Packaging 101 for Premium Soaps

Packaging is the first thing customers see even before they can experience your product's quality. And when it comes to soap, packaging matters more than ever. Because much detail is given to the soap production, sometimes, the actual packaging and its design are left with zero creativity. 

Essential for hygiene purposes, soaps are needed by everyone. You use soap for bathing, washing, and cleaning. Due to its importance, there is enough competition in the soap industry and one of the ways to stand out is through your packaging.

A premium packaged soap instills immense trust in consumers right at the store shelf. The packaging can play a tremendous role in creating a strong perception of your brand among the most discerning buyers of premium soaps. To make an impact, your soap needs a high-quality container and label with a clear message. If the product caters to the high-end market, you must show consumers that it's worth the investment. Here are some tips to position your soaps with premium packaging.

Factors To Consider in Packaging Premium Soaps

To make your packaging attractive, there are a few considerations to make. Though the soap might be of good quality, without an attractive packaging, your target customers may ignore it for a more eye-catching package. Below are some of these considerations.

Style of Soap Packaging

Gable boxes: These little gable boxes are very strong, despite being made from paper. They're easy to store, ship and recycle, making them a favorite among eco-conscious manufacturers. This design would be perfect for soaps that are sold in pairs or sets of three.

Shrink Band Soap Packaging: To protect your premium soap from damage due to excess handling, you can consider using shrink bands. These wrappings also help to improve customer trust in your soap quality. Some shrink bands such as PVC film tuck in the scent of your soap within, while others like Polyolefins allow it to come through. Note however that a shrink band can cause your soap to sweat if the soap is not yet cured completely.

Soap Box Packaging: Instead of spending time wrapping your premium soap in shrink bands and tissue, you can use custom soap boxes. Soap boxes can be made of recycled or cardboard materials. They are affordable and can be retail-bought. By using quality and durable soap boxes, you protect your soaps from deformation and contamination. Full cover custom soap boxes also give you enough space to brand and label the product. Soap boxes do not have to be rectangular, and they may have windows and cutouts so that the customer can check out the scent and soap design easily.

Soap Cigar Band Labels: Cigar band labels for soap packaging involve using a cut-out cardboard label around the width or length of the soap. The cigar band paper can be designed according to choice. This style allows the customer to be influenced by the scent and look of the soap before buying.

Half Box Soap Packaging: A half-box soap packaging consists of a box without a covering. With a half-box, part of the soap remains open to be touched and the other part is in a pocket. Half-box soap packaging is useful when you would rather show off and advertise your product. For example, if you are a new brand, half-box packaging allows your potential customers to not just know about your confidence in your product, but also to decide the quality for themselves.

The half-box is also a sustainable package because it reduces packaging material and cost. Less material means less weight, making the product easy to transport from one location to another.

Naked: Although packaging your soap gives you creativity in design, you can choose to not package the soap and sell it as-is. The problem with zero packaging is that it offers no protection to the product and potential customers may not appreciate the openness.

Tins: Tins are perfect if you want to offer refill soap bars. You can use round or rectangular tins to showcase your packaging skills. But you may have to consider inner packaging such as using clear cellophane or other soap bags, before using the tin.

Soap Bags: One of the easiest ways of packaging soap is using a bag. You can custom design your own bag or buy from a supplier. You can choose between cotton muslin printed, organza, paper, and burlap bags. If you want to show off your soap, but still keep it protected, you can use clear cellophane bags.

Size and Shape of Soap

Shape: Create a unique shape for your soap package. You can get soap boxes that are in shapes other than square or rectangular. Look for boxes in oval, star, leaf, or triangular shapes. Unique, irregular shapes on the soap and its package will catch the interest of the customer even before they have made up their mind to buy the soap.

Size: You can decide to have different sizes of soap based on the function and your target audience. The soap size will determine the packaging involved. For instance, a cigar band should be able to hold the product without it slipping off. Also, too much air space within a soap box is plain wastage and not sustainable at all.

Packaging Design and Creating Soap Labels

The designs that flaunt your soap packaging work is as good as the packaging itself. Your label design can make your product more or less appealing. It can also make it look more upper-class than the product actually is. If you would rather not do the design yourself, there are editable and printable labels that are available online. Also, you can have the labels designed, printed, and shipped to you.

The label on your soap shows who you are and what your brand has to offer. Without a label, your product looks unattractive and may not communicate its value. Soap labels help your customers know what they are buying. Here are a few considerations to make when designing your soap label.

Quality of Label

When picking your soap label, go for a durable, non-toxic, and high-quality material that will last depending on the style of package you choose. The right label should be resistant to water, oil, tear, heat, and chemical degradation. It should also be easy to print or write on.

Color Scheme

The color of the soap, as well as that of the package, can play a role in convincing customers to patronize you. You can use different colors to illustrate the different fragrances of your soap.

Choice of Font

Often, you need to write the name of your soap and the ingredients used on the package. For this, choose font sizes that are clear from a distance and can pass across the message you are sending.

Use of Images

Images are a good way of sending across your message and making your soap labels stand out. An image creates a visual attraction to the soap packaging.

Texture

To get a unique label, look for a texture that provides a shiny finish. Textures include matte, gloss, and soft touch. Any of these textures will give you a smooth surface with an elegant look. One way to achieve the design texture you want is by using foil accents. 

Type of Soap

The type of soap you are packaging will determine the package and design it requires. For instance, a liquid soap needs a plastic kind of package, unlike a bar soap which can be in a paper or cellophane bag.

Information Found on Soap Label

After you have decided on the design to go with, you are ready to get started. However, what information should be on your package? Below are the necessary points to note.

Logo: Your brand logo should go on the package to differentiate your product from others. Along with the logo, you should include the business name, address, website, and phone number. 

Identity of your soap: The ingredients and your identity statement on the label on the soap can communicate whether it is a cosmetic, drug, or just soap.

Ingredient list: Although not always required, a list of the ingredients you used for the soap making is necessary to promote trust among your customers. It also helps alert customers in case of allergies and sensitivities. People want to know what makes up the product they are putting on their bodies. So, rather than mar you, your transparency can build up your brand.

Net weight of the product: The new weight of the soap must be identified on the label. Note that although this is often an approximate value, the net weight shouldn't be misleading.

Importance of Soap Packaging

Packaging your premium soap in a unique way:

• Helps you gain the trust and loyalty of the customer.
• Gives you space to include necessary information about the soap.
• Protects your soap from contamination and damage during shipping.
• Protects the soap from damage due to overhandling.
• Allows you to grab the attention of customers, get visibility, and make a sale.
• Improves the appearance and attractiveness of the product.
• Increases the shelf life and appeal of the product.
• Makes the soap easy and convenient to handle.
• By packaging the product in different sizes, you also get to meet the varying demands of consumers.

Incorporate Sustainable Practices into the Packaging of Premium Soaps

Commitment to sustainability while maintaining aesthetics is a goal for brands in the soap industry. It has become vital that soap brands realize the effects of the choice of packaging on the environment. And as such, they need to look at new ways to help the environment in the packaging techniques. Apart from reducing the carbon footprint of the brand, sustainable packaging also enables brands to improve either image as more costumes are interested in eco-friendly packaging. To maintain eco-friendly packaging, here are some tips to consider.

Use Sustainable Material 

Instead of using plastic wrappings, soap brands can consider finding sustainable packaging that is functional and aesthetically appealing. The package can be made from recycled soap packages. The gable box soap package is a good idea of a sustainable material. Recycled glass and bamboo are also considered good sustainable materials.

Kraft paper is another sustainable material that the world cannot get enough of. The fact that it is completely made out of 100% recycled material makes it the best eco-friendly packaging for soap. Although a brown paperboard, its use is versatile. It is durable, natural, and thick to accommodate windows and cutouts. Also, you can print any color or design on it.

Use Refillable and Reusable Soap Packages

A good example of this tip is soap tins and bags. By using refillable soap packages, you can reduce the number of plastic wrappings and other non-biodegradable materials disposed of daily.

Use Less Packaging

Brands can opt for less or naked packaging. Examples of less packaging are the half-box, cigar band, and shrink wrap. Less packaging reduces manufacturing costs and makes the product more accessible to customers.

Conclusion

Packaging is really important because it's one of the very few things that consumers interact with twice. Once in the store, once at home. And that second touch is often even more important than the first. Because you've got to show more clearly, who you are and why they should care.

At Arka we help create a package that promotes the soap and speaks of its elegance. This will attract target customers and make them loyal to your product. The packaging should, however, not lie about the actual product. In soap packaging, transparency counts. This is because once the customer is not satisfied with the actual product, they will not trust you or the package again.