See the difference design can make

Shopping at my regular supermarket the other day brought me face to face with over 25 different toothpaste brands. Now, if I wasn’t loyal to my tried-and-tested paste (forced on me by a toothbrush-brandishing mother at the age of four), I could have spent my entire shopping trip exclusively in front of the dental hygiene shelf. This brings me to a key point, exposed by your design feature (MW April 7).

Consumer targeting is becoming more sophisticated, and consumers’ purchasing habits increasingly refined. There is perhaps no other sector responding to this trend with more gusto than the design and packaging sector.

In the absence of price promotion, it is crucial that design and packaging reigns supreme. A brand’s authenticity and credibility needs to be conveyed simply but clearly, and with the utmost effectiveness – as your article notes: “It’s best to focus on how intangible emotional factors can be translated into tangible experiences.” This is a given, but how to achieve this is the question.

What needs to be identified is the creative psyche behind every successful design. The key ingredients are imagination, inspiration and intellect. Find the right combination and you will have a product that is a visual rarity in the design stakes.

Surprise your customers in the way you explore your brand’s potential. Delight them with the way you shape its capabilities. It is only these endeavours that will allow your design and packaging to perform on the shelf with utmost confidence.

Cheryl Grant

Managing director

White Label Productions Limited

London W4