When you’re putting a product out to market it goes without saying that you want the packaging to grab the consumer’s attention whilst also representing the product and the brand. However, usability and convenience to the end user should be ignored at your peril.
You want your target audience to love the product that’s inside the packaging, but if actually accessing that product is awkward, messy or inconvenient, you may have just lost yourself a repeat customer.
Whether it’s a bottle, jar, pump, spray or tube the packaging’s closure is normally the first point of physical contact a person will have with the product. And that means that the user experience needs to be seamless.
Caps and closures must also be functional: For example, if the product is packaged in a spray, pump or diffuser bottle, the amount of product dispensed must be accurate. Too little and your user will be frustrated, too much and they’re going to be annoyed at the waste of product - and money.
Why hygiene is a bigger issue than ever
As we’ve seen, your closure needs to look good and work well. But another crucial factor, now more so than ever, is the requirement for hygiene.
The global pandemic has heightened awareness of just how rapidly illness can spread and has increased a need, even subconsciously, for packaging that is tamper-proof and sanitary.
Trends in packaging closure
It is this triple-pronged approach to packaging closure that has seen some interesting developments in the industry.
Consumers are now looking for less-is-more packaging, shunning anything unnecessary or overly designed. The growing acceptance that we all need to live a greener and more sustainable existence has created a desire for recyclable and more compact packaging - and that includes the closure.
Pumps and dispensing caps are two examples of closures that meet this increasing demand for packaging that checks all the boxes when it comes to being sanitary, aesthetically pleasing, and functional.
As brands move to embrace different trends in packaging, such as gender neutral, eco-friendly, and minimalism, they will also need to consider the closure of that packaging and ensure it aligns with the overall design.
Enhancing user experience with cleverly designed closure and packaging
Skincare, cosmetic and fragrance packaging has always strived to look beautiful - whatever the given beauty ideal of the time was.
But these days, in our post-pandemic, eco-conscious world, packaging needs to do more than just look pretty on a dressing table. It needs to function perfectly whilst also protecting the product inside, whether it’s sitting on a bathroom shelf or traveling for vacation.