WHEN THE PACKAGING MAKES THE PRODUCT

Consumers' purchasing choices
That packaging is a fundamental lever for marketing is now a well-known principle. In fact, consumers' purchasing choices are less rational and informed than one might think and that is why, from food to entertainment, brands are increasingly aiming at an emotional and sensorial involvement of the customer. Starting with increasingly original and creative packaging that has less and less only the task of 'protecting' the product, making it marketable individually or recognizable as belonging to a brand. What neuromarketing knows well, in fact, is that there are a series of instinctive reactions that can be generated in those who buy already starting from the packaging. Good packaging, therefore, is able to attract the attention of consumers and to do so unconsciously, stimulating that sensory approach that pushes us, for example, to look repeatedly on colored packaging, with unusual shapes, etc. or ad abandon ourselves to the instinct to touch the products, feel their weight, consistency, texture. The concrete implication? Companies invest every year in numerous R&D (Research and Development) projects that have product packaging as a protagonist. It is no coincidence, therefore, that net revenues for those operating in the sector exceeded 12.7 billion dollars in the last quarter of 2016, among the highest figures ever. Among the sectors for which the expense for packaging would be greater, in particular, there would be food & beverage, retail (especially clothing) and some industrial sectors such as raw materials.

WHY FOOD INVESTS IN PACKAGING
It is not surprising that for food companies the packaging of products has a strategic value. In a sector like this, packaging fulfills numerous functions, primarily information. Legal constraints, consumers increasingly aware and attentive to food choices and nutritional marketing increasingly in step with the needs of a healthy diet have in fact made food packaging more and more similar to "infoproducts" in which it is possible to find whatever you want to know about the food you are eating, from the caloric intake to the production chain. More generally, however, the food sector is a sector with a high rate of substitute products: between one yoghurt and another, often, the difference is not in flavor or organoleptic characteristics but a simple question of brand and recognizable elements connected to it. .

THE PERFECT FOOD PACKAGING
Industry experts thus seem to agree on the characteristics that food packaging, more than that of any other product, should satisfy. Specifically, they are: simplicity which, in the case of food, also means ease of use: a minimalist and ergonomic design always rewards. Consumers, in fact, expect the packaging of their favorite foods to take up little space, to be easy to remove and to protect the food; sustainability: precisely with regard to the protective function of food packaging, there are those who argue that they can play a fundamental role in preventing waste: in short, good packaging is the one designed to maintain the organoleptic properties of food for longer and keep it at better; customization: if you wonder why operations such as "Share a Coke" work which, some time ago, allowed you to customize your own can of Coca Cola or why everyone would like to be able to have your own sentence printed, your own symbol on the chocolate sprinkles as M & M's does, it should be borne in mind that it is easy to be seduced by the idea of ​​tailored and made to measure.

HOW MUCH COLORS MATTER IN FOOD PACKAGING
A fundamental role, however, in food packaging would seem to have colors. There is, moreover, a whole psychology that explains how to choose the right ones to entice consumers to buy or, more generally, to improve the brand experience. It is not necessary to remember, in fact, how the visual perception of the product, food in this case, can anticipate the experience itself and, therefore, guide consumption choices. Not to mention that the colors and shapes chosen for the packaging are spontaneous vectors of associations and fundamental emotions in the consumer journey. The most used colors for food packaging