3 Reasons Why Your Marketing Agency Should Offer Packaging Services

Competition for the most lucrative accounts is fierce among marketing agencies, so agencies need to position themselves as the most attractive options to prospective clients. One way to stand out from competitors is to offer comprehensive packaging services, especially if your agency serves clients that sell in the retail market. Here are three powerful reasons why your agency should offer packaging services.

1. Differentiate Your Agency

Simply offering packaging services can differentiate your agency, but you can also stand out in specific sectors by catering to packaging niches.

• If you’re known as the expert in your niche, you can attract highly targeted clients
• Consider starting in a market that has few packaging regulations to nail down your process, then expand into additional markets
• Example packaging niches include luxury brands, sustainable packaging, child safety packaging, medical and pharmacy, electronics, cannabis, breweries, and more

By offering packaging services, you’re also showcasing your knowledge of branding and consumer psychology. That’s a powerful way to convince prospects your agency is the best for their needs because:

• Packaging influences brand perception and buying decisions. On the Thrive By Design podcast, Hidden Path Creative designer Kelley Kempe states that 72% of people buy because of packaging
• Packaging is a sales tool that elevates perceived value. People buy the packaging, not the product. As the podcast points out, you can see an example of this in the grocery store when you reach for the box behind the damaged box
• Packaging creates recognition, memorability, and an unforgettable unboxing experience. You only need to look at the popularity of YouTube unboxing videos to see how a beautiful presentation and neat organization enhance the customer experience. People will even post products on social media if you capture that unboxing experience successfully, and this is free marketing for your brand
• Packaging can promote other products, services, and ideas. When you print your website URL and QR codes on packaging, it can bridge to your digital marketing resources: websites, videos, apps, recycling instructions, sustainability education, and more

Of course, not all packaging is designed for aesthetics and marketing. Savvy agencies know that packaging often has multiple layers. For example, a $10,000 piece of jewelry might be packaged in a beautiful box for the retail shelf, but that box might be packaged in a discreet unmarked box to prevent theft during shipping. As an agency, you can share that wisdom with your clients, further cementing your position as the best option for their needs.

2. Be a One-Stop Shop

Not every agency offers packaging services, which means clients must often work with multiple agencies and coordinate projects between them. That adds an unnecessary layer of complexity many clients would prefer not to deal with.

Offering packaging services allows your agency to be a one-stop shop, simplifying the process for clients and making you more attractive.

• You can offer packaging design, printing, and production (with the right partners)
• This grants your agency a competitive advantage over agencies that can’t offer packaging services
• It also provides an excellent upsell opportunity, providing a path to boost agency revenue

In addition, being a one-stop shop enables your agency to develop highly integrated marketing campaigns with consistent messaging and branding between all mediums – packaging, print, and digital – making you even more attractive to potential clients.

3. Greater Profits and Revenue

Offering packaging services also presents opportunities to earn more revenue and increase profits.

• As a full-service agency, you can earn revenue from the entire project rather than share it with other agencies. Additional services mean additional revenue
• Packaging creates opportunities for your agency by helping you attract clients you might not otherwise get
• Those clients are likely to hire your agency for other services, too

Thus, a single packaging project could open doors for long-term relationships with clients you wouldn’t have been able to land if you didn’t offer packaging.