Nicole - Supermarket Psychology

This video gives an insight into how customers view the shelves and make decisions based on the packaging and the information it contains.

Nicole - CAT Visit

The Centre for Alternative Technology was an interesting insight into the way we could live in order to reduce our impact on the world.


The new building in particular was quite beautiful, big rooms, high ceilings, south facing windows, remote control sky lights, solar panels - all very desirable things in the housing market!


Jo's talk and tour of the centre was interesting as it enlightened us to things that we wouldn't have otherwise spotted/known, such as the longevity of the toilet block roof.

glasses recycled from bottles

a seat made from recycled plastic

a compostable sack

The remote control sky-light

The theatre

The mud wall of the theatre.  The hole is where the steel support was removed after construction

Mud and wood - the majority of the building materials used

a solar panelled roof

insulating materials

Very wordy information board

small stand alone solar panel

an information board obscured by a tree

an interactive information board  - or at least it would have been if it had worked!

Another interactive board - more images and less words would have got the message over much quicker

Nicole - An interesting second use

Reusing builders' bags as vegetable beds

A builders bag makes a great growing container. When our neighbours had a loft conversion last year we rescued a builders bag with about 15cm of sand remaining in the bottom from the skip. We topped this up with the contents of the compost bin and a couple of spent grow bags previously used to grow squashes in. The sides are folded down so it’s just under 40cm deep.

Last year we grew a crop of potatoes in it. This year we have the most fantastic crop of cut and come again salad leaves. It’s right outside our front door and much more convenient for salad picking than a 15 minute round trip to the allotment.

What a great idea!

Nicole - How buying behaviour has changed

When consumers are out shopping, they are looking for entertainment; they expect more engagement and relevant offers from brands and retailers.   Brands should offer a product experience to enhance the consumers’ buying decision.

Shoppers can use multi-sensory cues with which to evaluate and select or reject products. The way you communicate with your consumers or expose your product can have a big influence on their buying decision. 


The packaging market is getting crowded with several competitive products trying to get a bigger slice of the pie.  The satisfaction of the consumer on use of the packaged product is the primary factor in the decision making process.  The visual aspect has maximum sales appeal.  However, once the visual components of packaging have been fully exploited, the differentiation of brand is dependent upon different sensory aspects.  Researchers have found that vision appeals about 60% of the time in the consumer's decision to buy, smell is the next important sense (almost 45% of the time).  The other sensory aspects that have different ratings on the purchasing decision include sound (40%), taste (30%) and touch (25%).


The use of environmentally friendly favourably certified packaging materials also impacts on the buying decision. 


Appealing to consumers five senses through innovative packaging techniques can result in increased brand loyalty and greater impact at point of sale.  A new kind of thinking is emerging about realising the full potential of packaging and elevating it as one of the most significant marketing tools brand managers have at their disposal.  Packaging with multi-sensory effects provide differentiation on the shelves and target impulse purchases.


Research has proved that addressing several senses at once through product packaging increases consumers' brand loyalty from 30% to 60%, if only one sensory impression is conveyed and recalled then this value is halved.


Nanotechnology, interactive packaging, intelligent and active packaging, multi-sensory packaging and edible packaging are developing innovations that are likely to have an impact on the future of food and drinks packaging.

Absolut has recently created edible flavoured glasses made from agar agar (a vegetarian alternative to gelatine). The flavours of the glasses correspond to the flavour of one of Absolut’s signature cocktails and serve to enhance the flavour of the drink when eaten.

Nicole - Initial Mock ups

Box & Sleeve

Box & sleeve

Box closed

A box shape with more shelf shout?

An alternative top

An interesting fastening

A standard box for die cuttimg

Lidded box

Aerial view!

Base to secure bottles

Nicole - Eco-Friendly Product Groups

Some useful information about the different types of eco-friendly resources available for packaging manufacture.

The more I read about this subject the more interesting it becomes however, it also becomes apparent that the UK are not really geared up for the whole 'environmental' thing.  Information relative to the UK is hard to come by, frustrating to find and the resulting suppliers seem to bw few and far between.  It's a shame that there isn't a UK resource/register available for approved suppliers of 'green', 'environmentally friendly' products.  If the information was more readily available then people might be easier persuaded to consider and then possibly choose the green option.

Nicole - Packaging with seeds

PANGEA ORGANICS

This is the company Pangea Organics and their idea of zero waste packaging.  Their zero waste pulping process is responsible for the 100% post-consumer newsprint boxes used for all of their products.  The boxes contain seeds from different herbs, so that they can be soaked with water and planted in the garden.  What a great idea!

Their company motto is 'Always Beneficial, Never Artificial'.

RESOURCE - DESIGNING SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING BY SCOTT BOYLSTON (LAWRENCE KING PUBLISHING)

Nicole - The WOBO (World Bottle)

John Habraken (Architect) was asked by Alfred Heineken to create a beer bottle that could perform as an architectural building block as a secondary use in developing countries.  it's estimated that 1,000 bottles could construct a 3x3 metre structure.  A great idea but one which Habraken doesn't see a future for.  He thinks that we may end up drinking beer from plastic containers as well as the aluminium ones we use now.

Bottles interlocking

Drawing of how WOBO bottles fit together

House built with reused materials including vehicle parts, oil drums and 60,000 WOBO bottles

RESOURCE - DESIGNING SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING BY SCOTT BOYLSTON (LAWRENCE KING PUBLISHING)

Nicole - Magic Mushrooms!

Great to see that technology is moving forwards and allowing us to consider new sustainable products for packaging.

Nicole - Post Press Finishes & other considerations

After printing there are a range of standard post press operations that take your job from a sheet to a finished product. These can include folding, collating, guillotining, stitching, perfect binding, padding, creasing, drilling, packing and assembly. There are some extra post-press options available, such as embossing, thermography, foil stamping and die cutting that may be used as an added marketing element. If you are considering using one of these it is important to understand their environmental implications.


Embossing - Embossing is the creation of a raised image on paper. A die of the image to be embossed is usually made out of zinc, brass or copper and pressed into the paper. It works beautifully on uncoated paper and is more pronounced on heavier sheet weights. Embossing is a good environmental imprinting alternative because the process uses no chemicals or inks and the die can be stored and reused for other applications.

Thermography - Thermography creates a raised dull or glossy image on paper. It involves coating a slow drying rubber or oil based ink with resinous powder while it is still wet. The sheet is passed through a heat tunnel and the powder melts and fuses with the ink, resulting in a raised image. The heat tunnel in thermography requires a large amount of energy to maintain the high temperature. The heat set resins on paper printed with thermography are not easily recycled, and if they undergo de-inking, they contribute highly to the formation of toxic sludge.

Foil Stamping - Foil stamping imprints paper with a coating of polyester film that is usually shiny and metallic looking. A metal die of the image to be imprinted is created out of zinc, brass or copper and pressed onto the paper. This process does not involve many resources or toxic chemicals and the die can be reused. However, paper with foil stamping is virtually non-recyclable, because the polyester film is almost impossible to remove from the pulp.

Die Cutting - Die cutting involves cutting a specific shape or image into paper. A die is manufactured from zinc, brass or copper and acts a 'cookie cutter'. Die cutting is a relatively environmentally friendly imprinting option because it uses no chemicals or inks and the die can be reused. The trimmed paper that is often treated as waste, can potentially be designed as an extra design element.

Adhesives for binding and labels

The glue used in binding is often a petroleum based rubber glue that emits high amounts of VOCs and is difficult to remove in the de-inking process. Water based glues that emit no VOCs and dissolve in the de-inking process during recycling are available.


Printing Checklist 

For the most eco-friendly printing options:

•    check that the printer has an environmental management system in place

•    check the VOC emission ratings from the printing process - inks, coatings, cleaning solutions, dampening solutions, glues - select minimal or no VOC emissions where possible

•    check that the printer can do digital to plate printing - eliminating film

•    choose vegetable inks with uncoated paper where possible

•    avoid metallic and fluorescent inks as these contain heavy metals

•    choose aqueous varnish over UV coatings and plastic laminate

•    check how the printer recycles and separates solid waste – paper off-cuts, cardboard, printing plates, ink containers, cleaning rags, palettes, screens and metals.

•    choose water based glues

Design Size and Formats 

You can reduce unnecessary paper waste through considering the smallest paper size for each job and the lowest paper weight necessary. Can an A2 poster work as efficiently as an A3 poster? Can an A4, 24 page report be redesigned as an A5 document? Can a 235gsm cover weight be reduced to 150gsm? Can the number of pages be reduced? Your skills as a designer can be incorporated into the template of your documents, to make a more efficient use of space.

Paper sheet sizes are cut according to a standard system of measurements. The most internationally used method is the A format. The proportions of the A formats allow you to divide the sheet into equal parts. An A0 sheet has a surface of 1 square metre and a width to length ratio of 1:2squared. When you divide an A0 sheet in half across the long side, you get 2 x A1 sheets, each with a surface area of half a square metre and the same width to length ratio. The A1 sheet is divided in the same proportion to achieve 2 x A2 sheets and so on.

Check with your printer in the early stage of the design process to discuss their press sheet sizes and an efficient way to set up your job. If your printer has an A0 press, they can tile 16 x A4 pages on 1 sheet, or 32 x A5 pages. If your printer has an A1 press they can tile 8 x A4 sheets on 1 sheet, or 16 x A5 pages. Work out the number of pages in a document based on the proportions of your page size to a sheet.

A printer will also have a bleed area accounted for, so their maximum print area will be slightly greater than the standard sheet sizes.

Sometimes redesigning the dimensions of a job even slightly can result in more pages fitting onto a sheet and paper, film, plates, proofs and ink being saved. For example a 12pp square 210mm x 210mm document would require 2 sheets on an A1 printer. If you were to redesign your page dimensions to 200mm x 200mm, you would be able to fit all 12 pages onto 1 sheet.

If your piece is an unusual size draw a diagram as to how this job can be imposed. Think creatively about adjustments that can be made to get maximum usage of the sheet.

If you do design a job which has unused sheet space, print another job that can fit in the spare space or have your printer save the offcuts and create notepads out of them. This is a great way to save more money and offer free promotions to your clients or for yourself.


Colours

Another easy way to reduce the environmental impact of your design is to minimize the number of ink colours. A good design should not need to rely on using CMYK + 2 specialty colours, or metallic inks and spot laminates to enhance its communicability. Consider your job and be creative with minimising the number of ink colours. Can a 4 colour job be designed as a 2 colour? Can a 2 colour job be designed as a 1 colour? Can die-cutting or embossing replace an ink colour?

Keep your ink coverage minimal in your designs and try to avoid areas of solid colour. The more ink you have on the paper the harder it is to deink in the recycling process and the greater the amount of toxic waste is produced. If you have areas of solid colour consider putting a tone through the colour, such as running the ink colour at 70 per cent.


Bleeds

Bleeds account for images or objects in a design that are supposed to run all the way to the paper's edge. The ink is set to extend beyond the document's frame, which is then trimmed away after printing, creating wasted paper which needs to be deinked if recycled. You can design you job with all objects set within the frame of your document, and specify to your printer to impose the design butted up directly next to each other with a 'single cut' between jobs. This removes the need for a bleed and reduces wasted paper and ink.


Computer Proofing

Do as much proofing as possible on screen. Print on both sides of the paper. Request pdf proofs instead of hard copies, and send artwork electronically to your printer when the file size is small enough. When the file sizes are too large for email use a rewritable CD, or Zip and request that they are returned.


Print Run

There are obvious environmental benefits to printing only the required number of copies. However under-evaluating the print run can lead to reprints which can use more resources in the long run. However, extra prints that never meet the consumer and are disposed of without use are a waste of resources, time, energy and money. Assess the print run required for a job with an informed idea of your audience and distribution mechanism. This requires experience and research. Maintain and update your mailing lists regularly. Target your publications accordingly.


Raising Awarness

Inform your audience of the environmentally sensitive initiatives taken to produce your publication. This can be printed on the publication. Depending on the methods you use, you could include the recycled logo and specify recycled content, including the breakdown of post-consumer and pre-consumer fibres, explain that vegetable based inks were used, or an aqueous varnish. Informed people will look for this information in other printed publications. You can even advise the audience how to extend the life span of the publication by advising them to pass it onto a friend, or how to dispose of it properly, when they are finished with it.


Design Checklist

Before starting a new design, ask the follow questions:

•    Is the design appropriate for the final product?

•    Is there a better way to design this using fewer materials?

•    Are there other ways to deliver this message effectively with less impact on the environment?

•    Can we use recycled materials?

•    What is required to produce this design?

•    How much energy? Pollution? Hazardous Waste?

•    Will the product be used once and thrown away or is it reusable?

•    If it isn't reusable is it recyclable?

•    Is it easy to recycle?

•    Is a printed piece the best way to reach the target market? Could it be replaced with an electronic document, such as a downloadable pdf, website or email? Perhaps a media or radio campaign would be cheaper and more effective?

Paper Selection

Coated Paper

Paper with a coating of clay and other substances that improves reflectivity and ink holdout. Mills produce coated paper in four major categories: cast; gloss; dull; and matte. These papers are used for high quality, high finish publications with full colour images, where image reproduction is at a premium such as product brochures or annual reports.

Uncoated Paper

•          Paper that has not had a final coating applied for smoothness. Uncoated paper is absorbent and soft in appearance. Uncoated papers generally come in two grades, standard or premium. Most of the high percentage recycled papers are uncoated.

•       Bleaching 

•       White paper, produced from tree-coloured fibres, undergoes a bleaching process. In the past chlorine bleaching was the preferred method because it produced the whitest pulp; however it produces organochloride compounds, an extremely toxic carcinogen.

•       Many paper mills have converted their chlorine bleaching to more environmentally-preferable bleaching methods in order to reduce their dioxin emissions.


•       Bleaching methods

•       There are three methods of environmentally preferably bleaching processes:

•       Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) which substitutes more benign compounds such as chlorine dioxide for elemental chlorine gas. Dioxins and other persistent carcinogens still remain in ECF effluent, albeit at significantly lower levels than from chlorine gas based processes. (Rethink Paper)

•       Process Chlorine Free (PCF) which substitutes benign agents such as ozone, hydrogen peroxide, and oxygen, though the pulp may contain recycled or recovered materials that were originally bleached with chlorine. (Rethink Paper)

•       Totally Chlorine Free (TCF) which substitutes more benign agents such as ozone, hydrogen peroxide and oxygen. (Alliance for Environmental Technology)

•       If you require white paper, avoid paper that is bleached with elemental chlorine. Look for a certification stating the bleaching process is either ECF, PCF or TCF.

•       For a paper to claim to be TCF it cannot have utilised any post-consumer recycled paper. If it claims to have recycled content this can only be pre-consumer fibre that the mill would have recycled anyway.