The events of the past two years have radically transformed the way much of the world approaches everyday retail. During the course of the pandemic, more than 40% of people said they shopped online more often than they had before. More importantly, almost 75% indicated their intention to continue shopping online indefinitely.
All of which has sparked ferocious competition between online sellers looking to leverage this shift to digital retail; new and established web retailers alike are being forced to up their game, in order to stand out from the crowd. Anything you can do to differentiate yourself from your competitors is something that could work in your favour.
Precisely where custom printed labels and packaging could help, engineered specifically with online retail in mind.
An Entirely Different Dynamic
There are two important points to remember when choosing product labels and packaging for products to be sold online.
Coming up with ideas that attract and engage online shoppers is not quite the same as doing so for in-store shoppers; when presenting a product online, it is not quite as easy to convince a prospective buyer as it may be in a physical store.
The buyer has no means by which to physically examine and inspect the product in question. Instead, they look for things like product descriptions, reviews and recommendations, quality images and user generated content. Whoever is viewing needs to be instantly hooked on whatever it is you are selling, so that they hit the ‘Buy’ button more often.
Not easy to accomplish, but possible when you get creative with your branding, packaging and labelling.
An Investment in Product Packaging
There has never been a more important time to think carefully about how you brand, package and present your products. Engaging imagery in particular can make all the difference when looking to sell products online.
For example, more than six million more people opened accounts on Instagram during the last year alone. Almost 40% of adults now upload content to Snapchat while a further 30% publish regularly on TikTok; both predominantly visual platforms, highlighting the importance of attractive presentation.
This is where getting creative with custom printed labels can make all the difference. Whether you go with understated clear labels or embossed/metallic labels that leap out from the packaging, they need to make a statement. They also need to reflect your company’s identity and complement your wider branding efforts.
Consider including QR codes on your labels and packaging to allow the customer to access additional information. Add snippets of social proof and user generated content in general to your packaging for added impact. Remember that you have very limited time to win over the customer with your online products, before they take their business elsewhere. More people may be shopping online than ever before, but they are also more selective and discerning than they have ever been.