Commentary: Using interactivity to go beyond traditional product packaging

Commentary: Using interactivity to go beyond traditional product packaging
Tags: Intava
September 8, 2009

Product packaging is a powerful and effective means of communicating a product's potential, promise and desirability to consumers — there's no argument about that. However, product packaging is a little overworked these days — a package must clearly list ingredients, nutrition facts, instructions for use, safety information, consumer hotlines and make room for a barcode.

And all of this is before the important stuff! It must also do a stellar job of displaying its brand, attract consumers and make them desire the product, and do all of this better than every other product package within view.

Until recently, product packaging has pretty much been up to the task of delivering all that is asked of it. But with bigger stores carrying ever-larger assortments, packages need to shout louder to be heard over the competition.

Compounding this problem is the admirable drive to reduce packaging, which finds manufacturers with less package â€˜real estate' to use for messaging. In some cases, there is no package to use for messaging (think bicycles or car tires) — just a tiny shelf tag to tell the story. And if your product package can't tell its story, your product won't make it into the cart. Consider that a recent Miller Zell study shows that 60 percent of purchase decisions are made right there in the aisle.

Interactive media systems bring products to life. Video games locked in display cases are replaced with on-demand trailers, searchable extended inventory and instant pre-ordering.

It's no surprise, then, that we're seeing an increasing number of retailers and brands using in-store interactive media systems to help extend their message. Interactive touchscreens offer near-infinite real estate in a compact space, which makes it possible to provide in-depth technical information, show product demonstration videos or simply tell a product's story. The feel-good origins of Ben & Jerry's ice cream or the quest for innovation that led to Dyson vacuum cleaners make for compelling "aisle theatre," and are sometimes just the things that cement purchase decisions.

Another retail trend I see is the inclusion of extended inventories — products which are merchandized in the store, but only available online or via ship-to-store delivery for later pickup. This trend brings the best of Web shopping to the brick-and-mortar store but often comes without all the great sorting and filtering tools the web provides to make sense of all this choice.

Think of digital cameras, or other technical products that require some consideration like golf clubs, laptop computers or even baby carriers. Without a knowledgeable sales associate and only a shelf tag to do the talking, retailers are increasingly turning to in-store interactive screens. These assistive shopping systems guide consumers through the selection process and provide independent user ratings, product reviews, and even price comparisons. The trend toward these systems is growing, as it is preferable to maintain a single, accurate product decision tree than to train thousands of store associates on the intricacies of a dozen or more high-touch product lines.

Looking to the future of in-store interactive systems, it's clear the gel has not set — retailers are still discovering new ways of mixing packaging and interactive technology to connect with consumers. Decades from now when computing is truly ubiquitous and packages are literally alive with moving images, every container could in itself be an interactive experience. Until that future arrives, in-store interactive systems may be the best way to think outside the package.