Your cannabis packaging design plays an essential role in your branding. Good packaging design helps you get noticed. It tells prospective customers who you are and gives them some insight into what they can expect from the products inside. The following nine tips can help you create truly distinct packaging for your cannabis products that go beyond visual appeal and offer something more.
Note: Every state has different rules and regulations regarding cannabis packaging. Be sure to review your state (and local) laws before you start designing your packaging.
1. Offer a Look Inside
Rather than making your customers wait until they get home to see what lies inside your cannabis packaging, provide a sneak peek with a cutout window or clear section of the jar. That allows them to see what they’re getting and assess the quality and integrity of the item(s) before they check out.
2. Pay Attention to the Internal Packaging
While the exterior of your packaging matters — after all, it attracts the attention of your target audience — don’t neglect the interior. Consider a print or color scheme that matches the outside. Convey a message that coincides with the product and your brand. Or, if the product has multiple components, use cutouts to showcase each one neatly.
3. Consider Texture
Your customers interact with your cannabis packaging physically as well as visually. Create a multisensory experience every time they handle a package with tactile design elements, such as:
- Raised text or patterns (embossing)
- Engraved text or patterns (debossing)
- Matte finishes
- Foil treatments
4. Give Packaging Another Purpose
Customers often toss the packaging materials after they open their products, which can create a lot of waste. Stand out and reduce your environmental impact with reusable cannabis packaging designs. Glass jars can become candle holders. Pop tubes make great storage containers for small items like cotton swabs or hair ties. A biodegradable box could be a seed starter pot. Consider a blog post — or series of articles — to share the many uses for your packaging.
5. Collaborate With Local Artists
Reach out to local artists and ask if they’d like to work with you on your packaging. It’s a great way to get unique, limited-run designs that can attract customers and encourage them to buy. At the same time, you get to support members of your community.
6. Make Packages Like Collectibles
Along the same lines, consider your packaging as a collectible item. Change your design periodically to coincide with the season, holidays, or promotions. The limited-time nature of each design can encourage customers to buy, especially if they can display it or use it in other ways.
7. Use Unique Shapes
Unique and unusual shapes are a great way to set yourself apart in a sea of rectangular boxes and circular jars. They also add a touch of fun to your cannabis packaging design. While you want to keep your brand in mind, don’t be afraid to try something different.
8. Personalize It
Personalized or customized packaging refers to packaging made to fit your products. It gives you an alternative to ready-made materials that you need to work around. Customized packaging will protect your products while also helping to reinforce your brand identity, helping you to be more memorable.
9. Try Interactive Designs
Fun, interactive elements like pull tabs and pop-ups turn the unboxing of your products into an experience. You could also try incorporating augmented reality (AR) technology. Add a QR code to your packages that customers can scan with their phones to interact further with your brand.
Make Your Cannabis Packaging Design as Unique as Your Brand
Knowing how to make a good packaging design is critical for making your brand memorable and setting yourself apart from your competitors. HIGHOPES is here to help. We’ll work with you every step of the way to ensure your cannabis packaging is distinct and effective. Visit us online to learn more about our packaging design process, and schedule your consultation today!
