Traditionally, package design has been very product-focused in nature: design decisions were largely driven by factors that improved shelf life, reduced damage or cost or enhanced production efficiencies. Although these are, and will always be, important drivers in packaging design decisions, more and more frequently packaging designers are also employing a user-centered approach. When viewed through the lens of consumer insights, packaging has the potential for value add, becoming more than a commodity driven necessity.
The user-driven trend is driven by varied factors, including: the aging population, changing social constructs through which we view disability, increasing competition at the store shelf, escalating consumer demands and the sustainability movement. However, designing for consumer needs (some of which may be unrecognized by consumer's themselves) can be a daunting task. When using a product-centered approach, methods are both more prevalent and standardized - we know how to evaluate and measure the effect of a design change. In the world of consumer insights, all too frequently, the tools employed are qualitative in nature and universal standards do not exist.
In this webinar, we will present a frame and several methods for characterizing consumer decision making. We will explain the Human Processing Information Model (HPIM) as a means of organizing the decision making process into discrete factors for the purpose of designing or evaluating packaging and labeling. Several methods to quantify the varying stages of the HPIM will be shown and discussed. Limited research results from different studies in Food & Beverage and Pharmaceuticals will be presented for the purpose of enhancing understanding of presented methods.
Laura Bix,
Associate Professor- Michigan State University School of Packaging
Dr. Bix is an associate professor at the School of Packaging at Michigan State University and an adjunct associate at Clemson University. She leads MSU's Packaging HUB, a research group that focuses on improving healthcare by quantifying the perceptual, cognitive and physical interfaces between people and packaging.
In the Spring of 2014 her team was recognized with Phi Kappa Phi's Excellence in Interdisciplinary Research Award, and in 2008 she was named one of the 100 most notable people in the medical device industry by Medical Devices and Diagnostics Industry.
She has served as an expert to the PROTECT and PROTECT Rx initiatives, part of the CDCs Medication Safety Program, since 2012. She serves as a member of an expert panel convened by the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) and the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) which is investigating decision making in older adults administering OTC drugs. Work produced by her team has been widely published, appearing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United States and PLoS One, among others.
Dennis E. Young,
Specialist
Mr. Young is a graduate of the MSU School of Packaging and has over 40 years of experience in the packaging field, working for IBM, Lansmont Corporation and as an independent consultant. He has taught full time in the Rochester Institute of Technology Packaging Science program and, since 2007, at the MSU School of Packaging. He is a Certified Packaging Professional, a Fellow Member of the Institute of Packaging Professionals and has received the R. David LeButt Award for packaging education and is a 2009 inductee into the Packaging Hall of Fame. At MSU he teaches courses in packaging graphics and the application of technology tools to packaging structure, graphics and evaluation.
Susie Stitzel,
Solution Manager – Packaging Lifecycle Management
Susie is Esko's Solution Manager for Packaging Lifecycle Management, responsible for the creation of packaging management solutions for brand owners and design agencies. She has been with Esko for 19 years and has over 25 years of experience in the packaging industry. She also assists universities and schools in packaging curriculum development. Susie has been a frequent speaker at major industry events for the Paperboard Packaging Council, Flexographic Technical Association, Sustainable Packaging Coalition, Brand Protection Conference and the Packaging Design and Development Forum.
- Understand the Human Processing Information Model and how it can benefit the design and evaluation of packaging and labels
- Review of methods that can be used to evaluate the impact of packaging on consumers
- Assess what stage of the HPIM model each of the presented methods analyzes
- Review consumer insights from research in Food & Beverage and Pharmaceuticals
- Brand Managers
- VP/Director of Packaging
- Creative Director
- VP/Director of Innovation
- Heads of Packaging
