Positioning of packaging design under integrated marketing communication

Since the concept of integrated marketing communication was introduced into China in the mid-1990s, it has attracted wide attention and attention from all walks of life. As a key part of the package, what role should be played and how should packaging design be positioned? Integrate marketing to survive and show its vitality, which will be discussed in this article.

Modern packaging design is no longer the designer's self-expression. It must be related to business activities and must be compatible with all marketing links. Because design is not the goal, promotion is the purpose. As a key aspect of marketing, packaging design should combine productivity, sales force, and market opportunities. It should be designed to convey a clear concept of a product, correctly attract a certain consumer group, and generate an expected purchase behavior. The integrated marketing communication provides an effective way to realize this idea. The theory of integrated marketing communication rises in the United States, where the commodity economy is most developed. It is a highly practical operational theory. Since entering the country in the mid-1990s, it has shown great vitality. Its connotation is twofold: one is the consumer as the core, reorganization of corporate behavior and market behavior in the sense of two-way communication; the second is to carry out all marketing and communication activities of the company, such as advertising, promotion, public relations, news, packaging, and product development. Unified integration and restructuring to enhance the integrity of brand appeal. With these two cores, we quickly established the position of the product brand in the minds of consumers, established a long-term and close relationship between the product and the consumer, and achieved marketing goals more effectively. Below, the author will discuss the positioning of packaging design under integrated marketing communication from these two points.

"The value that exists in the consumer mental network is the real value."

This sentence comes from "the father of integrated marketing communication" Professor Don.E.Schultz of Northwestern University. He also told us to put products aside, rush to study consumer needs and desires, not to sell products you can make, but to sell someone to determine the products that they want to buy. This is what our packaging design pursues. The design of the packaging is the most convenient for consumers to use. The written packaging text is what the consumers want to know most. The printed packaging graphics are the most appealing to consumers. The packaging texture and the color matching it are the best ones that can cater to consumers' purchase mood. In short, a packaging design is a communication with the consumer's heart, so that consumers have the desire to buy.

Let's take a look at the "White Rabbit" toothpaste at the Hangzhou Toothpaste Factory. Before the launch of the “White Rabbit” toothpaste, the Hangzhou Toothpaste Factory had accumulated more than 20 million toothpastes. After thorough market research, they found that there were 300 million children across the country, and there were very few children with long-term cavities. The company produces children's toothpaste and adds international anti-cavity medicine to produce children's toothpaste. It will have a very good consumer base. Faced with this particular consumer group--children, they put a lot of effort into packaging. They designed a cute cartoon white rabbit as the product "spokesperson." According to children's characteristics, in the toothpaste with popular strawberry, apple, pineapple and other spices, so that the lively "rabbit" in the package holding different fruits as a striking pattern, and with different colors to distinguish, "to prevent The "tooth decay" appears on the packaging, and the shape of the toothpaste also reduces the volume of the toothpaste. The children also get a "dedicated" sense of satisfaction while taking the convenience, and even a series of designs are specifically designed according to the psychological characteristics of the children's love for new things. Transparent plastic packaging toothpaste to show different shades of toothpaste. It can be said that the packaging design of the "White Rabbit" toothpaste on any element of visual communication fully satisfies its specific consumer group, and when consumers' visual impact resonates with their value in the mental network, they are then evoked to purchase awareness. When the purchase behavior is finally generated, the function of packaging design is also achieved. Of course, the children in this case will not buy it themselves, they will say to their mother: "Mom, I want to 'rabbit'."

Taking consumers as the core and seeking value in the consumer's mental network to get the positioning of the packaging design, it is not the imagination and speculation of the manufacturer or the designer. He emphasizes the two-way communication with consumers. Cosmetics with rough packaging design may have the same function and design as delicate cosmetics, but their communication content is inconsistent. Designers need to start with an analysis of consumer needs that has been consolidated in a comprehensive database. After the product is delivered to consumers, it must also grasp its true situation feedback and further improve the design based on feedback. This kind of communication takes place in every step of the marketing process. This communication is two-way. The communication information is between the product and the consumer. The designer is good at constantly seizing the information and creating the most perfect. package of.

The needs of modern consumers are rising from quantity satisfaction and quality satisfaction to emotional satisfaction. That is to say, the quality is not satisfied with the required standards, but it is required to satisfy individual needs and desires. People's judgments on commodities are no longer simply based on whether they are practical, quality is good or bad, and they start from the image of the product and the sense of value. Therefore, while packaging design considers practical value appeal, it should also pay more attention to the symbolic value brought to the product, such as the status symbol, the symbol of economic strength, and the symbol of personal achievement, etc., and from the high level and the value needs of consumers. Tacit understanding stimulates their interest.

"Speak in the same voice"

The human society has begun to move from the “universal one-way dissemination stage” to the “participation stage”, the market is continuously subdivided, and the target consumer groups have also become more and more personalized. Packaging design is no longer seen as an isolated, single job, but should be based on the company's overall marketing strategy, and overall and strategic positioning of packaging design. This is the essence of integrated marketing - "speak in the same voice." Starting from the development of a product or service, to product design, packaging, to selected sales channels, and using a variety of promotional methods, it is necessary to deliver consistent information, because information is consistent and can make a bland idea stronger. Powerful, thus quickly and comprehensively establish a brand image in the minds of consumers. This is the principle of “1+1>2”.

"Baijiahei" cold film, through its brand-new advertising idea, let us know that we are taking white tablets during the day and taking black tablets at night so that we can not sleep during the day (white tablets do not contain tranquilizer "chlorpheniramine"), and in the evening, Sleep well. This is the uniqueness of its overall strategy, and it is also a selling point among many homogenized cold medicines. What is its packaging design? The whole pill box is "5-to-5-half-open", with a white on the left and a small sun. The right side is gray and hung with a curved moon. It clearly shows the characteristics of its "white" and "black" products. This kind of packaging that conveys consistent information appears in advertisements and also strongly increases the memory of consumers. When consumers see the gray and white packaging box at the pharmacy, they naturally and naturally create the product's efficacy in their minds, creating a sense of buying. Of course, this will also help the three characters “white and black” on the box.

Of course, under the overall marketing strategy, there needs to be support for the packaging design that it supports. A good packaging design appeal also needs the assistance of other marketing tools to achieve the best results under the integration. The Hangzhou Toothpaste Factory bought a full-year advertisement for the CCTV “Trumpet” program, and designed a set of TV advertisements for “White Rabbit to Eat Radish”. At the same time, before the school starts, a group of “White Rabbits” were designed. "The cover book was sent to the pupils, and the birthday of the "White Rabbit" was set on the "61", and an enormous amount of publicity was held each year. The company's entire marketing and communication activities are conveying a consistent voice, and they all serve to establish a consistent brand image. Packaging design is one of the last and most critical voices: “We are like this. This is us.”

Both of the above cases are package designs that reflect a unique overall idea, but in some cases not all can be so perfect. How do you give consumers consistent information? This requires packaging design under the guidance of the CI program, that is, the use of visual design elements specified in various CI designs to maintain the unity of the visual image. Since the letters “IBM”, the three fast, smooth and highly industrialized characters, have formed the CI model, many companies have joined the ranks of introducing CI. They have quickly established a brand and improved their corporate image. CI is the need of industrial society to transfer to the information society. It regulates and delivers consistent information. Packaging design needs to make full use of this information. It includes standardized signs, standardized auxiliary graphics, standardized colors, standardized font design, etc. . Especially in the serialized packaging design, CI's introduction makes the design of the kits more systematic and stylized, which greatly enhances the product's awareness. Of course, in maintaining the unity of the visual image, we must also pay attention to maintaining a certain amount of room for change. In the common sense, we must also highlight our individuality and design a package that conforms to its own characteristics.

Everything is affected by things around it. At the same time, it affects the surrounding things. It is in the interaction, interaction, and mutual influence with the surrounding environment that everything is constantly adjusted and combined to expect improvement and perfection. Himself, promote things to move forward. Our packaging design should and must, starting from the overall marketing strategy, positioning under the guidance of CI, and interacting and cooperating with other marketing links to form the same voice.

The 21st century, an era of information, an integrated century. Faced with the rapid expansion of information, in the face of complex events, how can we correctly find information, process information, and appeal information? Integrated marketing communication provides us with a way, a practical and effective method. In this way, packaging design as a key link should assume its responsibilities. This is the core of consumer orientation, starting with the overall strategy of integrated marketing and giving consumers consistent information. This is what packaging design should do under integrated marketing communications. It can also be done.

Author: Wuhan University School of Journalism and Communication Liu Xin