Rise in D2C brands
In the last decade, the growth of e-commerce and D2C brands has been alike. The exponential growth in e-commerce has led to the inception of hundreds of D2C brands in India. The E-commerce market is growing at a CAGR of 25% and these figures look promising for the D2C sector. The sector attracted an investment of ~US $417 million in 2020 alone.
What makes D2C brands different?
There are a plethora of factors that differentiate the D2C brands from the traditional brands.
Firstly, the latter takes around 9-12 months to introduce a new range of products while the
former only takes around 3-4 months. Traditional brands primarily advertise through TV
commercials while D2C brands use the medium of social media. Lastly, the D2C brands are
more focused on building a strong brand image and loyalty for which they adopt techniques like fast delivery and/or impressive packaging.
What makes packaging for D2C brands unique?
D2C brands are new age brands that have been in the market for not more than a decade
currently. To establish themselves and to build a loyal customer base, it is extremely pivotal for them to build a brand. There are several ways a brand can build its brand image and packaging is one of them.
Packaging is no longer only a means to transport goods. With the rise of D2C brands,
packaging has become a part of the whole customer experience. D2C brands primarily sell their goods online and hence the products are delivered to the customers at their doorstep. This is where the packaging steps in. Before the customer even views the product, he/she will view the packaging. If the packaging is sub-par, a bad impression of the brand is already instilled in the mind of the customer. This makes it difficult to get impressive customer feedback.
Following are some of the ways in which D2C brands make their packaging stand out :-
1) Personalized packaging - Personalized packaging refers to packaging done according
to customer data. A company might conduct research, use algorithms and other software
to get an understanding of the kind of packaging that is preferred and desired by a
particular class of customers. The products are then packaged accordingly and the
customers get their desired packaging without providing any input or putting any effort.
2) Customized packaging - Customized packaging is different from personalized
packaging in the sense that the former requires inputs by the end user/customer. Brands
can provide the option of customized packaging (on their website) before the customer
orders the product. The customers can be given an option to either briefly describe the
way they want the product to be packaged or a set of options can be given and the
customer can choose one or multiple of the several options. Customized packaging is
extremely important as it enhances the customer experience even more.
3) Digital packaging - Digital packaging uses digital technology and is a rapidly growing
segment. This packaging is far more convenient than analog because several colors can
be printed at the same time. Digital packaging can also be combined with personalized
or customized packaging to deliver a wholesome package.
4) Minimalist packaging - Minimalist packaging refers to the phrase ‘less is more.’ There
can certainly be a class of customer that dislike over the top packaging and minimalist
packaging suits them well. Additionally, for certain product categories like groceries for
example, excessive packaging is not suitable and hence minimalist packaging can be
used.
5) Branding - As already mentioned, branding is what helps D2C brands build an image.
Branding can most definitely become a part of the packaging. Branding is one of the best
marketing techniques. An example would be to attractively display the name of the brand
on the packaging among other things.
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