In the past, companies big and small typically started in the laboratory developing products for current or future demands. In some cases, they would just modify a current product format, revise a competitor’s offering with a few new highlights, or in an extreme situation start a new category of products to satisfy a demand that customers didn’t even know they had.
Today, companies and their brands are fighting for market share, category dominance, and survival as competitors are coming into the market place at a record pace. Of course, everyone likes to tell the story about their wonderful formulas, new age ingredients, and yes, the miracles their products will perform with nothing required more than a dab, wipe, spray, swirl, shake, swallow, and roll.
Enter the white knight; PACKAGING! This is not your father’s brown box, your grandmothers Ziploc bag, and not your sister’s cosmetic cotton ball. We are talking creative, easy to use, unique delivery systems that will add value, build long-term customer loyalty, and most importantly add a barrier to entry. Differentiation is the driving force in product marketing today, and what better way to set yourself apart than with a truly creative package.
There is no right answer, and no short cuts to building a brand that will lead the market in innovation, from product performance through delivering the product in an easy to use consistent manner.
It was the Chicken or the Egg. Today it’s the Product or the Package.