Picture a cereal box that tells you when it’s running out of product or medication packaging that tells you to take your daily dosage. This isn’t far-fetched sci-fi, but the consumer experience of the immediate future. That’s because we are on the cusp of smart packaging—packaging that turns the traditional material that holds our products into an interactive platform that furthers consumer experience and the value of your brand.
Goodbye to those mysterious expiration dates and long Google scavenger hunts. Smart packaging employs multiple technologies that largely transform the consumer-product interaction. Next, we are going to take a closer look at these smart packaging solutions and discuss the benefits of using them for retail customers and brands alike.
Unveiling the Magic: Types of Smart Packaging Technologies
It’s an uneven universe. Nearly every type of smart packaging serves a different purpose. Here are some of the most prominent
RFID Tags: Microchip markers sewn into packaging can store and wirelessly transmit product metadata. By scanning its RFID tag, you can track your groceries in real-time or ensure that your $2,500 bag is the real deal.
A QR Code The most recognizable QR code is square-shaped barcodes. As the name suggests, it is a barcode designed with contoured edges and a grid-style pixel pattern developed in Japan that is short for quick response. QR codes are poised for a comeback in the realm of smart packaging. By scanning a QR code with a phone camera, the consumer can find detailed information on the product, such as its description, nutritional facts, recipes, and exclusive content, such as video or audio content. Read our blog post about [‘The Future of QR codes in Consumer Packaging’](link to your QR code blog) to learn more about what QR codes can do.
AR experiences: By superimposing digital elements over reality, human experience can become so much more than human. You can point your phone camera to your wine bottle and the product can provide an AR overlay to show the vineyard, suggest a pairing for your meal, and provide so much more, changing packaging from a marketing to an engagement tool.
NFC Tags: Like RFID, proximity-based NFC (near-field communication) tags let smartphones wirelessly push data to a brand’s server. But instead of sensing the smartphone from afar, NFC tags require a user to tap it as quickly as she would with a credit card. Users tap their phones on an NFC-enabled package to view product information, loyalty programs, or personalized offers.
Time-Temperature Indicators These smart innovations can check product freshness by tracking temperature fluctuations. For example, a carton of milk gradually turns color to indicate spoilage’ saves the world from food waste’ and promotes consumer safety.
This is just a sampling of the wider landscape of smart packaging technologies, and surely, more iterations will inevitably be generated as the category evolves, further dissolving boundaries between packaging and digital platforms.
A Win-Win Proposition: Benefits for Consumers and Brands
Smart packaging isn’t merely an eye-catching flash. It is in everyone’s interest—consumers and brands alike—to have the benefits explained in more concrete ways.
For Consumers
Improved Convenience Smart packaging makes life easier. Think of a smart container that will automatically reorder your favorite coffee beans when supplies run low. QR codes can instantly provide access to recipes, usage information, or troubleshooting instructions, eliminating the frustration of searching for that information online.
Improved Access to Product Information: No more reading tiny labels. Smart packaging can now provide consumers with robust information on demand, such as a product’s nutritional content, details about its ingredients, how it was made (e.g., sustainable and healthier), or who grew it and its history. This will allow for informed purchasing and punitive consequences.
Brand Interactions: Smart packaging can partially or completely change the character of a mundane shopping experience…into a discovery. A connection.AR experiences can make products come alive, display product features in a memorable way, or simply spark an enjoyable interaction, such as a character-led gaming experience or a promotion.
For Brands
Smart and Consumer Data Packaging: Through smart packaging, valuable consumer data can be captured on customers’ behavior, usage trends, and buying habits. Such data is of great value for brands to plan and design their marketing strategies and messages, prepare products that consumers are likely to buy, and thus gear the entire journey into an individually fitted consumer experience.
Smarter Brand Engagement: Smart packaging leads to a deeper relationship between the consumer and the brand. Interactive experiences, on-demand information, or targeted offers all serve to engage the consumer in a more personal brand experience, leading to greater brand loyalty and brand advocacy.
Better Brand Image: By being innovative and customer-centric, brands appear cutting-edge. In both cases, smart packaging is a medium for communication: it demonstrates a brand’s care for the environment, transparency, and the consumers themselves – all factors contributing to a better brand image. Do you want to know more about how smart packaging can build brand value? Read our blog on ‘How smart packaging can drive brand [value].’ Subscribe to our House of Packaging so that you don’t miss out on the latest packaging innovations.
