Marketers have long used animals to make an emotional connection with their customers or hint at certain qualities that they want consumers to associate with their products. Think about the Energizer bunny, for instance. We have all come to associate Energizer with this animal over the years thanks to the advertisements that have shown the two items side by side. Though rabbits are not known to live long, when the ad tells us that Energizer batteries keep going and going, few of us raise any objection. This is probably because we (men included) have developed an emotional attachment with the cute bunny in a vest and black shorts. The emotional bond becomes even stronger when animal in question has a name and a story behind it. Making the animal a character in a story humanises it and makes it easier to relate with. The Energizer bunny ran a marathon against other inferior bunnies and won. This was a master stroke as we all want to be associated with winners.

Freddo was the product of such an attempt to give animals human characteristics and emotions so that consumers will want to relate with them consciously or unconsciously. The smiling frog is very inviting, especially in the eyes of children who are probably the main target of the product’s manufacturers. To portray the energy-giving qualities of the dairy milk chocolate, the frog is appears full of energy and vitality. We also know of these amphibians’ ability to hop about energetically. Frogs can be frightening creatures for kids, especially when found in places they shouldn’t be. To temper this negative quality the frog in question is not only given a name and human features, it is dressed in a yellow shirt and purple trousers. Its webbed feet are hidden in flat shoes. Kids love colours and will naturally be attracted to a smiling, friendly frog dressed in such extravagant colours.

Animals are also used to appeal to men. A number of beer producers use lions and other such animals known for aggression and strength on their packaging to communicate these qualities to potential buyers. Whenever you see an animal on a package, know it’s not there by chance, somebody spent sleepless nights wondering how to best capture your attention and came up with that lion or bunny.

Social media is by far the dominant force in the internet today. Basically, the few social media sites are capable of drawing in hundreds of millions of users every day. There is no question, then, as to why businesses all strive to establish an advertising base in the social media. Indeed, if you wish to improve your ecommerce sales, then you have to make sure that you connect yourself with the social media, because connecting to these means connecting to the hundreds of millions who use it.

There are several social media sites which you need to have access to. Basically, you be able to access these, you have to make accounts.

First is the largest social media in the world, Facebook. Facebook actually allows business to create unique business pages which would allow you to reach out to their clients which are now close to a billion. With a fee, you will be able to advertise as well in order to make you more visible to others.

The second is Twitter. The users of this social media site are slowly increasing at a significant rate. Failure to create an account on Twitter can be your downfall.

Youtube, of course, cannot be ignored. As a matter of fact, there are some experts who say that Youtube is the meat of all your advertising platforms. Indeed, it is understandable why. Basically, with this website, you will be able to post your advertisements for free. And, if you have a very clever advertising with excellent use of SEO and other traffic-attracting techniques, you would surely drive in millions of subscribers.

linkedIn is another connectivity site which allows professionals to connect with each other. Use this in order to connect with other businessmen in order to share information or make deals.

At any rate, you have to be extremely careful. You have to create unique passwords for each of your account in order to minimize the chances of your accounts being hacked. There are a lot of people out there with malicious intents in their minds other than simply generating ecommerce sales.

Brand image is probably one of the most important things when it comes to making sure that you and your company makes money. Basically, your brand image is critical in the amount of money that pours in to your coffers. Of course, the effects may not be immediately felt. But, the effects will actually be longer lasting. How people see your brand is an automatic measure if it will be a success or not.

So, how can you make sure that people have a look impression of your brand? Here are some tips.

First impressions last. You have to understand well that the saying ‘first impression lasts’ applies much to your brand. That being said, it is important that you make sure that your brand is good the first time it comes out. You have to make people think that your product is one of a kind and that it will offer solutions to problems that no other product of the same kind can offer. Failure to establish a good impression at the beginning will tantamount to failure in most cases.

Be credible. Of course, you have to make sure that your customers get what they expect. If your advertising worked, then you have to make sure that you deliver what your brand has promised. Your clients would have high expectations, you have to keep up to or even surpass these expectations. Basically, this also means that do not try to bloat your advertising. In other words, do not advertise for the sake of mere expounding your brand’s name. You have to advertise in order for people to know what your product can do.

Advertise clearly. Advertising is undeniably a very important phase in establishing a brilliant company or product image. Experienced businessmen would know all too well that advertising can be boon or bane to businesses. Basically, the trick is to make sure that you are not carried away by the ‘promise of advertising.’ Some companies which have failed met their sad fate precisely because they advertised so much that they ended up deceiving the buying public. This is a big no-no in business; advertise clearly, advertise properly.

Be consistent. Customers do not just like consistency, they need it. Whatever you are offering which attracts clients, stick with it. Do not offer things at one time and then pull them out of reach the next. This is bad for you and your business. If you are in the restaurant or fast food business, when you have come up with a recipe that people love, stick with it. This does not mean that you do not innovate.

Compel your clients. This merely means that you have to ensure that your advertising and all other efforts in promoting your brand image is aimed at actually attracting clients.  

There is little doubt that cardboard boxes are by far the most popular of all the packing materials. After all, goods of all shapes and sizes can all make use of the box as a packing material. No matter how far or how long the journey might be, the box is always the ideal tool to use.

We all know that the box comes in many sizes. As a matter of fact, they do come in many several shapes, mainly to accommodate the goods. But, are there other uses of the box? The truth of the matter is that the boxes are actually very popular precisely because they do have a lot of uses. Here are the top 5 most unusual and most extraordinary uses of the box:

1. Fort. Well, we are not talking here about the big war-like for the military. Although, the idea is pretty much the same, in playful terms. Children love to play in forts. This gives them the sort of independence from the home without being actually out of the house. How is this possible? First, you need to have an extensive collection of many boxes. The trick is to connect the boxes so that they form one unit with passages inside. Children love these a lot.
2. Toy box. Many homes make use of the boxes as toy box. This is especially true with new families. Why would you buy an expensive toy organizer if you have a very cheap yet reliable cardboard box?
3. Tool organizer. Whether you believe it or not, you can use the box as a, well, tool box. Of course, you have to be careful. It is advised that you modify your intended box so that they become thicker and stronger.
4. Toys. Small boxes can actually be used as toys. If you are a very creative person, you will be able to come up with unique toys like robots or guns without spending a dime.
5. Paper organizer. The box is as helpful at home as it is in the office. Documents which are in bulk are best placed in CARDBOARD BOXES for better organization. 

Padded envelopes are among the most commonly used packing materials anywhere in the world. As such, it is quite normal to find thousands of these in the market.

People normally prefer them over other types of envelopes because of a variety of reasons. First, the envelope with padding actually offers more protection than the packing materials of the same category. The envelope with padding is named as such since the envelope is uniquely made in order to give the aforementioned protection. The moment you take hold of the envelope, you would already know that it is different from all the others; it is thick and somewhat heavy. This extra thickness and weight are actually due to the fact that the envelope actually consists of a double-walling which constitutes a special material within the envelope which acts as cushion.

The second reason why people prefer the envelope with padding is because it looks a tad more formal. Sending important documents and other crucial items  cannot be done with an ordinary envelope – special documents need a special form of packaging material, and that material is the envelope with padding.

But, the question posed in the title is whether it is wiser to make use of the gold or white envelope with padding. The answer is: it all depends. It depends on your actual intention. For instance, if you wish to bring up a light mood, you might want to make use of the gold envelope with padding. Christmas, Thanksgiving, and other special occasions sure can see good use of this type of envelope with padding.

On the other hand, the white envelope with padding is more formal. As such, in formal transactions, stick with the white padded envelopes. Of course, this is not to say that the golden ones are not good. Every now and then, especially during special days, you might want to try an envelope of a different color.

Human beings are creatures that love variety. It is said that variety is the spice of life. This statement may seem to be inclined towards recreation and entertainment but it actually revolves around all of man’s activities. Man needs variety in all his endeavours so as to have the desire to trudge on. Variety brings about adventure; it brings about new challenges and also creates hope. If everything was the same day in day out, life would be so boring and we would not have anything to live for. We inject this idea of variety even in work. We have a wide variety of choices to make regarding a lot of things including minor things such as what kind of envelope to use for different purposes.

Envelopes are used widely for storage and for packaging of flat materials. They have been used for many decades now and have proved to be invaluable due to their convenience and their efficiency. There are several type of envelopes that have been designed. The different designs are supposed to help in the packaging of: different kinds of documents, documents of different sizes, documents of different thickness, and documents of different quality. Some of the envelopes are also made for different kinds of occasions.

Image from Google

The envelope that is used the most is the commercial envelope. It has a size ranging from 3.5” by 6” by 11.5”. These envelopes are usually used to send documents such as invoices, cheques, bills, and formal and informal letters. There is also the catalogue envelope that has a size of 6” by 9” the suggested enclosure size is 5.75” by 8.75” but this size varies depending on the insert thickness. These envelopes are designed with a centre seam that makes them stronger to package heavier materials such as catalogues and booklets.

We also have the booklet envelopes that have a side seam. They have a size of 4.75” by 6.5” with an enclosure size of 4.5” by 6” that varies depending on the insert thickness. These envelopes are ideal for annual reports, sales materials and brochures. There is another type of envelope known as the baronial envelope. It has a deep triangular flap and the envelope has diagonal seams. The envelope was traditionally used to mail business announcements, to send greeting cards and to send invitations. There are many kinds of baronial envelopes each with a different size; the professional baronial envelope has a size of 2.125” by 3.625”.

There are many other kinds of envelopes in the market and one can even make their own custom made envelopes. The aim is to usually get an envelope that will best package your material and give optimum protection.

Moving house is something that many people dread. Apart from the fact that not many people appreciate change, the whole process is tedious and can be overwhelming especially if one has a lot of household stuff. The main issue is normally packing the items and the approach one has to follow. One can easily get demoralized when they see the many tiny things around the house that will need to be packed. Packaging is also another issue; how are the many different objects going to be packed? What is one going to use and where will they get them from? Removal boxes are usually the best solution for moving house. This is due to the many advantages and benefits they have.

The removal boxes are easily available. One can get many removal boxes from the retail stores where they are sold at very low prices or even given away for free. Here one can also get boxes of different size which is a crucial thing when it comes to packing items of different sizes and weight. The boxes are also preferred since they are strong enough to be able to hold items securely and give much needed protection from damage that may be caused by outside forces such as scratches, shock and will even provide security.

Image from Google

Once one has acquired several removal boxes of different sizes, then one is ready to begin packing. The first step is to plan how to pack. The best approach for packing when moving house is to pack items room by room starting with the rooms that are secondary to the daily activities i.e. rooms that do not offer basic daily functionality e.g. library, play rooms etc. The last rooms should probably be the bedroom and kitchen.

When packing, each removal box should be labelled. The labelling should indicate what the contents are in detail and it should also indicate from which room the contents have been taken. The labelling is very important because it helps when it comes to knowing where each box will go to in the new house. It will also help those who are helping in moving to know the fragile and the hardy items. It will also help in knowing how the boxes will be stacked in the moving vehicle. Hardy items are put at the bottom and the fragile items at the top to avoid them being crushed.

Recently there has been some really great packaging design around the web and it is about time that we have a look at some of the best.

Image from Packaging of the World

This packaging design is very exciting. Nutella is an iconic brand well known as a favourite for breakfast, on toast and for snacks on sandwich. Nutella is very much a one product hit however and its classic clear jar and white pop off lid are iconic. Branching out could be a negative thing for the brands image however this packaging places them in the luxury breakfast bar section. Beautifully designed to make it look more special than just a box of bread and chocolate products. The bag/box shape has been made to look like a paper bag of baguettes and really makes an impression.

Image from The Die Line

If you haven't seen Mad Men, the hit american show don't worry (but you should). Set in 1960's New York it has all the allure of a different time and Estée Lauder has captured that in their new makeup range to commemorate the start of the new season. The packaging and style of all the products in this range are all taken from original 60's Estée Lauder packaging and so look really authentic!

Image from The Die Line

The Cat's Lunch packaging is completely different to any other packaging design I have seen, it takes a whole new approach to cat food. Working on the principle of mice, which give a great level of food nutrients for cats. The adorable mouse drawings look fantastic but the clever element to this design is actually the perforated lines that separate the rows of mice. These signify the position size of this unusually style of cat food. It has been packed into a sausage like container and the serving can then be sliced and unwrapped for your cat to nom. Like nothing I have ever seen before!

Grip seal bags are a very popular choice for people when it comes to the packaging of many kinds of materials. This bag whose outstanding attribute is the strong self seal strip has many advantages. The bag is air tight when sealed and will therefore also not allow water or vapour in or out of the bag. This bag is also made from some very strong polyethylene material that is resistant to many adverse forces such as tear, puncture, and abrasion forces. The bag is mostly made in a transparent plastic that makes it easy for one to see the contents of the bag. These bags are used to store several things including foodstuffs, small office items such as pins and staples, hardware items such as screws and buttons. The bags can also be used to package liquids including blood in hospitals.

Grip seal bags are also known as Ziploc bags. Proper Ziploc bags utilise a blue sliding tab which is the zip. Grip seal bags on the other hand have ridges on the inside of the bag’s opening that interlock. The invention of these bags was enabled by the previous invention of polyethylene bags which was in the early 1950’s. Ziploc bags history can be traced back to 1951 when the company Flexigrip was formed with the intention of developing and marketing a plastic zipper. The invention of this zipper had been purchased from the inventor who was Borge Madsen who had also patented the invention. In 1961, Flexigrip Inc. obtained exclusive manufacturing and selling rights for the United States for the Minigrip plastic zipper bag. Thecompany bought these rights from a Japanese company Seisan Nippon Sha who had invented the bag and had patented the innovation. After getting the rights, a company was formed that was to concentrate its efforts in the production and marketing of the Minigrip zipper bags. Around 1964, Minigrip Inc. then got an exclusive license that would then allow the bags to be used in the grocery trade especially in the supermarkets. This was done with the Dow chemical Company which then named the product Ziploc bags.

From its invention, the grip seal bags have continuously grown in popularity and this is due to some outstanding attributes including its cost effectiveness and efficiency. The materials that are used to make the bags are easily available and are not costly. Despite their being cheap, the bag has outstanding quality. The bag is also very durable.

Moving home is a stressful time that everyone wishes they could delegate the responsibility to someone else but they ultimately end up doing themselves or if they get help, they still stick around to supervise and manage. This is because moving home is one of those sensitive things that need a personal touch or otherwise they may end up in chaos or the owner may end up losing many of their valued possessions. The individual homeowner knows best what they have in the house and also knows best the worth of their belongings hence they are best suited to know how to handle the moving. They should also know what goes into each of the boxes so that they will have an easy time unpacking.

When using the boxes to pack the home items, one should use a careful and knowledgeable approach so as to provide the best protection for the items. This is so as to have the smoothest operation that would make the whole process faster. For example, one should not pack heavy items into big boxes; this is because the bigger the box, the easier it will be for the box to break when carrying heavy things. The box may also prove to be too heavy to carry if it is too heavy. When moving many items, it is better to handle small manageable loads than big heavy loads that might bring around fast exhaustion or even lead to injury.

The owner should also take extra effort when selecting boxes to use for moving. They should try and get the sturdiest boxes available. Sturdy boxes are less likely to crumble under pressure and will hence still provide protection in the harshest of conditions. Boxes with sturdy walls are also less affected by wetness. Boxes are normally affected by moisture since the walls absorb the wetness and this makes them soggy and may eventually disintegrate. Sturdy walls will not absorb the moisture as easily as the weaker walls.

When moving home also there are several boxes that will be used. It is inevitable that we may need to stack boxes on top of each other so as to maximise on space usage. When the boxes are stacked up in this way, the boxes that are below will experience a lot of pressure and if they are not strong enough they could burst or the walls might collapse. Sturdy walls would offer a better opportunity to stack them better.