Seasonal may be more effective than holiday packaging

With the holidays approaching, there are a lot of ways to consider using the seasonal cheer to spruce up your custom labels. It seems like almost every product in existence has some sort of holiday or winter-themed label on the shelves by November, and for some of the more creative strategies, these specialty packages can actually work.

For instance, Oreo is taking its holiday packaging a step beyond the rest to gain new attention this season. The design capitalizes on an adult coloring book trend and incorporates digital interaction in order to create buzz. Its “#Colorfilled” campaign invites customers in the U.S. to personalize their own Oreo package online, either for themselves or as a gift. Participants can customize with color, graphics and a recipient’s name to give the package a creative, personal touch.

Coca-Cola is also continuing its own holiday tradition of appropriately themed cans and bottles, this time with seasonal “Share a Coke” offerings, featuring such catch phrases as “Someone Nice” and “Under the Mistletoe.”

While a lot of bigger companies like Oreo and Coca-Cola take this time of year as an opportunity to create holiday-specific marketing campaigns, some experts would argue that this strategy isn’t so business-savvy. Grimes Packaging created an infographic explaining that holiday packaging doesn’t work as well as seasonal packaging.

In the infographic, Grimes tells the cautionary tale of Hershey’s in 2011, which learned the hard way that Halloween holiday packaging isn’t as cost-effective as seasonal packaging. Because the holidays come and go a lot quicker than the seasons do, having packing that isn’t so holiday-specific helps companies avoid post-holiday discounting and extends the shelf life of the product.

Whether you decide to go holiday or seasonal for your specialty packaging this winter, your best investment will be your own printer for custom labels. At DuraFast, we carry a wide selection of printers and printing supplies to help your labels stand out for all the right reasons. Contact us today to learn more about how a flexible printing solution can take your marketing efforts to the next level.