Objectives of Packaging

➦ Packaging refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages for the purpose of preparing products for distribution, transport, warehousing, logistics ,storage, sale, and end use.

➦ There are many factors involved in packaging, including label design, insert design, instructions for use, graphic design, and the type of packaging and physical containers used for individual product items.

➦ Enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use is the science, art, and technology of packaging.

➦ The term packaging also refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages. As a system of preparing goods to be transported, stored, shipped, and sold, packaging is often described as a coordinated effort.

➦ The packaging provides protection, preservation, transportation, information, and selling functions. Government, business, institutional, industrial, and personal use are all fully integrated into it in many countries.

➦ Some of the major objectives of packaging are described below:

1) Physical protection:

➦ Since the objects enclosed in the package may require protection from, among other things, mechanical shock, vibration, electrostatic discharge, compression, temperature, etc. S, packaging is important.

➦ Packaging acts as a shield, safeguarding products from physical damage during transportation, storage, and handling.

➦ Physical protection prevents breakage, deformation, or contamination that could occur due to external factors like impact, vibration, moisture, or temperature changes.

2) Barrier Protection:

➦ A barrier to oxygen, water vapor, dust, etc., is often required. Permeation is a critical factor in design. Some packages contain desiccants or oxygen absorbers to help extend shelf life.

➦ Modified atmospheres or controlled atmospheres are also maintained in some food packages. Keeping the contents clean, fresh, sterile, and safe for the duration of the intended shelf life is a primary function.

➦ A barrier is also implemented in cases where segregation of two materials prior to end use is required, as in the case of special paints, glues, medical fluids, etc.

➦ At the consumer end, the packaging barrier is broken or measured amounts of material are removed for mixing and subsequent end-use.

3) Containment or Agglomeration:

➦ Small objects are typically grouped together in one package for reasons of storage and selling efficiency.

➦ Liquids, powders, and granular materials need containment. Packaging serves to organize and contain products, making them easier to handle, store, and transport.

➦ It prevents items from scattering or getting lost, facilitating efficient inventory management and logistics operations.

4) Information Transmission:

➦ Packages and labels communicate how to use, transport, recycle, or dispose of the package or product.

➦ With pharmaceuticals, food, medical, and chemical products, some types of information are required by government legislation. Some packages and labels also are used for track and trace purposes.

➦ Most items include their serial and lot numbers on the packaging, and in the case of food products, medicine, and some chemicals the packaging often contains an expiry/best-before date, usually in a shorthand form.

➦ Packages may indicate their construction material with a symbol.

5) Marketing:

➦ Packaging and labels can be used by marketers to encourage potential buyers to purchase a product.

➦ Package graphic design and physical design have been important and constantly evolving phenomena for several decades.

➦ Marketing communications and graphic design are applied to the surface of the package and often to the point of sale display. Most packaging is designed to reflect the brand’s message and identity.

6) Security:

➦ Packaging can play an important role in reducing the security risks of shipment. Packages can be made with improved tamper resistance to deter manipulation and they can also have tamper-evident features indicating that tampering has taken place.

➦ Packages can be engineered to help reduce the risks of package pilferage or the theft and resale of products:
➦ Some package constructions are more resistant to pilferage than other types, and some have pilfered indicating seals.

➦ Counterfeit consumer goods, unauthorized sales (diversion), material substitution, and tampering can all be minimized or prevented with such anti-counterfeiting technologies.

➦ Packages may include authentication seals and use security printing to help indicate that the package and contents are not counterfeit.

➦ Packages also can include anti-theft devices such as dye-packs, RFID tags, or electronic article surveillance tags that can be activated or detected by devices at exit points and require specialized tools to deactivate.

➦ Using packaging in this way is a means of retail loss prevention.

7) Convenience:

➦ Packages can have features that add convenience in distribution, handling, stacking, display, sale, opening, reclosing, using, dispensing, reusing, recycling, and ease of disposal.

➦ Easy-to-open seals, resealable closures, and ergonomic designs simplify product access and usage, improving overall user experience. Convenient packaging formats also cater to consumers’ on-the-go lifestyles and preferences.

8) Portion Control:

➦ Single serving or single dosage packaging has a precise amount of contents to control usage. Bulk commodities (such as salt) can be divided into packages that are a more suitable size for individual households.

➦ It also aids the control of inventory: selling sealed one-liter bottles of milk, rather than having people bring their own bottles to fill themselves. Packaging facilitates portion control by providing pre-measured servings or individual packaging units.

➦ This is particularly relevant for products like snacks, beverages, and pharmaceuticals, where precise portioning is essential for consumer convenience, health, and safety.

9) Cognizability:

➦ Protecting the product with packaging alone is not sufficient. Since the product is meant to be sold to the ultimate customer, it also needs to be identifiable and appealing to buyers.

➦ Purchasing packaged foodstuffs and other commonly purchased items from supermarkets and self-service stores is very important.

➦ On the shelf, several brands of a product are displayed next to one another, and it is important that the packaging and colour of the product stand out to the customer and thus play an important role in promotion.

➦ The packaging reinforces the brand name and adds charm to the product. In this situation, all previous efforts to distinguish these brands will be ineffective if the packaging does not entice the consumer to pick the commodity’s brand.

➦ Therefore, packaging serves as a form of advertising.

References

Related Posts

• Packaging Policies and Strategies
• Features of Good Packaging

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Smirti

(Founder of Management Notes)
MBA,BBA.

I am Smirti Bam, an enthusiastic edu blogger with a passion for sharing insights into the dynamic world of business and management through this website.

I hold a MBA degree from Presidential Business School, Kathmandu, and a BBA degree with a specialization in Finance from Apex College,

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