2007 packaging trends

In today’s increasingly competitive marketplace, there is a growing awareness of the importance of branding and design in moving product off the shelves. As a project manager (or designer), if you aren’t already thinking green when you think about your product packaging, you should be.

Environmental concerns and accountability are becoming an increasingly important element in corporate design, mirroring the growing overall awareness in consumer markets. That said, changing your methods and materials into more environmentally friendly alternatives can be a costly venture in the short term, and so it can be a bit of a hard sell for designers trying to convince business clients of the benefits.There are ways in which innovative and thoughtful design can keep production costs down while maximizing the benefits of an ecologically sensitive approach. For example, it would be wise to consider how much of your packaging can be reduced without giving less product to the consumer. And your corporate designer is the best person to consult in devising ways to do so in an effective way that is still attractive to the consumer.

The benefits of sustainable packaging design go beyond reducing your ecological footprint as well. It is also an excellent way to differentiate your company from the competition. Looking at companies like Aveda in the USA, and French Rabbit Wine in Canada, it is easy to recognize the sweeping success gleaned from marketing to today’s more environmentally aware and responsible consumers.

Sage Media is an international corporate design firm based in Ottawa, Ontario.