E-commerce packaging design evolution

The rise of e-commerce

The nature of retail has evolved significantly over the last decade with a shift away from in-store retail, to e-commerce, online and mobile commerce. Buying on-line is no longer alien or difficult due the rapid advance of technology which makes it frighteningly easy. This evolution has significantly picked up pace in 2020 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns.

E-commerce accounted for 33.4% of all UK retail sales in May, a month-on-month growth of 19.7%, according to the Office for National Statistics. Not only have more people been buying online but, through necessity, the demographic of online shoppers and the categories of products bought has changed considerably. For example, older people, who have typically preferred shopping in-store, are shopping online far more now.

Doing the weekly grocery shop online, or ordering and paying for a take-away online for delivery or collection are now commonplace. Early indications from countries where lockdown lifted first are that this online buying behaviour is largely continuing, despite shops now being open.

Not only are existing bricks-and-mortar businesses pivoting or expanding into e-commerce, but new businesses launched purely for that purpose, for example Ocado, Just Eat, and Deliveroo are thriving where others are failing.

As retail and the resulting supply and distribution chain evolves, so must the products, packaging and packaging design.

‘Intentional’ packaging design

As e-commerce sales increase and online sales represent a larger proportion of brands’ total sales figures, e-commerce packaging is becoming more important and more ‘intentional’. This means products and packaging are now being designed for e-commerce, or with e-commerce in mind, not just adapting traditional packaging by adding more packing and protection for transportation.

This shift also has wider implications for marketers and brand managers. Packaging has always been an important element in branding and promotion and a key factor in customer experience, but the context has changed.

E-Commerce considerations

Given this new virtual purchasing arena, designers need to revaluate how brand and product communication needs to work harder, given the nature of the on-line experience. When it comes to brand loyalty, the recognised, established brands often have an advantage. An established brand has already achieved the difficult aspect of gaining the consumers trust by forming an emotional link and, provided pricing has not overstepped the expectation, then this is a valuable bond.

Visually designers need to consider how the packaging looks, appeals and stands out to buyers, not just on a shop shelf as before, but also how it may look in a small image on a computer screen, or even mobile phone, when consumers are buying online. It is therefore highly important that both marketing and packaging design are aligned to ensure the communication is clear. This may mean a simpler treatment to the packaging graphics, whilst retaining the brand cues and messaging in order to re-establish and strengthen the connection with their consumers.

Although having mentioned this, brands have less control over the buying and brand experience in an e-commerce setting than in traditional retail. In-store they typically have more data, insight and influence around shelf placement, point-of-sale, the context and surroundings, etc, which they don’t online. However technology such as scannable QR codes and visual assistants are now being introduced on packaging which is helping to bridge this gap by communicating the brand history and ethics, promotion, etc, to support picking and packing and relationship building with the end consumer.

Customer engagement and experience

The customer may be physically and psychologically more distanced from the brand. Consideration needs to be given to how you engage the customer in your product brand, not just that of the online retailer they bought it from, e.g. Amazon or AO.

Often the first significant interaction or touchpoint the customer has with the brand is when they open up the parcel and remove the product. The ease, experience, anticipation and enjoyment of opening and unpacking, as well as the practicalities of packaging disposal and recycling are key considerations.

Many children’s products are now designed and differentiated around the opening and unpacking experience, think LOL Surprise dolls, so this is a great opportunity to engage the consumer creatively, positively and emotionally.

Transportation, distribution and sustainability

Transportation-wise there’s not only carriage from the producer to the store, but then also picking, packing and transportation / delivery from the supermarket or online retailer (e.g. Amazon) to home, either via courier or supermarket home delivery.

They need to consider the online retailer, their fulfilment or shipping capabilities and their ability to protect the product. This often varies greatly and brand owners can’t assume that their products will be processed, packaged, dispatched and delivered with due care and consideration.

Sustainability is a priority for most brands and designers, but this also needs to be balanced with other factors such as:

• keeping materials, sizes, shapes and weights to a minimum for sustainability and to ensure easier and more economical transportation

• protecting the product through the different stages of the supply chain

• keeping the product or food items fresh, hygienic and free from damage and contamination - especially important during the pandemic

Amazon leading the way

The industry is starting to see more collaboration now between brand owners, packaging specialists and online retailers. Amazon for example is collaborating with brands and packaging designers to create benchmarks and standards for best-in-class packaging for e-commerce. They are doing this in an ‘open source’ way to encourage industry-wide improvement across product categories.

Conclusion

It is essential that the impact created by brand packaging goes beyond the purchase decision making and strengthens the relationship with the consumer. As with any packaging design project, everything is a balance between product protection, sustainability, brand communication and customer experience versus cost. However, there is no doubt that e-commerce is changing the nature of packaging and packaging design and needs to be carefully considered in most packaging projects today.

Evolve Creative are branding and packaging design experts and have worked with leading FMCG brands in the UK and internationally. For support with your branding and packaging design, please do get in touch, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Further reading

Reinventing an American icon: How Amazon and Procter & Gamble collaborated to create better packaging.