COP 3 - Module Evaluation

The skills picked up through the past two years, alongside learning from mistakes, has made me more determined to work hard on COP 3. Choosing a subject that interests me has benefited the project massively, proving to be far more engaging than research questions in the past two years. It was highly challenging as writing an essay is not my strength but it allowed me to explore a subject I am interested in which is packaging design and it's effect on consumer buying behavior and decisions. Throught my dissertation I learned a lot of different techniques which brands are using to make the packaging appealing and grab costumers attention, so then it allowed me to use my gained knowledge in practical work and develop a final piece based on it. 

The practical side of the module has been my most enjoyable part of work this year because it allowed me to choose to produce an actual packaging design for my chosen product. My time planing wasn't that bad as always in terms of practical work as I planned out my time in order to not rush this design. This allowed me to book a print slot giving me a time for mistakes. Through this project, I learned manual folding and construction is still not my strength, but working on this project I surely did develop my skills. As for the practical work overall, it is rewarding to see producing a work which interests me. Finally, I can say that I have gained a portfolio piece that I am proud of. 

COP 3 - Final Design

                                                 
                                                           The final packaging design

After many hard working hours in the print room, finally a honey packaging was born. Packaging design refers to the origin honey, how bees produce their sweet and cectarous honey.  Special nod towards busy bees and beekeepers.

The box was made out from paper with wood pattern on it as a representation of beehive frame that beekeepers use to house bublebees, complete with an open slit like the wooden drawers that pull out honeycombs. The cut out illustration of a massive and eye catching bee going into it, inviting consumers to open the package and see what is isnide. Once opened, the inside lid is covered with buzzing bees creating a honey which is placed inside in a honeycomb shape jar to give consumer a feeling like it's natural, and consumer get the honey directly from the beehive itself and not processed before packaging.

Evaluation:

Although I am very pleased with the final idea and the concept of it. When designing from my dissertation or essay my main aim is always to link as closely as I can to each other.  The aim of this packaging design was to produce the design according to the understanding laid out in my dissertation, as packaging design is a significant factor affecting consumer choice when purchasing a product. It is the packaging design as a whole that is the most important aspect. That being said, my aim for the final product should be effective to the intended audience.

Production:

If the honey packaging was to be produced commercially, it could be done in a very similar way with a more professional setting for printing, folding and cutting out. Also, the packaging should be created using thick material because the bottle with honey is quite heavy; unless a smaller version is created.

COP 3 - Practical work

What were your initial aims?

My initial aims were to design an attractive and eye catching packaging which will grab consumers attention and influence their purchase decision. To do this would through the criteria of elements discussed in my dissertation to achieve success through packaging design. The final aim was to influence consurem purely through packaging design. 

What processes / strategies have you used and why?

Throughout my dissertation I researched throughly the elements that contribute to making successful packaging design. I tried to use each element from every single section from my dissertation to link it sucessfully to the practical work. These designs were then created and mocked up physicaly. 

Is the work effective (in terms of your aims)? In what ways? How do you know it is 

effective (testing)?

I believe that my work has turned out effective as I feel I've hit all the criteria in my aims.  I have tested this by asking a number of people their opinion on the packaging design. If it succesful or not, if the packaging design grabs their attention and why. 100 % of responders said they will definitly chose this design while seeing it on shop shelf mainly based on the packaging design as its attractive and appealing. 

Does it communicate what it should do (in what ways)?

It communicates a honey brand in a friendly, educational and appealing way without making any confusion. The aim was to draw in consumer, the transparent/ see thought designs are designed to make the consumer curious whats inside the packaging before opening. Once open the packaging should give unexpected contrast as compared to the outside. Overall the packaging with the use of wood pattern should give represents nature and freshness. 

What are the successful elements and why?

Successful emelents of the design is the invating and friendly look to attract consumers. I feel the design as a whole brings an very interesting story behing it. On the begining I wanted to make a packaging which will not only bring aethetics but values as well it will educate consumers about something. I feel this practical element is sucsessful to accompany the thought and discussion in the dissertation.  

COP 3 - Packaging Design - Part 2

The received feedback was very beneficial as it gave me new ideas on how can I develop my box and how to make it look better and more attractive.

The first thing which I changed, and I feel it was the most important one, was colour of the packaging and it's pattern. White packaging looked very plain without grabbing a lot of people's attention to it. I have change it to orange colour and I think it was very beneficial because it made the box really stand  out and highlighted wood pattern which gave it a natural, luxury look.

The next change which I made was the logo. The logo was to big when placing it on the packaging. I tried couple of different ways placing it but it made to much distration and in terms of aesthetics it looked very bad. I've decided to use only the name of the brand on the lid in white colour as it contrast well to the orange wood. The main logo has been only used for the tag on the bottle.

In terms of a bee as beeing said 3D wings look very interesting but it would be hard to maintain them in good condition when it comes to transportation and keeping them at stores. Instead of 3D wings I've decided to cut them out and make them transparent so it gives an opportunity to see more whats inside the packaging also transparent wings allowed the light to come inside the packaging and light up the bottle as in the previous design everything was very dark and it was hard to see anything only throught the bee's body.

Feedback: 

As the test to see whether the my practical design was successful, I asked 20 people about their overall opinion, about my honey packaging. If the packaging is appealing and attractive (sucessfull) and if the packaging grabs their attention and why. 

100% of the people I asked would definitely buy my honey based on packaging. 

Overall feedback: 

- The colour catches their eye to pick up the product. 

- It is inviting  and friendly. 

- They love a little story behind the honey and how it links to the packaging. 

- Appealing to their tastes. 

- They would definitely but this product based only on its packaging design. 

COP 3 - Packaging Design

As I wanted to make the packaging design stand out from the shop shelf and attract consumers I have decied to create a paper box for honey using all techniques which I learnt while writing my dissertation. I have to chose carefully colours, size and material of the packaging, illustrations and informations.

- Colour and type of material

My concept is to create a packaging for honey which will represent a beehive. Beehive is always made from wood in a shape of a beehive. My idea is to create a square packaging with the wood pattern on it as wood represents nature. As the colour is the most important factor, which influence consumer decision I had to chose a colour which will make the packaging stand out and be eye-catching from the distance. I will create, a small hole in front complete with an open slit like the wooden drawers that pull out honeycombs.

                                    

Inside of the packaging I want to use gold paper (representation of honey) with bee illustrations on it. I want to make consumers feel as they are opening a real beehive. The gold colour will make the packaging look luxury and expensive.

- Shape 

Once opened a bottle for honey will be in an unique honeycomb shape to make consumers feel as they are taking out a real honey from beehive. The bottle would contain a logo in front, information about honey on the back and small tag attached to the bottle cork. Using unique shape will attract consumer to the packaging and product.

- Informtion Function 

Info on the back: Indulge yourself with the most supreme honey from the United Kingdom. Packed with all the goodness  and health that nature intended. No added flavours, presevatives, sweetners or sugars. ‘Packaging provides an attractive method to convey messages and information about the product attributes to customers’ (Silayoi & Speece). 

 

Illustration and text, type of material 

The front side of the packaging will contain a massive black bee with 3D wings coming out of the box. The inside of the bee will be also cuted out to make costumers curious about whats inside the packaging. Transparent/see-thought idea will give an impresion of freshness of the product. For the bee's colour I want to eperiment with black or gold colour.

Informational function 

On the top of the box lid I want to use my created copmany logo in gold and white colour to make it visible, stand out and make a packaging look luxury. The back part of the packaging would contain nutrition informations as well as a bar code. Giving important informations about the product company gains loyal consumers as they will believe that company is trustworthy.

Promotional element 

The product bring consumer a satysfaction while moving a product, opening it and using it. 

First attempt of creating packaging design and feedback:

After the research, finishing my dissertation and linking it to my practical work I have started creating a real physical copy of the box.

In received feedback I have been suggested :

- To change colours of the packaking or a bee as white and black colours look quite plain without making the packaging stand out.
- They liked the idea of 3D wings which makes the packaging very different from the others but due to the transportation and production it would be very hard to maintain the condition of them all the time.
- The last suggestion was about making the wood pattern darker as its very hard to see it especially from the distance.
- The feedback for the bottle was very positive.

COP 3 - Logo

I have started from creating an illustration of the bee which could be used anywhere in my designs like a mascot. I have drawn a simple illustration of the bee and then edited it digitally. I wanted to make the illustration simple, easy to recognize and be suitable for a different age group. The black bold outlines made the illustration look eye-catching.

From taking on board the initial ideas, the rules I need to apply from what I've discovered in the dissertation and from the inspiration began the design of the logo. I started by incorporating colours, and shapes into the design of the logo as this is a vital way of catching the attention of the consumer. From the primary research, I have discovered the successful honey brands primarily use colours such as yellow, orange, black and white. 

Initial feedback received for this design was to experiment with typography as the first three designs are having too many details however they agreed this typeface is perfect for the look I intent to give.

Their suggestion was to try to use word 'hello' instead of 'hey' as it makes the text quite distracting having two letters 'y' next to each other also it will be hard to place them together without having a big gap between them. 

Their last suggestion was to create a poster advert or other collateral to go with this new product however the aim of my dissertation was about packaging design and its effect on consumer choice when purchasing a product. Therefore by designing extra collateral does not reflect the argument. 

After the received feedback I've made changes to the logo. The feedback was very beneficial as changing 'hey' to 'hello' made the design interesting without distracting anyone and making it consistent. I preferred to use word hey as its less official but placing word hello looks better visually and creates cohesion and pleasing design. I have done two versions of it, the second one contains a flying bee in a shape of a heart which makes the design more attractive and using my initial idea of typography in the logo. 

Received feedback was very positive, that my logo can be used everywhere in different colours and shapes behind it. The only suggestion was about the bee and wings in the shape of the hearth, that the bee's body is too small compared to wings. 

My next step was to experiment with the logo. As my box will use gold, white and black colours I've decided to use white text on the gold background as it is giving the design a friendly look. I wanted to make the logo look like a real honey, very natural and friendly which will suit my theme, so I've created an illustration of a leaking honey. I feel this design is appealing and shows exactly what my initial idea was. On the final design, I have enlarged the shape of bee's body as suggested in the feedback. 

 

COP 3 - Brand name

For the brand name, I have looked for simple names as I didn't want to make it over complicated but simple and easy to remember. Looking back at the research of different already existing honey packagings and brand names I have come up with couple ideas:

* honey
* hi honey
* golden honey
* bee
* golden bee
* miód (in polish)
* abeille (in french)

I have asked people in the class to vote and help me to decide which name I should use. In total, I have received 15 votes. Most of them voted for 'Hi Honey'. I am going to use it as my brand name as I think it sounds inviting and friendly. Also creates an atmosphere of a close relationship between consumer and brand. 

For the logo, the initial thoughts were to produce something a little more creative either using type or the placing of letters and trying various typefaces. I have started from choosing the appropriate typeface which will suit the theme. The aim of choosing calligraphy typeface is to make the text look sophisticated and attractive instead of medicated and uninviting. 

COP 3 - Initial ideas and feedback

Within the crit group, we were discussing our ideas for COP practical work. In groups, we went round explaining each others' ideas, concepts and the theme of our dissertation in case we need some further help with ideas how to link it together. 

Below are some random sketches of my practical work. I have sketched different ideas for honey packaging and explained them to the group. 

* Cylinder shape packaging with the use of leaking honey illustration on the top and a bee with 3D wings coming out the box. With the use of gold, white and black colors to keep it simple and clear. The packaging will be made from aluminum.  

* Honeycomb shape paper packaging with large typography (name of honey) on the top and illustrations of bees sitting on the top. 

* Beehive design with the use of wood pattern and a see-through hole on the top. Also, use of gold paper and illustration of bees inside the box as a representation of honey (gold colour) and bees inside a beehive. 

* Paper bag with the use of see-through honeycomb shapes. - Organic 

* Hexagon shape packaging with the use of gold paper and large see-through bee with a little handle on the top.  

Target audience: ordinary consumers, people of all age group but mainly adults as kids are not really purchasing any honey, they are just having an influence on adults when it cames to picking the honey from the shop shelf. 

There was a maximum of 5 people in the group, I have asked them which idea is the most interesting one which will make the packaging stand out on the shop shelf.  I have received following feedback:

- I am more attracted to the beehive idea as it feels like it's natural, as I get the honey directly from the beehive itself and not processed before packaging.
- I love the idea of 3D wings coming out of the box it would definitely make the packaging stand out. I think you should combine it with honeycomb shape of the box.
- The beehive idea sounds interesting, especially the inside part which has unexpected contrast as compared to the outside.
-  I think you should go with the beehive design as I have never seen something like this before. I feel the use of gold for the packaging will make it look luxury so consumers would definitely want to buy it.

Based on the feedback I have decided to stick with the idea of the beehive and combine it with a 3D or seen through bee shape to make it stand out more.

COP 3 - CREATIVE PACKAGING RESEARCH

The appearance of the packaging matters. We all love attractive and clever things. While the customer has a chance to purchase a product in creative and attractive packaging in the same price as the one with simple packaging, the customer will always choose the first one. A product in a non - standard packaging communicates: 'Hey I am new! Try me!' Everyone wants to try something new, which is why we do not return to the same product so often. We want something new. Another issue is that people are naturally attracted to what is good looking and new. We like to surround ourselves with beautiful objects. In addition, creative packaging often goes hand in hand with pragmatism, ecology, and the second life of products. I have looked for creative packaging ideas to get some inspiration.

This is an incredibly interesting and clever idea which draws buyer's attention to the danger of smoking cigarettes. In this case, the informational function is more important than sales.



When looking for products that I could write about in this post, I found many examples of creative packaging ideas for tea bags. Bags in a shape of fish will turn the cup of tea into an aquarium with a goldfish. For everyone who enjoys small but interesting objects, it is something great.



Packaging is not only for protection.
This example will appeal to adults but mostly to children. This idea is very clever as after finishing the cookies we can play with the packaging as packaging can be turned into an animal mask.



Another great example of functional packaging is the wine packaging. The creators of this packaging surprised consumers with a transparent form of etiquette, but also encourage them to verify their logical thinking after drinking a few glasses.



The creator's ingenuity of packaging is very huge. We can find attractive and original packaging for both exclusive and mid-priced products. Another example is a cleaver and incredibly aesthetic packaging for Nescafe's straw. The straw shaped packaging contains coffee for one cup inside. All the customer has to do it cut off the top and stir to enjoy their favorite drink even faster.



The next example of creative packaging reminds me of old labels for kid's drinks with colour pages on the back. This wine packaging which contains an opportunity to solve a puzzle or colour something after removing the label.

COP 3 - Research

Research into exploring already existing honey brands.

'Rowse' honey is one of the famous brands, you can find on shop shelves. The last redesign of the brand took place in 2010 and established key visual equities for consumer recognition such as the bee, which comes to the fore in the new design. Designed to educate consumers about the different usage occasions that Rowse Honey has to offer, the hexagon device on the label is an established visual framework which has been adapted to work across the entire portfolio and communicate the traits of each range in a unified manner. Rowse Honey’s portfolio has also been arranged by usage occasion to help consumers navigate the brand and find new varieties.



The next example which I found is 'Honey Hunter'. The design is very simple but it's having an interesting idea behind it. Honey hunters are people who gather honey from wild bee colonies. Designers of Fresh chicken agency treated this expression word for word. Honey and a bear is a classic combination, and the decision was to design a "bad" bear who would do anything to steal his favorite honey. People are fed up with positive characters, happy families and sweet animals in commercials, they're waiting for something fresh. I love the slogan which they used 'Our bear is not nice, he lies in wait for the right moment. Keep an eye on your honey!'

                                                              

                                                         Designs as sweet as honey

During my research, I have noticed that already existing honey brands which we can find in any supermarket use only jars or plastic containers without any box. I would like to change it and make a paper box for a honey which will increase the quality of the product in consumer's eyes. I have looked for some inspiration on Pinterest for creative honey packaging ideas.

Babees pure organic honey. I like the way the writing of Babees captures the flight of the honey bee. Also, the way jars are designed, representing a bee. Creative packaging idea often uses simple associations. 

I like the cleanness of Univers in the Sheffield label and the hexagonal cell with a drop of liquid dropping inside is brilliant, but still a little too sterile.

This packaging designed by Apis is very clear but the use of Futura font and simple design of label makes it looks kind of clinical or like a make up product.  

This packaging is one of my favorite one which I took inspiration from.  I feel it shows exactly what I would like to produce. The packaging design, use of gold colours, calligraphy font and logo makes it look very luxury and expensive and links to my dissertation when I wrote about when a high-quality packaging increases the quality of the product in consumer's eyes. 

COP 3 - Ways to make product packaging stand out on the shelf

The perfect packaging metaphor is from the old saying is 'You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink' The fundamental truth is that the final purchasing decision is made at the shelf edge in store. No matter how much effort company will put into advertising and sale promotion, if the packaging fails to deliver at the point of sale because the packaging is not attractive then all that investment spent elsewhere is largely wasted. So how to get people and grab their attention to the product? What kind of methods company needs to use to create packaging design to stand out on the shelf?

Target audience 

First of all its important to understand the target audience, putting together interesting design will draw eyeballs isn't hard. There are plenty of very creative designers who can create wonders, but if the packaging design is drawing the wrong eyeballs, what's the point?

Imagery 

Keeping the packaging design simple is essential but it doesn't mean the brand shouldn't use imagery effectively. The picture is worth a thousand of words, and when the company is dealing with only a few seconds that consumers take to look at a shelf, the company definitely need to come up with something that draws them very quickly.

Product and packaging should match 

For example a humorous label on high - end perfume won't cut it, just as stylish, sleek label isn't appropriate for a bag of potato chips. It establishes the wrong expectations which will make consumers be disappointed.

Right colors and shapes  

Choosing the right colours and shapes has a massive impact on people's buying decisions. Colours same as shapes attract different people and attract people differently as well. If the packaging design just looks like everything else on the shelf will lead the product to get unnoticed. For example 'diet' products like bars, yogurts or flakes very often uses 'slim' shape of the packaging same as a shape representing slim body shape. In the term of colours, colours are chosen strategically, so the packaging can help in boosting the sales. For example, the bright colours cannote the pops of the sweet or tangy flavor while subdued colours signify the complex flavors. This is why candies packed in shiny orange, red and yellow coloured wraps will attract more consumer than candies packed in dull colours.

COP 3 - You only have 3 - 5 seconds

During my research about the packaging design and its effect on consumer purchasing choices, I've found an article which explains how packaging design can grab consumers attention in 3 -5 seconds only.  Link: You only have 3-5 seconds

The article talks about consumers which make hundreds of split-second decisions whilst walking through the shopping aisles. When they land on the shelf and packaging design doesn't grab their attention straight away they keep on walking, the product will probably never get another opportunity to convert them into a customer. The problem is then further compounded by the fact that if they didn't buy the product the first time to try it, they won't be back to buy it again and again and again. In this case, a company loses the lifetime values sales of that product. If a customer typically buys a product once a month, they not only have the company lost the initial sale, company have also lost all the additional top-up sales too. All because the packaging design failed to convince them to buy now! 

The 3 - 5 seconds WOW moment isn't enough! 

Whilst the LOUD SCREAMING pack may get the consumer's attention, and bring them to the shelf to look at the product, it won't necessarily close the sale. Packaging design must grab consumer attention - but that's only the first step. 

Example: 

Recently a manufacturer of natural nut bars and muesli bars changed their packaging. Whist their new pack screamed …”Hey look here! Look at me!”, when the consumer got close to the product on shelf and saw how “unnatural” the pack looked, they automatically assumed that the product wasn’t natural” either. It didn’t take long for the company to have to start discounting to move the product off the shelf. It has been nearly 3 months since the new product packaging was launched and the product is still being discounted. The sad thing about this story is that the company would have invested heavily in the new design, translating it across all touch-points, only to find that the design, whist attention grabbing, fails miserably on shelf.

BOLD packaging design 

Packaging design requires Boldness as opposed to loudness. Boldness happens when a packaging is designed in conjunction with authentic insights. An example of an 'Authentic Insight' may be to capitalize on a trend of a particular category. 

Example:

Here is a current trend for “artisan” food. “Bold” amplifies the “artisan” trend to create cut through on shelf. “Bold” is a single-minded proposition focus. Bold states something specific, it demonstrates something about the product & what it contains, or a new trend in the market. Then what being “bold” does is harmonizes this with the expectations and personal dispositions of the targeted consumer the package design is created for. To capture a consumer in 3-5 seconds, your package design needs to Boldly stand out against its competition by exhibiting distinction making it pop in it’s category. Boldness disrupts without alienating the consumer. This is not done by shouting the loudest. Rather, Boldness targets the expectations of the targeted consumer by appealing to that consumer’s core values and amplifying them.

COP 3 / Survey

I asked 50 people in different age group if the outer design of the packaging influences consumer's choice and increases the quality of the product. 34% of people said yes, 32% wasn't sure and 17% of people believe that packaging design doesn't add any value to the product at all.

I asked 50 people if the attractive appearance of food packaging has an impact on consumer's purchase decision. 50% of asked people said yes and over 40% of people had opposite opinion.