PRETTY IS, PRETTY DOES

No, we’re not sexists or anti-feminists.  [Though we do remember all too well the slogan that prompted our headline.]

Our musings this day go to packaging, and why we pay attention to certain things, not others.  The food industry has it made:  They know, for instance, that 64 percent of U.S. consumers buy products from shelves because of packaging.  Drilling deeper, shoppers grab first by color, then by shape, followed by symbols and words.  Even more, the fascination with small versions in re-sealable bags and single-serving multipacks has proven to entice buyers who typically bag 50 items in the same number of minutes in supermarkets.

Overall, much attention is being paid to the Pretty Factor, a phenomenon attributed to Apple (among others).  All aspects of containers matter, whether that’s shape or color, graphics or labeling.

Why, then, do we as communicators, designers, and even marketers tend to ignore the look of the information we send inside and out, to staff, to consumers, to regulators and politicians?  [Omit, if you would, the annual report, the intranet, open enrollment, et al. which historically strut their stuff.]  So:  We’re talking emails, memos, reports, HR information, service and product letters, warranties … the standard stuff that usually gets slapped on a masthead and distributed.  The writing may be catchy and succinct; the message, clear and unadulterated.  Somehow you gotta know that at least 25 percent of recipients will (check one) 1) file it for e-review on a rainy day, 2) toss it in the stack of ‘to-reads’ on a desktop, 3) send it to a colleague with comments or questions, or 4) discard it altogether. 

Compellingness extends, in our opinion, to everything we produce.  Why not help way-overloaded staff who simply don’t have the time to scan their in-boxes … and label (with icons and illustrations) the nice to know, must know, must do items?  Or:  Design an instructions memo typographically, with steps laid out in bold print, no mouse type?  And:  Consider read-able alternatives to the thank you for your response consumer note – a postcard, a note card, even an animated email instead of plain-Jane look and lengthy text?

Pretty-ness, obviously, must be more than skin-deep; user experience work has taught us that much.  [As has life experience.]  What’s your take, dear reader?

WHEN WORDS DON'T WORK

As very verbal communicators, we find it hard to admit that, sometimes, our words don’t work.  

On a complicated, intricate change.  When statistics rule (and they do, these days, very often).  If emotions need to drive the initiative.  And if, plain and simple, a shape or color or legacy symbol says an eye-full.

Marketers call it the visual hammer, the one image that instantly relates to a brand or a company.  We think of Coke’s bottle, the Nike swoosh, the Tiffany blue box, Christian Louboutin’s red soles, even Paul Newman as real-life examples.

Yet when do you abandon words for a picture or symbol?  In packaging, it’s easy (or easier, ‘scuse us; the uniqueness of the look and feel can be a long time in the making).  Makers of Talenti gelato, for instance, scored a hit in the super-super premium ice cream category in part due to its clear plastic container, a transparency no other manufacturer can boast.  In older brand news, the Traveler’s red umbrella denoted the safety and security of its insurance products, a claim other institutions make in words and ads. 

In the practice of internal and external communications, there is a right balance between words and images.  The interplay works best, in our opinion, when a major initiative is being launched, one that must infiltrate every employee’s and, often, many outsiders’ psyches to be successful.  Sometimes, it’s a powerful “sans hyperbole” slogan – say, unusual acronyms or five to six words – that exhorts readers and watchers to do something.  For others, it first appears as a fabricated look that invades our eyes, and asks “what is this?”  and “why should I know?,” sparking the sense of intrigue that drives us to want more. 

It’s not an easy task.  We’ve spent hours and days and weeks thinking, free-associating, dreaming in our slippers, piling through content-laden magazines and thesauri, and using such tomes as A Technique for Producing Ideas (James Webb Young).  The answer?  You’ll know it when you read/see it.

WHY GOOD THINGS MIGHT (RE)APPEAR IN SMALL PACKAGES

Flash fiction.  AOL’s CliffNotes in comic video formats.  Retailers that gobble up high-end sale sites.

These three newsy trends all say small:  Fiction that’s usually less than 1,000 words.  Classics reinterpreted quickly for the non-reading public.  And designer duds at reduced prices for an hour or so. 

Thinking further, we figured out that packaging also ties the three together.  Which got us ruminating about the power of packaging inside corporations. 

Externally, we can all vouch for the impact of great packaging.  After all, CPG companies spend millions and more on product look and feel, the way it’s displayed on shelves, in aisles, and end caps, how it appears in advertising and online. 

As consumers, we’re attracted to bright shiny objects as well as cinematographically-challenging movies (Inception, anyone?).  Many of us, regardless of generation, are captivated by the speed of Internet search and purchase, not to mention the ever-changing possibilities of digital networks.  That, too, is packaging at its height, one of many time-proven ways to get us hooked into and using brands.

Rarely, though, do we ever get well-packaged communications as employees.  Here are just a few examples to trigger some thoughts:  For many and often legal reasons, communicating about benefits tends to be long and involved and simply not all that engaging.  In quite a few businesses, corporate announcements are often ignored or stored in e-folders for later reference.  Even major initiatives that bring good change to life don’t necessarily receive the kind of overall look and feel they deserve.

No, we’re not advocating good looks without quality content and well-defined metrics.   Nor do we espouse internal advertising-type campaigns that are glitz sans information, and lack in-depth analysis and use of WIIFMs, up and down the ladder. 

We’d like to continue the form-versus-function debate re communications:  Does it matter if the package is Tiffany blue or UPS brown?  Or, simply, that something worthy is inside?