Everyone knows that they shouldn’t judge a book or a product by its cover, but everyone still does it anyway. After all consumers are inherently highly visual, a trait passed down long ago by ancient hunter-gatherer ancestors, so it’s exceedingly difficult not to judge a product based on its packaging. But fear not! Business owners can actually take advantage of this highly instinctual trait by paying extra special attention to their packaging design, such as custom mailer boxes, retail packaging design, point of purchase design, pallet displays, and other kinds of packaging solutions.

Did you that at 95%, the overwhelming majority of new product fail each and every year? With tough odds like that, you can’t afford to be mediocre when it comes to branding, including custom mailer boxes which can a great way to engage customers. Why is this? Most consumers are “lazy” when it comes to weighing the pros and cons of a certain product. So instead of reading the fine print, they take the easy way out by relying on packaging in order to use visual cues to determine which product is “better”. It’s well worth it to invest the time, energy, effort, and cash into the cost of packaging designs created by a professional.

Packaging design, especially the design of custom mailer boxes, is a powerful way to reach customers and keep them engaged. It helps to communicate what the product is all about and what or who you stand for as a brand. Many brands are even taking it one step further by focusing on the “unboxing” experience of opening a packaging. This seemingly unimportant period of time is actually quite critical, and taking advantage of it by using as an opportunity to drive the message of your brand home is surefire way to leave a positive impression and keep customers coming back for more.

Here are a few other thing to keep in mind when it comes to creating artfully designed and highly impactful custom mailer boxes and other kinds of packaging.

Understand the wants and needs of your demographic

It’s important to realize that what works for one brand won’t necessarily work for another. That’s why it’s critical to invest in consumer research in order to gain a thorough and complete understanding of your demographic and target audience. In the same way that hunters must learn the habits, habitat, and behaviors of their prey like the back of their hand, businesses must know who their marketing to inside and out. How old are they? How much money do they make? What do they like to eat? What do they like to drink? What gender do they identify as? The more a brand knows about its consumers, the more it can grow.

You can still make cheap packaging look high end

When it comes to making inexpensive packaging material look and feel higher end, it pays to literally think outside of the box. This is where hiring a professional packaging designer will come into play. Playing around and experimenting with typography, color, finish, and texture are excellent ways to “dress up” otherwise cheap, blase packaging material. Keep in mind that some of the simplest, most inexpensive packaging materials and designs are made from cheap material!

Remember that the package is part of the entire experience

Have you ever stopped to think about why it’s so much gosh darn fun to unravel a new smart phone, a new make up pallet, or any other kind of product that you really enjoy? That’s boxing the process of opening a packaging is just as important to the consumer as the process of choosing it at the store. For example, custom mailer boxes that not only look good but that are easy and fun to open keep customers engaged. Providing a visually stimulating and user friendly experience is key.