1. Which department store uses a bag with only a red star?
2. Which retailer uses a baby blue color exclusively?
3. What product comes in a smallbox with a circus scene and a string handle?
There are many more examples of how packaging has helped to build a brand. But most of you reading this are not the size of Tiffanys or Macys, so how can packaging help build your brand in your own community?
If you are a retailer, chances are you already use “retail” packaging. It is important to understand that the packaging you use says a lot about your business, your products and even your mission. Would you expect a T-shirt bag from Starbucks? What would you expect your take-out to be in? We all know that Starbucks will use recycled paper cups and bags because it is a part of their culture and mission.
Use packaging to your advantage. It should be consistent with your image, represent your brand and leave the right impression on your customers. That doesn’t always mean that your brand has to be printed on bags, boxes etc… It can simply mean that you use the right packaging to say you care about the products, the customer and in some cases the environment.
Retail packaging distributors like Nashville Wraps have many choices of pre-printed bags and boxes in a variety of themes and/or color schemes as well as natural and traditional materials. Many of these products can be customized with your brand identity in small quantities. The truth about packaging is that it is the last thing you impart to your customer after the sale and the first thing anyone else sees once it leaves your business. First impressions are lasting impressions.
In today’s environmentally conscience business climate there is more emphasis on reducing our carbon footprint not to mention conserving expensive fuel. That means more businesses are neighborhood based, we see that with large companies branching out over locations only a few blocks apart. Packaging can help you make a statement of community and belonging while reflecting your image and keeping your local customers coming back.
So retail packaging can be as simple a choice as paper or plastic, white or kraft, or it can be a made to order masterpiece unique only to your brand. The choices are endless, seek a packaging professional to help figure out what will work best for you.
Robby Meadows, Nashville Wraps
Answers to quiz: (1. Macy’s, 2. Tiffanys, 3. Animal Crackers)
