New packaging solutions for life sciences, all at PACK EXPO in Chicago
Discover new packaging solutions from hundreds of suppliers specializing in life sciences, all under one roof at PACK EXPO International in Chicago.

8 principles of sales-effective package design

Break the rules! Compete! Express yourself! These are just some of the principles that should guide you in creating an effective package design to help your product stand out on shelf.

Fruit-A-Freeze fruit bars from J&J Snack Foods accomplished its mission to stand out in the category with an entirely original approach to frozen treat packaging.
Fruit-A-Freeze fruit bars from J&J Snack Foods accomplished its mission to stand out in the category with an entirely original approach to frozen treat packaging.

Since the bulk of all purchase decisions are determined at the store shelf, the first priority of your packaging should be to account for the reality shoppers experience there. How well you’ve designed your package to account for what the shopper sees, thinks, and reacts to while in your category can positively or negatively influence your sales performance on a daily basis.


To help you convert more shoppers into consumers through your packaging, follow these eight principles of sales-effective package design.

1. Stand out: You’re doing it wrong


Standing out on the shelves of high-volume retailers amongst a sea of 30,000-plus products requires boldly different approaches than what most brands are taking. Break the rules, break boundaries, and break new ground. You’ll never know your true sales potential if your package doesn’t effectively work to nab the shopper’s attention. 


Packaging’s number-one responsibility is to get noticed. All brands know this, yet most of what we see in stores is brands blending in, instead of standing out. 


Shoppers fight grocery store attention-deficit disorder with routine and speed. To attract new customers, we have to design to interrupt those shoppers who are on a B-line path to the brand they buy week-after-week. When shoppers survey a category from three- to four-feet out, we have to stop the scanning eye. 

Don’t go barging into your design team’s office demanding the loudest, most obnoxious package the category has ever seen; there are tactful ways to stand out. Consider introducing a new package structure that also improves the consumer experience, or utilize colors and symbols, or strokes and borders that are designed to attract the eye from a distance. Do what hasn’t been done, go for it, stand out. To sit quietly on shelf is to leave sales on the table.  

2. Present a clear hierarchy of information for hurried shoppers


Hurried shoppers gravitate toward packaging that presents the most pertinent information in the most prominent and organized fashion. Those brands that design with respect for hierarchy are positioned to appeal to shoppers who just want to grab and go. Limiting and prioritizing copy and design elements on your package are 101-level fundamentals, yet it’s so tempting to throw in one more claim or symbol, or introduce yet another font style—but this is an urge that can bring overwhelming disorder to the eye. 


Beyond knowing that the eye wants to read top to bottom and left to right, mastering hierarchy involves knowing that shoppers in the canned tomato aisle hardly need to see the word tomato; they are more interested in finding the type of tomato they need—chopped, whole, stewed, diced—faster.

3. Compete: Duke it out on shelf!


Everyone talks about and touts differentiation, but most differentiation is hardly noticeable or meaningful. First, start by abandoning any lazy me-too product strategies; otherwise, this principle will have you racking your brain forever in search of something worthwhile to talk about. If you routinely see two or three other options on shelf that compare similarly (think objectively, judge from the perspective of an uninformed shopper), start thinking about your next differentiator or product line. Pursue differentiation, but make sure it’s differentiation that matters to shoppers in the category. With so few slots available at high-volume retailers, you can’t afford to be replaceable. 

Explore new technology from hundreds of life sciences suppliers.
At PACK EXPO International, you’ll find innovations from hundreds of exhibitors that specialize in pharmaceuticals, biologics, nutraceuticals, medical devices and more. No other show delivers as many solutions to keep your products safe and effective.
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Explore new technology from hundreds of life sciences suppliers.