Packaging News You Can Use

Aussie Invention Ready to ‘Wow’ US Coffee Drinkers
QSR magazine – Durham,NC,USA
SYDNEY, Australia–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The multi-award winning color changing coffee lid is set to become a worldwide hit after Australian inventors secured an …
http://www.qsrmagazine.com/articles/wire/story/20070425005069en
 
Cure for the Common Can Top Clean-Up
PR Web (press release) – Ferndale,WA,USA
It assures market share increases, guarantees a new net revenue source, and addresses the very real concerns of exposed food packaging,” says the founder, …
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/4/prweb521230.htm
 
Sonoco Products Company: The proof is in the packaging
Blogging Stocks – USA
Most of us don’t give much thought to commercial packaging products, but they are among the important factors allowing maintenance of our well-supplied …
http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/04/27/sonoco-products-company-packagers-extraordinaire/
 
When cookies catch the cooties
EurekAlert (press release) – Washington,DC,USA
DURHAM, NC — Of all the things companies worry about when selling food products, catching “cooties” is probably not high on the list. …
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-04/du-wcc043007.php
 
Consumers Site Nutrition as Greatest Health Concern
PR Newswire (press release) – New York,NY,USA
… according to a new survey of approximately 3000 consumers by Phil Lempert, nationally renowned food industry expert and trend spotter. …
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-11-2007/0004563442&EDATE=

Less plastic =greener planet
Napa Valley Register – Napa,CA,USA
“The price of petroleum went up and corn plastic didn’t go up,” explained Steve Levine, the Napa resident who co-founded and co-owns Excellent Packaging, …
http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/04/22/news/local/iq_3920714.txt

Paper or plastic?
Monroenews.com – Monroe,MI,USA
“Do we really need all that packaging?” she asked. She went on to say that some moves have been made in that direction, like no longer packaging plastic …
http://www.monroenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070422/NEWS01/104220029/-1/NEWS

Getting a handle on plastic bag consumption
The Daily Yomiuri – Osaka,Japan
The revised Containers and Packaging Recycling Law due to come into effect in April, aims to reduce the use of plastic shopping bags at supermarkets and …
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20070327TDY04004.htm
 
Latest in business
Montreal Gazette – Montreal,Quebec,Canada
Packaging giant Cascades Inc. today introduced new “green” food containers that will degrade in three years instead of hundreds. …
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=bcd32085-0731-46dd-b4b1-aa7b781605fb&k=32991
 
Wal-Mart Releases Initial Results Of Packaging Scorecard
WebWire (press release) – Atlanta,GA,USA
… said Matt Kistler, senior vice president of marketing, research, and insights for Sam’s Club and captain of Wal-Mart’s Packaging Sustainability Network. …
http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=29064
 
Candle maker seeks optimal balance of profits, green goals
ChronicleHerald.ca – Halifax,Nova Scotia,Canada
“More young people are becoming mindful of selecting products that are environmentally friendly with minimal packaging.” When it comes to green purchases, …
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Business/560727.html
 
SPRING GREENING
Globe and Mail – Toronto,Ontario,Canada
The product line, which includes biodegradable wipes and non-toxic tile cleaner, has the added appeal of sleek packaging, care of uberdesigner Karim Rashid. …
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20070331.GREEN24/TPStory/TPEntertainment/Style/

So what does Mom really want on her product packaging? What will entice her to pick your product off the shelf? What siren screams “buy me” as she walks down the isle? The answers are not what you might think. Women perceive products differently than their male counterparts. They have different expectations of products. Women say that they product manufactures don’t understand their wants and needs either. In fact 59% of women feel misunderstood by food marketers. This market segment accounts for 60-70 of all product packaging.
 
So, how do you get this powerful consumer (MOM) to connect with your packaging? First, see the product though the woman’s eyes not the designer’s or brand manager’s. In my recent research, product attributes such as the shape and color were important to people in the packaging industry but not so important to the average consumer. The mostly highly rated characteristics that both groups agreed upon were convenience, ease of storage, and female friendly elements such as the size of package and handles for carrying.
 
Second, consider how and where the product will be purchased. External factors can influence the purchasing decision as to how and where a woman shops. Recent studies show that women on average no longer make a big “stocking up trip” to the store. In fact they make numerous short trips to get the essentials for the moment. Today’s Moms are under tremendous time constraints and are willing to pay a premium for the privilege of more free time. Convenience is a big selling factor.
 
Consider lifestyle issues, ease of use, consumer friendly, time saving anything that makes a moms life easier. The more you can demonstrate in your product packaging these attributes the more you can capture her interest in your product. Any new time saving innovation, a solution to a problem, an unfulfilled need product are all prime candidates for moms.
 
Packaging a product for the mom consumer doesn’t mean it needs to be in pink packaging either (a color many marketers have decided is female-friendly). In some cases pink works in many others its completely off target. So consider pink where it make sense to the brand not just because you are marketing to mom.
 
Moms are influenced by other people too, friends, family, kids. So if you can make a packaging connection to the other people in her life you can capture her interest in satisfying her needs. Products that express healthy lifestyles, or balanced living, nutrition and well being are woefully underserved in the mom community.
 
Finally, it is imperative to get noticed. How can you grab her attention? Make packaging simple, easy to read, use and understand. Get rid of the gimmicks and the hype. More than 89% of survey respondents said they would not purchase a product because it was endorsed by a celebrity, and those that did were embarrassed to admit it. Cause marketing also scored low on the scale of importance in influencing a purchase as did their concern for the environment.

So listen to your Mom buyers the next time you design a new product, bond with them on an intrinsic level not through gimmicks or the current “in” celebrity. Make your product easy to read, use and time sensitive. By adhering to these fundamentals you will have garnered her attention.
 
Want more of the latest packaging insights and packaging trends that drive consumer purchasing? Be sure and visit the Packaging Diva website http://packagingdiva.com/ where you will find, packaging tips, technology and the latest news.

“Is What’s On The Outside Of Your Packaging What’s Inside?” April 07
 
Cosmetics: A Fresh Face or Just a Waste?
Consumer Affairs – USA
The cleansers and toners that didn’t feature chunky images of fresh fruit on the packaging were instead covered with drawings of complex amino acid chains …
 
Plain truth on cigs
Melbourne Herald Sun – Melbourne,Australia
… attractive packaging to lure consumers, according to the council, which is calling for plain packaging to become the next weapon to stop people smoking. …
 
“I Hate Packaging” April 06
War on Packaging

One Fylde coast MP is, and is joining the growing number of people waging war on excess packaging.
Gordon Marsden, MP for Blackpool South is one of more than 100 MPs who have signed a House of Commons Early Day Motion calling on retailers to reduce packaging and to encourage the re-use of plastic bags.
The motion claims packaging accounts for 17% of the average family food budget and creates 4.6 million tonnes of rubbish in the UK every year.
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