Box design tips - The Box Co-op

How to create effective packaging
Designing a good box isn't difficult if you adhere to a few basics. A box is more than just a package to hold your product. It also serves as a proxy for you to sell your product. Effective packaging results from a well thought out design from the consumer's point of view. A good design will catch a consumer's eye and want to make them pick up the product for a closer look, and, eventually, head to the register with it.
If you're competing in a retail environment, you should also be designing your box with the 2.6 second rule in mind.

Here's the basic ingredients for creating effective packaging:

  • Spending time up front defining the look and feel of the box on paper will pay dividends down the road.
  • Resist the temptation to "create the box on the fly" on the computer - this usually results in mediocre packaging.
  • Less is more. The most elegant, appealing designs are usually quite minimalist.
  • Come up with a comprehensive list of product benefits. This list will later be trimmed to only the most important points.
  • Keep pictures and graphics to a minimum. They should demonstrate what the product does in a very clear manner.
  • Short, concise points make for the most effective presentation. Rework your sentences and points until they flow well with very few     words.
  • Make sure your graphics and pictures support your points.

Balance your design mix of colors, text and pictures until it flows well. Get feedback from colleagues - they can be your best critics, and can give you ideas you hadn't even thought of. Finally, refine, refine, refine until you get just the right mix of design, colors and benefits that will be irresistable to consumers walking down the aisle.

Remember, you're designing your box for the 2.6 second glance - you need to get the message across quickly.

box design tips
Implementing your design
Now that you have a good working design, you need to bring the package to life. You want crisp graphics coupled with plenty of attention to detail to make the box really pop. If you follow the guidelines below, your box will be as crisp and clean as you intend it to be.

Make sure you have the correct size box. Click here to see how to measure a box. If your product will be fitting the box tightly, make sure it isn't too tight. A good rule of thumb is to leave 1/8" in all dimensions. We will provide you with a custom template built to your specifications.

Colors. All colors must be converted to CMYK. This is four color process printing (also known as "CMYK", or full color print). Pantone spot colors from the "Pantone Formula Guide SOLID COATED" may also be used. Note: there is a setup fee for each Pantone spot color used. If you want to print with Pantone colors, please call for a custom quote.

Bleed. Allow 1/8 of an inch of ink/graphics past the edges. A "bleed" is needed when ink will be printed to the edge of a box. Because boxes can move up to 1/32" when being cut, you need to extend the ink past the perimeter of the box. This guards against a white line being unintentionally added to your box.

Text. Convert all text to outlines/paths when sending to us. This avoids font issues.

Safety area. Leave at least 3/16" between graphics/pictures/text and the folds or edges of panels. You don't want the graphics to become part of the panel fold, or cut off at the edge of the box. Remember, the paper can move up to 1/32" as it's being cut into a box after printing.

Pictures and graphics (photographs) need to be 300 dots per inch (dpi). This gives good, crisp graphics. Anything less shows poor picture quality. Images taken from the internet won't work as they are generally 72 dpi. If you're using a digital camera for your pictures, make sure the pictures are 300 dpi. Click here to find out the largest image size a digital camera can output at 300 dpi.
Make sure linked images are embedded, or included when uploading.

Don't trust the colors you see on your screen or printer. A commercial printing press, which is what prints your box, uses a different system to print colors than what your screen or printer shows. Consequently, the colors will be slightly different. Use them as a guide at best. What looks good on the screen may not translate as well when printed. For a true match of colors, consult a Pantone Matching System book (PMS book), this is the printer's bible.

Zoom in on critical panels. Don't be afraid to magnify crucial areas in your artwork to make sure things are where you intend them to be. You'll be surprised to find they aren't as close as you thought.

Maintain Symmetry in your design. A subtle, yet critical design consideration, symmetry registers in the mind subconsciously. Design elements that aren't displayed in a symmetrical fashion look out of balance and detract from the final product.

Watch for typos and spelling! This indicates sloppy work and inattention to detail. Customers will connect this to your product.

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