Designing packaging is not as simple as it looks. Despite being the least remembered part of the product upon consumption most of the time, consumers are unaware of how packaging helps get their attention in stores, helps keep the product fresh and makes storage easy. In other words, it’s an important part not only in getting sales but also customer satisfaction. Therefore, when hiring a company to design your packaging, it pays to be meticulous when choosing one.
Look at their clients
One of the most straightforward steps—you can go to a designer’s website and find a section that says “our clients” or “our work.” Do they have many clients? Are they satisfied with the company? Are the designs successful? If you see testimonials, don’t rely solely on them. Do some research, contact the design company, and find out more about the work they’ve done. Most packaging design companies would be thrilled to talk about their successful projects, so don’t hesitate to interview them about them. On the other hand, you can contact the clients themselves and ask about the company you’re planning to hire and ask them the same questions.
Look at their capability
The capability of a design firm is relevant: sometimes, even a small company can service many clients at once because their designers are very experienced and can work fast. At other times, a company with many employees may mean that they complete your job in an orderly, timely fashion. Whichever you happen to choose, make sure that the company is capable of handling your requests. Ask extensively about turnaround times, revisions, service-level agreements, and other process-related questions. However, be courteous enough to respect timelines, as design companies love clients that do so and it ensures that they do the best work that they can for your project.
Look at their flexibility
Of course, there are some unavoidable cases when you have to rush things, either because the approval got held up, there’s a sudden change in market behaviour, or perhaps an element in the original design suddenly becomes inappropriate. A flexible company is one that can adapt and respond to such sudden changes quickly and still provide the same level of service. Remember that there should be a limit on how much or why you’re rushing a job; if it’s because of circumstances beyond your control, most design companies would not mind. But if it’s because you suddenly wanted to change the logo for no specific reason, it might come off as being abusive.
Look at the price
It isn’t a bad thing to look for the most affordable designer. Shop around and ask for quotes, because some companies may be able to provide even better service at a lower cost. Sometimes, though, the prices might be too good to be true, and you’ll end up with a terrible package design that you will regret in the end.
