Even though Costco doesn't carry that many SKUs (only 4,000 compared to Walmart's 150,000), the size of the warehouse space and the variety of product can be overwhelming. During any trip I make to Costco, I always take a look at some of the packaging and displays and note what grabs my attention and others that are just so-so. Since Costco is self serve, displays are the silent sales person. In addition, if there are only 2-3 brands in a category the packaging and display must work harder to capture the consumer's attention and sell the product.
The Good
iHome: I was immediately drawn to this iHome packaging and display:
 |
| The display invites you to take a closer look. The pallet wrap is colorful and tells the customer what the product is: A Rechargable Bluetooth Speaker with Speakerphone. |
 |
| The packaging has a hologram that changes color as you walk around the display which mimics how the product performs. |
 |
| The pallet holds a counter top type display that demonstrates the product which is interactive and inviting. |
|
iRobot Roomba: Below is another display and packaging I thought provided great content allowing customers to make a buying decision while in store.
 |
| The Roomba packaging is very clean and calls out key features. Since the packaging is bilingual, its is great the copy was kept to a minimum. |
 |
| The additional details provided on the side of the display can help to close the sale for those undecided buyers. |
The Bad
Most of the examples below are packaging design. Granted, not every manufacturer can afford the types of displays listed above. This means that the packaging has to work extra hard to present the product. In the following cases, the packaging designs are so cluttered that it is hard to find the benefits of the product.
 |
| This is a classic case of a package trying to communicate too much. Can you tell at a glance what this product is? It is an HD Video Security DVR. I could do an entire blog on how this could be improved. |
 |
| The brand stands out but the features are lost in the gold bars with white type. When comparing this to the packaging below for Costco's house brand Kirkland, this stands out much better on the store floor |
 |
| The product photography is really nice. Only a few features are called out on the front. I think Kirkland could be slightly larger though. |
 |
| Another case where the package is just too busy and tries to communicate too much to the consumer. It is overwhelming. |
The Meh
These packaging and displays missed opportunities to really showcase the product and give the consumer more information to make a buying decision.
 |
| This is a real missed opportunity. The packaging is nice and clean but the bottom of pallet wrap doesn't draw the customer to the display at all. Color could have been used to add some excitement |
 |
| This is a really clean package design but in a store like Costco, the consumer needs to know what the product is to even be considered. In very small type, it says what it is: A Home Control Starter Kit. A clear benefit needs to be stated on the front of this packaging. |
 |
| HP is a premium, well known, brand. This packaging is just OK. I like how the side of the box completes the image of the printer. This works well when stacked in a a club store. However, this has too much information and has no clear benefit stated on the front of the box. |
 |
| I can guess that this might be a home security system because of the cameras on the packaging. However, all of the elements on the front of this box are the same size. Nothing stands out. Under the brand name it states: True High Definition 1080p. Then beneath that, even smaller and harder to read is "Security Camera System". It is always difficult displaying copy when there are three languages on the front of a package but it can function better than this package. |
Because of the business I'm in, even a quick trip to the store ends up being a critique of sorts. These examples really drive home how important packaging and displays are to selling more product—especially in a club store environment.
Patty Jensen is Vice President of Account Services at JDA Inc, a graphic design firm
that specializes in supporting companies' branding and retail efforts
with a Unified Marketing approach. To learn more, click here.
Comments