A few weeks ago, I was asked by a fellow female entrepreneur and business coach to name a quote that had special meaning to me. Put on the spot, I have to admit I immediately drew a blank. After a few seconds of racking my brain, the first thing that popped into my head was the infamous line from Dodgeball – “If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.” Although it’s one of the movies that makes me laugh every time (and I think there’s a mighty life lesson in there somewhere), I just couldn’t make the leap from wrenches to food packaging design.
Over the next few days, I would think about the question again and again, until out of the blue, the words “lead with love” finally came to mind. The more I thought about it, the more I realized the deep influence those words have on me and our company’s approach to business. Truth is, what we at Levitskie Creative do with our clients every day is “Brand with Love.” And we also know it’s the secret sauce to building a successful brand for EVERY better-for-you food company out there.
Of course, everyone wants their brand to be loved, but what does “Brand with Love” mean, in practical terms? Let’s get to the heart of the matter (pun intended). Every new product package design we do includes discovery and research to reveal the fundamental elements of the brand. We call the process “Know Your Brand” and it starts with a list of in-depth questions, aptly titled the “Know Your Brand Questionnaire.” Examining all of the answers we receive allows us to uncover the key elements used to form an authentic visual and verbal identity to attract your target customers.
Now here’s where the love comes in. To be believable, a brand must be based on the company’s core mission and the principles with which it operates. And a company’s mission and values spring from what inspired its founders to start their business in the first place! Once the passion has been identified and quantified, the message has to be spread across all of a brand’s touch points. Following are a few examples of how the love is spread throughout a brand:
Packaging displays of affection.
You know you have a great product that consumers will love. But these days, that’s not enough to get you noticed in the crowded better-for-you food category. Your brand’s story must convey the true reason you do what you do, and who you do it for. With that knowledge in hand, your designers must craft a visual identity suite that communicates that story with every color, typeface, texture, product photo, and illustration. And it must communicate whether your packaging is seen on shelf, on social media, or in a list of search results.
Love attracts love.
Not only will a successful brand and package design attract the right customer, it will also attract the right employees. As part of the brand discovery process, we also consider the causes that a company will support. To be a successful brand in the better-for-you space, you must be singularly focused on helping, not selling. Consumers expect their brands to care about them and their communities and demonstrating heartfelt support is mandatory. People also want to work for companies that are aligned with their values, so showing the love is also a great way to get, and keep, great employees.
Love for the planet.
Consumers are looking for sustainability in the brands they buy. According to an Innova Market Insights consumer survey in 2018, 63% of U.S. consumers expect companies to invest in sustainability efforts. There are many different definitions of sustainability, so every brand must examine its value set and thoughtfully consider how structure, material, and sourcing align with those values. Once alignment is set, the packaging and brand design must once again clearly communicate those principals in a clear and easily consumable format.
I’ve probably more than maxed out on the love puns, but you get the point. Uncovering your core values creates the foundation that your brand and package design are built on. It‘s OUR mission to make sure that every part of a design communicates the care that you put into your product and your company. We thrive on meeting passionate people and hearing about the problems they are trying to solve so drop us a line to schedule a free, 30-minute introductory call and share the love (couldn’t resist!)
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