O-I: Bottle Aesthetics Matter: How They Can Help Your Brand

Among the most well-known proverbs is: “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” The meaning, of course, is that it’s the content that truly matters. And while there is much truth in those words, the rub is that people judge books by their covers all the time. That’s why cover art and design are such critical elements in sales.

This is doubly true for packaging. Food and beverages, much more so than books, are often impulse buys. Moreover, you can judge a beverage by its packaging — if that packaging is a true reflection of the brand. Glass, with its myriad options for shape and color, not to mention its purity, is one of the very best ways to communicate to your customers, in an instant, the very essence of your brand.

Shape

Shape can communicate a great deal. A slender, curved shape, for example, can project a feeling of elegance and softness. A square, hard-edged shape, on the other hand, can communicate power and confidence. One of the great strengths of glass is that it can be molded into a nearly endless variety of shapes and sizes. Think about the image you’d like your beverage or food brand to project. More than likely there’s a bottle shape to match.

Color

How important is color? Important enough that there are entire professions, and even businesses, devoted to its study. Color communicates emotion. Moreover, what certain colors communicate can shift over time. Until the 1920s, for example, pink was considered a masculine color. One of the great things about glass is that the material itself can be infused with color, or no color at all, to help your product communicate its essence.

Etching & Embossing

Glass is a flexible and malleable material, ideal for artistic expression. Embossing, for example, allows you to create a label or graphic design element from the glass itself. Glass can also be etched at varying levels of opaqueness, allowing you to veil or create windows to the product inside. Depending on the type of etching and/or embossing you do, you can create a very modern, progressive look for your packaging; an old-fashioned, retro look; or anything in between.

Labeling

Just about any type of label you can think of can be achieved with glass. We’ve already touched on how embossing can create a label from the glass itself. You can also print directly on glass in a variety of finishes, from flat to glossy to metallic. And, of course, you can glue a traditional paper label onto glass. You can even do a combination: the possibilities are virtually endless.

Should your customers judge your product by its packaging? Maybe not. But the fact is, they will. Use that to your advantage by using glass to create a container that helps your brand’s essence and personality leap off the store shelf.