The five second package design rule

The average shopper only spends 5-7 seconds scanning a label on the shelf on any given day. So no matter how much copy you have put on the package, it probably won't be read.

We work with a research team that uses eyeball tracking to see where consumers specifically look when they view a package design. The findings are very telling.

If you have key messages scattered on different sides of a visual, they will be missed. This is one of the reasons you want to "cluster" 2 or 3 benefit words or phrases. As well, these benefits should be positioned down and to the right of the main visual, as this is the way people naturally read.

In many instances some key messages - even though they are right on the front of the package - are not even considered because of their position in relation to everything else! Something to consider when making important decisions with brand messaging and benefit statements.

Quality perception is determined within this very short timespan as well. If the packaging does not convey the same quality or value approach as the competition, it will be quickly discounted in the consumer's mind. A big mistake marketers make is to cram as much information on the label as possible, unknowingly conveying "low value" in the attempt.

Once the quality perception has been determined by the consumer as unacceptable, no amount of messaging will change this condition.

The meaning of color - it’s not what you think

The idea that colors have intrinsic and timeless ‘meanings’ is mistaken.  Advanced research in the domain of product marketing indicates that shoppers do not identify particular colors with particular abstract concepts (e.g. the color red with the concepts ‘hot’ or ‘fire’). Rather, the ‘meaning’ of particular colors hinges entirely on the context in which the colors are being used.

In some circumstances, the color red may indeed invoke ideas of hotness or spiciness, while in another context a shopper might associate the same color with danger (or danger avoidance).

The context-sensitivity of color meanings also allows, importantly, that color meanings can be shifted and shattered.  Innovative color usage, when done properly, can lead to entirely new associations in the minds of shoppers.

Like ‘Meaning’, Visibility is a Matter of Context and Contrast
Consumer studies have proven that no color is, free from context, naturally more visible than any other color.  Virtually any color scheme stands out dramatically against a plain white backdrop.  And, conversely, in the wrong color environment, any color scheme (even the brightest and most allegedly ‘eye catching’ schemes) can blend into the background.

Developing a highly visible product package design requires the implementation of a color scheme which stands out in the particular context of similar products—and standing out is primarily a matter of contrast.  The immediate success of Apple’s stark white coloring scheme was in large part the result of the fact that it dramatically contrasted with competitor’s color choices.

Retail packaging is a "comparative" environment. In other words, the competition is side by side for the consumer to compare visually and otherwise. So a package design that everyone is excited about - the one that looks good in the boardroom or in a pdf - may just blend in with all the rest of the exciting designs (your competitors) when it is on the shelf. What makes a difference is contrast - whether it be a visual or a structural one.

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©Copyright 2009 Big City Graphics, Inc. a Product Packaging Design Agency