sydney brands make.
- Emphasising style over content. When the product name, ingredients or key benefit are hidden behind decorative type or low-contrast colours, a beautiful pack will lose sales before the shopper even picks it up.
- Ignoring shelf context. Boxes that are attractive when displayed separately on a designer’s screen are often completely lost when competing with a dozen other boxes in the supermarket. Many brands avoid testing against ‘real shelf’ conditions.
- Skipping structural testing. An interesting idea that may not have been tried as a real physical, functional pack can end up with issues when it goes into production with respect to sealing, stacking, or shipping.
- The designs are not consistent among different SKUs. If each flavour or variant of a range appears as if it came from a different brand, customers will have difficulty recognising the family on the shelf, leading to a decrease in brand recall over time.
- Overlooking compliance requirements. Australian food, cosmetic and supplement labelling regulations are specific and packaging that is not reviewed properly can result in a very expensive re-issue of the packaging after the initial print run.
Not designing for ecommerce, but just print. A pack that looks fantastic in a customer’s hands will not look so good as a small thumbnail image on the web, where most of the design detail doesn’t display properly.
Making the design decision of going with something trendy rather than branded. The emphasis of chasing the current visual trend can lead to packaging that has the feeling of being ‘old fashion’. Packaging that is focused on the positioning of a brand, on the other hand, can age in a much better way within a year or two.
Early estimation of production costs to be below what they actually are. Often, a concept is fixed without considering the print, material and structural costs which lead to compromises that are made too late that affect the final design.
The ways these mistakes appear on shelf and online
Most of these issues are not apparent until the packaging is on the market. It can be the case that a label is difficult to read in the design phase presented on a large screen, but it’s another story when presented at arm’s length as it would be under retail lighting conditions. Likewise, a package that has not been tested for ecommerce loses all its effect when it’s reduced to 200-pixel size. That’s why, when looking for the top packaging design Sydney has to offer, brands should always ask how a studio tests concepts in real-world environments, rather than in a pitch deck.
How to Avoid Them: Working with a Packaging Design Agency Sydney
The best way to prevent these errors is to hire a packaging design company that Sydney businesses can trust to run the tests successfully before production. This involves the actual scale of the shelf design, checking the structure for actual materials, checking compliance requirements early on, and creating a system that can easily grow with future SKUs. It also involves packaging as a brand rather than a single print order, for each new addition to the range remains consistent without having to be redesigned.
Why Palsa Design Studio
Palsa Design Studio has been helping FMCG and D2C brands with just these issues for 11+ years and their work has been acknowledged by the World Brand Design Society (UK), appeared in the Packaging of the World and listed in DesignRush. Whether it’s shelf testing, structural needs or thumb images for e-commerce, brands don’t find out about a problem once it goes to print. In the world of packaging design Sydney, that level of rigor is typically the deciding factor between a functional and an aesthetically pleasing packaging design in a portfolio.
Final Thoughts
The vast majority of packaging design errors are not talent-related, they are process-related. Nothing can undo a good idea like omitting to test the shelf or conduct structure review or compliance review. The best way to avoid the long wait for an expensive redesign down the road is to work with a packaging design agency that treats these checks as a matter of course–one that Sydney brands can count on. If you are feeling like your packaging isn’t living up to its full potential, Palsa Design Studio is here to help discuss what the problem is.
Frequently Asked Questions
1.What is the biggest packaging error that Sydney brands are making?
One of the most prevalent problems is when the design is more focused on style than readability; this can pose difficulty for the consumer to easily spot the product or its important features.
2. How to make sure that my packaging will fit on a crowded shelf before I print?
Sydney packaging design companies will test the concepts against a mock shelf set with competitors products, not just looking at the design on a computer screen.
3. What are the most effective ways to utilise social media to boost sales?
Print packaging will be viewed up close and at full size, whereas e-commerce thumbnails will take the images and squash them together a bit, so details, small text and subtle colour contrast can be completely lost.
4. What is the cost of fixing packaging design after introduction?
Whilst there are variations in costs, it is almost always more expensive if the compliance/structure issue is a complete reprint, rather than additional testing done when the packaging design agency Sydney business trusted has the business.
5. Should these errors be of concern to small or early-stage brands just as much as larger companies?
Yes, more so in fact. A pack reprint (or a shelf setback) is less of a concern for larger brands, but, for a brand in its early days with a smaller profit margin and limited trust from retailers, it’s more difficult to recover from the same mistake.
