Guide to Choosing The Suitable Packaging Material

Guide to Choosing The Suitable Packaging Material

Packaging material decides the foundation of your product and brand altogether. Even if the material is simple, the packaging can be quite a daunting task, mainly when success depends on it. Therefore, it is essential to figure out the industry you are working for. Whether a restaurant, retail, or e-commerce, the material depends on the needed product. Brands are expected to be in the know because much is expected regarding the packaging material. Packaging material is not only for show-off but for security, safety, shelf appeal, sustainability, and functionality. Moreover, packaging choice is essential for the marketing strategy of a brand. Nowadays, the packaging is about holding and protecting the product, displaying the necessary information, highlighting the little details, and delivering the required product to the customer. CPG products influence the packaging type chosen. For example, food products must be packed according to multiple safety regulations. Many CPG products do not need to adhere to the safety rules that many food products do. Hence, choosing a suitable material is essential.

The first impression is the last, especially when talking about product packaging. The proper packaging triggers a purchase decision via a collection of visual cues making the product look more desirable than the competitive product.

What is Custom Product Packaging?

A packaging design for the product according to its requirements for use as-is is known as custom product packaging. The text, colors, artwork, and material used in any packaging depend on the design preferences. You can choose the product packaging depending on multiple factors like:

  1. Customer
  2. Usage
  3. Transportation
  4. Display before the sale

Product Packaging and its Importance

Product packaging has a lot to do with any merchandise. It needs to be protective enough to keep the product safe and sound. It is also the primary means of communication regarding product information like instructional information and government-regulated consumer data regarding product usage. Hence, it can be counted as an essential marketing tool. A perfectly designed product packaging can double your customers in no time. To understand its importance, you need to understand how the packaging communicates. Some elements of your product packaging include text, colors, materials, design, and shape. Every element communicates something different about your brand, like:

  1. The voice and value of your brand
  2. Your audience
  3. The functionality of your product

Your packaging also communicates other things like market values and the customer type. Henceforth, twisting the facts will not help because product packaging is about marketing. Its design helps the customers to differentiate between the products and other brands.

What should you consider while choosing the best packaging

While considering the packaging of your product and its material, there are a few things that you need to consider.

Material to use:

The products' route from the production facility to its customers is different. You may be transporting your products or shipping directly to consumers to retail locations. The packaging needs to ensure the arrival of the product to the customer undamaged. If you intend to ship directly to the customer, consider using robust cardboard material inside the packaging. This kind of packaging is expensive; you can recoup the expense by replacing the cost of damaged products. You can consider a less expensive paperboard by selling smaller products shipping directly to the stores in multi-unit cardboard boxes. Also, consider the labels on the product packaging while thinking about durability. Robust material like BOPP, vinyl, or waterproof plastic for product packaging might be exposed to the non-ideal situation but will deliver the product safe and sound.

Ease of Opening

The packaging needs to be easy to open. The customer can get frustrated while fruitlessly trying to open the box or free the product out of the box. Test the product packaging by asking some people to test it for you. See if the procedure was effortless or if some parts of the packaging need improvement. Along with reducing friction, consider different methods to delight the customers, such as promotional products and fun brand messages.

Marketing Messages

Product packaging is the best option for connecting with new consumers and delighting the already present ones. Keep the audience in mind and design the packaging to encourage the current customers to commit long-term. Unique branding options exist with every packaging layer that starts with the product box. The box you use for any of your products is a canvas for custom messaging and graphics supporting the culture you are building within your brand. Never overlook other options while building connections, like adding an invitation to share stories on social media about the consumer experiences using a small piece of swag or using your product or a complimentary product sample.

Also Read About: Guide to International Printed Packaging Symbols

Transporting the Product

Durability, function, and ease of transportation are tantamount to successful packaging. You will not want to design eye-popping and original packaging only to have it lose its original shape before it reaches its destination.

Your Budget

With other marketing strategies, the budget impacts what you can or cannot do. Ensure to limit your spending.

Industrial and Normal Packaging

Industrial packaging’s concept is the same but practically is different from standard packaging. It is rigid and robust as it protects dangerous goods. It is usually tailor-made for a specific product that needs to be shipped. Hence, it can be more protective as a result. It is secure but heavier than the conventional packaging products and designs.

Types of Product Packaging

There are different packaging for your products using a range of materials. Finding the right one for your flexible poly packaging or your product box depends on what you are selling and how to plan on putting your packaging to work in the marketing efforts. Here are some of the most demanded product packaging and widespread applications for every product.

Paperboard Boxes

Paperboard boxes are made with coated chipboard. They are incredibly versatile and easy to print high-quality text and graphics onto. These product boxes are seen mainly in food, cosmetics, dietary supplements, and a host of other retail products.

It is a paper-based material that is strong and light in weight. It is easy to turn into any shape that you want. Hence, these characteristics make it ideal for custom and personalized packaging. Fibrous material is made from recycled waste paper into pulp or wood. Then it is bleached for the final look. It comes in different grades that are suitable for different packaging demands.

Solid bleached sulfate or SBS paperboard can pack frozen food, cosmetics, milk and juice, and medicines. Choosing coated unbleached kraft (CUK) or kraft paperboard packaging is for those who prefer the environmentally friendly and natural look of recycled paper that can also be used for similar packaging applications. Kraft is also less resistant to moisture which makes it less suitable for frozen goods packaging or other food products. With the better and correct combination of the design, this paperboard packaging looks high-end, excluding the high-end price.

Cardboard Boxes

They refer to what is commonly known as “Cardboard.” People consider it cardboard because it makes the large shipping, storage, and shoe boxes. However, people ignore the fact that these boxes come in different forms depending on the strength and durability of the box. However, it is easy to identify a specific cardboard material. The question is, how to identify it? The answer is, via its cardboard medium, also called fluting. Hence, it is easy to identify the cardboard material. It has three layers of paper, a cardboard medium, an insider liner, and an outer liner. The cardboard medium helps it in gaining rigidity and strength. Cardboard is one of the best choices if your products are fragile, bulky, or need to withstand the rigors of direct-to-consumer shipping. Cardboard’s fluted paper ridges are laminated onto a flat surface to provide additional shock durability and absorption. Small applications, electronics, glass containers, and small appliances are often packed in cardboard material.

Also Read About: Most Demanded Styles of Custom Cardboard Boxes

The raw material for constructing the cardboard board is the most recycled paper made on more extensive precision machinery called corrugators. These types of boards can be recycled and used again and again as a source of pulp fiber. They are of different types:

  1. Single-faced
  2. Double-faced (single wall)
  3. Twin wall
  4. Triple wall

They can be used to make packaging with multiple characteristics, strengths, and performances. The board is cut and then folded into different shapes and sizes to form cardboard packaging. Other applications of cardboard board packaging include:

  1. Retail packaging
  2. Pizza delivery boxes
  3. Small consumer goods packages
  4. and so forth.

Custom Folding Cartons

It is a box with tuck flaps at the bottom and top. They are made up of paperboard and are an ideal canvas for bespoke branding messages and color printing of the logos.

Plastic Boxes

Plastic boxes are used in various products, from paper clips to spaceships. Several traditional materials like ceramic, glass, leather, and wood have replaced plastic. They have multiple advantages: they can be recycled and are more durable than paperboard boxes. Airtight containers help preserve the quality of food and eliminate the contamination issue. This packaging is firm and does not break that easily. Moreover, it stores food perfectly under extreme conditions.

Another reason plastic is a preferable choice for packing material is that it can showcase its product. It is lightweight, flexible, and can be applied with coating and films for enhancing the packaging appearance. Contrary to famous belief, plastic is recyclable because it takes less energy in recycling than other materials. Lastly, it is cost-effective.

Rigid Boxes

Have you wondered about the boxes agencies use to pack iPhones and other luxury products like Marc Jacobs, Tiffany and Co, and Rolex? These are paperboard boxes on steroids and are made with highly compressed paperboard four times thicker than their plain paperboard cousin. Rigid boxes are used to pack more expensive items with a price point to match their robust quality, like perfumes, luxury cosmetics, custom jewelry, or smartphones. You sense that it is one of those durable and rigid cardboard types, but you are not sure about the premium appearance. This is called the rigid box.

It is made of a highly condensed paperboard four times thicker than the paperboard used in making a standard folding carton. The most straightforward real-world instance of the rigid box is iPads and Apple’s iPhone. Compared to cardboard and paperboard boxes, these are some of the expensive ones. They do not require dies that require massive machinery or are expensive. Their non-collapsible nature gives them a higher volume while you ship your product. Also, it incurs higher shipping charges.

These boxes are used in merchandising high-end luxury couture and tech. Jewelry and cosmetics. It is easy to incorporate features like:

  1. Platforms
  2. Windows
  3. Lids
  4. Hinges
  5. Compartments
  6. Domes
  7. Embossing in a rigid box

Polybags

A polybag is also known as a plastic bag or a pouch. These bags are made from think and plastic sheets of plastic. The resulting pouch or bag is perfect for packing goods that can be compressed easily without getting damaged, like some types of foods, cleaning liquids, and t-shirts. Polybags are also eco-friendly and can be refilled to use repeatedly. It is made of thin, plastic film and flexible fabric. It carries a wide range of products as it is one of the common types of packaging. The products it carries include:

  1. Food items
  2. Flowers
  3. Waster
  4. Chemicals
  5. Magazines

Polybags are light-weighted, flexible, reusable, and durable. Since poly bags are structurally simple to make and can be customized in sizes, style, and design, they remain cost-effective. With poly bags, plastic recycling is also possible depending on the construction. These bags are made with carrying handles, hanging holes, tape attachments, and security features to ensure the products are visually appealing and well secured.

Chipboard Packaging

This packaging is used in beverages, cosmetics, food, medical, and electronics industries. Chipboard is a kind of paperboard made out of reclaimed paper stock. It can easily be formed, folded, cut, and a factor of cost-effectiveness.

It comes in different strengths and densities that determine how high the density of the material is. You can treat the chipboard with bleach sulfate to directly print the images onto the chipboard. You can use Clay Coated News Back (CCNB) to make the material more durable.

However, if your merchandise deals in heavy products, you cannot use chipboard packaging. It is lightweight and only used for grocery items like tissue boxes, crackers, cereal, etc. Besides, if the storage environment is full of moisture, the chipboard quickly weakens, expands, and discolors.

Levels of Packaging

You can never know the level of packaging unless you are working with packaging to make money. These levels of packaging affect the packaging and shipping of the products. If you think about it, it might make sense, perhaps. Different packaging is used for different reasons. However, there are levels of packaging that people do not know about.

There are three levels: Tertiary, Secondary, and Primary. Here is how these levels work

Primary Packaging

  1. This packaging closely touches the product and is also called retail packaging.
  2. It aims to protect the product, attract or inform the customer
  3. Primary packaging depends on the product.

Secondary Packaging

  1. This packaging is used to ship the already packed products in the primary packaging.
  2. It aims to protect the products and provide branding while they are being shipped.
  3. It is also utilized as display packaging in retail places like grocery stores.
  4. Primary packaging and secondary packaging overlap sometimes.
  5. However, the secondary can overlap with the tertiary packaging very well.

Tertiary Packaging

  1. This packaging is used in warehouses for secondary shipping packages.
  2. It aims to protect the shipment while transiting.
  3. It cannot be seen by the customers.

What is the Distinction Between Levels of Packaging?

It is an essential part of any merchandise, no matter which packaging you talk about. It would be best to consider the levels of packaging while making a packaging strategy for your product's survival. Primary packaging is essential for protection and branding. The secondary is crucial for branding and protection during transit. The overall look of your packaging tells the customers about the product and your merchandise. Everything from the colors, the size, the shape, and the logo are essential.

Conclusion

Your packaging must serve many purposes, i.e., style or function. Start with your product and check if the packaging fits it properly. Check your competitors for better ideas and innovations. Check your audience and consider their likes or dislikes. Keep in mind the requirements of the packaging. You can try testers to get feedback and results to finally launch the final packaging.

Also Read About: Gain More with Custom CBD Boxes

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