There are a dozen terrific trends on tap for print and packaging design in 2022. It’s important to choose the solution that works to tell your story and sell your products and promote your brand.
B&B offers stellar innovative design, print, and packaging services backed up by smart technology and years of experience. But you need strategic thinkers that can direct you on how to use design and integrated print products to bring in leads and sell your products.
Well, that’s us too.
Here are some trends we think are worth following.
Special occasion, purpose-driven, seasonal short runs.
More than half of consumers—Millennials especially—only want to buy from brands they trust. With customizable digital printing, small, specialty packaging runs can help you talk about your values and process while staying on brand
Small targeted runs can bring big results in packaging design. While your product would ordinarily be marketed in its branded packaging, you can do a small run of packages for, say, Black History Month or Earth Day. You could celebrate a milestone like 10 years in business or even a launch into a new market.
There is any number of reasons specific to your business that might warrant a special occasion run. Try it out to see how your audience responds.
Another reason to customize packaging is to sell on multiple channels.
Does your product sell online as well as in stores? Does it sell in large stores as well as boutiques? Does it sell at festivals and farmers’ markets as well? Consider customizing your packaging to the channel.
In boutiques and at farmers’ markets you might focus on touch and feel and a subtle, nuanced design. In large stores or online, you could combine the trend of jump-off-the-page text and no-frills packaging so customers can clearly make out what the product is and make it also less expensive to ship.
Storyselling.
Storytelling has always been a part of brand marketing. Disney comes to mind as a champion of storytelling, complete with beloved characters, winding narratives, and a focus on experience as a way to enter and become immersed in the brand.
With today’s emphasis on content marketing, interactive brand development, and social media, “storyselling” is taking its rightful place in the marketing mix.
One way to storysell is to invent a persona or a character that your brand talks through. Introduce that character on your box and packaging, on your website, in your collateral materials, and of course on social media. You can also storysell using real customers, aggregate customer experiences, or an influencer. The Matzo Project is a prime example of storyselling through packaging using a funny but relatable character.
But storyselling doesn’t begin and end with a persona. Simply build a strong brand story starting with history, voice, vision for the future, point of view, and so on and integrate that story everywhere. For consumer packaged goods—especially boutique brands without big paid media campaigns—your box is going to be the first place your ideal customers see your story. Oatly is a brand beloved by branding experts for its excellent storyselling (just TRY not to read their milk cartons) and strong POV.
Roaring ‘20s, Groovy ‘60s and Y2K—again?
What’s old is new and what’s new is old. Design trends make their way from the past and find new audiences with contemporary tweaks.
Dial back 100 years and you’ll find plenty of nods to the roaring ‘20s in today’s design. Art deco shapes and colors. Font design and aesthetic that supersedes its readability. And cutesy rubber hose characters featuring simple engaging black and white animation. All of these elements represent a lighthearted yet vibrant time in American history.
The groovy ‘60s are making their way to the forefront again, and you’ll find bright almost garish colors complemented by hand-drawn fonts and characters. The ‘60s brought storytelling to the forefront with the rise of television and mass media, and we can almost all picture a character from the 60s that persists even today.
Even decades that are still in the front of our minds can make a comeback in packaging and brand design. Y2K with its minimalist metallics, steampunk, and post-grunge sheen is showing up again on boxes and marketing materials.
Whatever print and packaging trends you decide to follow in 2022, make sure they fit your brand and product. As print and packaging experts, B&B can help with design, engineering, prototyping, security features, and material selection. In addition, we’ll work to help find the best solutions that fit your budget, regulatory needs and increase your marketing exposure.
Whatever your era—or aesthetic—B&B Print Source offers agile and flexible branding and packaging design that will delight even your most practical customers. Contact us today to start designing packaging that pops.