Greggs the high street food outlet recently went undercover at a foodies festival to try and change the general perception that they are the place you go when you want a sausage roll or pasty. It was to launch the new summer range at Greggs and make consumers reconsider what their brand stands for.
Presentation is everything and just as Greggs by branding themselves as ‘Gregory and Gregory’ with a new more sophisticated logo and new packaging, how you present your products to the customer will give a lasting impression of your brand and how satisfied the customer is with their purchase.
If for instance you sell clothing, it’s likely that the majority of your sales will be shipped in plastic mailing sacks and there’s nothing wrong with that if you’re selling fashion to the value conscious shopper. If however you’re selling high end fashion then you’ll probably want to reconsider your packaging and indeed, by using premium packaging, that in itself can justify a higher price tag.
“Some retailers will take branded packaging to the next level, for instance whilst it may be perfectly acceptable to package items of clothing in a plastic bag and ship in a mailing bag, a premium shirt retailer may decide to package a shirt in a branded box with tissue paper and then protect this packaging with an outer mailing sack to protect the packaging itself.”
– Tamebay Packaging Position Paper (Free to download)
As Greggs demonstrated, simply by presenting and delivery your product in a premium manner instantly changes the consumer perception. Particularly for retailers who have private label products, how you merchandise them online and the packaging you use to deliver them is worth investing in if you want to position yourself at the premium end of the market.
Of course there is always a cost vs benefit argument to be had, if you’re not selling at a high enough price then premium packaging may well be unaffordable. Equally there is a cost vs velocity consideration – if you significantly increase your prices then sales volumes may drop, although you could end up with higher profits for less work.
Do you position your product as a premium brand or do you compete at the value end of the market? Do you think a different set of customer may purchase your products if they were marketed as high end goods? Or could you sell the same products under two different brands to appeal to both sets of consumers?