November 2011 —
It will be interesting for those engaged in producing products for the beverage industry to see what products thrive in the current economic climate and which do not fare as well. While some beverage segments have seen sales flat line such as some energy drinks, yogurt drinks and flavored waters, products with an emphasis on naturalness; products with reduced sugar, vegetable/fruit smoothies and fruit shots and specialized teas/coffees continue to perform well, aided in many cases by innovative marketing campaigns, strong design, bold use of colour and a willingness to experiment with packaging formats. Manufacturers have trimmed lines though.
The media, politicians, economic pundits, and indeed, anyone else with an axe to grind never cease to warn us that consumers will continue to cut back, tightening purse strings, while others embrace thrift in anticipation of a double dip downturn. However, its worth noting that many products, even in straightened times seem to be recession proof, some remarkably so.
Chocolate and sweets (candy in the US) fall into the category of consumer products that historically survive an economic downturn largely unscathed. Beauty products, perfumery and other items similarly do well (if priced right) – even though they may not be regarded as essential items on a shopping list. In fact, for the most part they’re not even on the shopping list to begin with – they’re all impulse purchases, products that consumers seek out as treats. For much the same reason many beverages fall within the same category as chocolate – not needed but a treat nevertheless that many consumers, especially those with young families are loath to forgo.
A number of industry pundits believe that many consumers will even be eager to try new beverages, new tastes that fit into their sense of appropriateness. Consumers will want something special as long as it does not appear to be too eccentric. Packaging technologists and marketers may need to adapt to a new consumer mindset and create packaging, on-pack labels and colours that fit in with the times, still unique and tempting but more subtle. Conspicuous consumption is no longer in vogue so we may see a decline in mid-range aimed at the younger set ‘designer’ drinks and a boost in premium brand luxury products with an established cachet.
Customers will probably put more thought into their purchasing decisions so brand owners must make the right decisions when it comes to branding, packaging and marketing.
In terms of packaging industry trends single serve pouches continue to make inroads especially when it comes to impulse supermarket purchases and for on-the-go sales. Stand up pouches potentially provide for excellent shelf presence and are favoured by youngsters for their ease of use, often they are fitted with re-sealable spouts and are provided with straws. Shrink sleeve and wrap around displayed products find favour with manufacturers and consumers alike. The 360-degree bill boarding opportunity is a godsend for designers and marketers and the wrap around provides a high degree of tamper evidency.
Imagery can be powerful in defining product positioning and accurately addressing target markets. Achieving the required imagery does not happen in isolation; marketing professionals, designers and brand owners need to work closely with their packaging converters in order that the various design elements come together in order that the essence of the product and the core values of the brand are encapsulated.
One such design element is the logo, more than just a graphic device, logos that employ complimentary colour and typography act as a signage, increasing recognition, adding to impact and helping the consumer navigate their way quickly to the product. Indeed, many leading brands have become established through the distinctive use of colour and typography in their logos. Examples include, Budweiser, Pepsi, Coca-Cola and Tropicana.
Colour and design when working in unison advances the beverage brand and helps to boost sales. However, every time that a design is reproduced in printed form there is the potential for variation, the net effect of this is an undermining of consistent brand appearance and an adverse affect on sales and profits.
Because colour, if misinterpreted can be so damaging to product image, pre-press technology specialists work hard to enable printers/converters and others to communicate colour more effectively.
Communicating colour has evolved from purely subjective descriptions provided by the viewer to mathematical theories. The latter includes the classical equation by colour measurement pioneers Kubelka and Munk as well as later theories that sought to perfect colour matching through models based on three-coordinate or spectral (wave length) data.
Today it is possible to approach and manage colour in many ways. By employing computer technology suppliers have attempted to close the colour communication loop. Various digital sampling technologies provide the means whereby colour can be created digitally, but even this is not without its problems. Digitised information and the way its appears on our monitors depends upon careful calibration, moreover, the print process itself, the material to be printed upon, the individual press itself, the ink, the way in which the ink interacts with the material, the type of ink, and much more – can affect the way in which colour is reproduced.
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Bearing all of the aforementioned in mind its not surprising or would be no exaggeration to say that virtually every brand manager has at some time experienced disappointment when having initially approved a design concept they see it in print for the first time.
Designed and developed by RK Print Coat Instruments – the FlexiProof colour communication device for users and producers of flexo inks can provide marketing professionals and brand owners with presentation samples, easily and quickly so that elements of design, that is colour, typography, etc, can be evaluated using different substrates to see what works and what doesn’t. This makes the FlexiProof ideal for packaging prototyping purposes. The device, available either as the award-winning FlexiProof 100 or FlexiProof UV can be used in place of a flexo production machine for undertaking pilot runs; for research and development; for the production of presentation samples; to determine print performance issues such as gloss, flexibility, scuff resistance and for bringing print variables such as colour discrepancies under control quickly – with the minimum of fuss, delay, and material waste.
Colour communication devices have also been developed for print processes other than flexography. The Paste Ink Proofer (PIP) with UV curing – one of the latest venture from RK Print Coat Instruments minimizes problems associated with handling/using UV inks; enabling users to obtain fast, repeatable colour matching of UV litho, UV web offset and other paste inks.
The PIP incorporates a miniaturized UV curing system; similarly to the unit devised by RK Print Coat Instruments and used so successfully in the FlexiProof UV.
For further information email sales@rkprint.com, www.rkprint.com
Source: RK Print Press Release
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