Energy Drink Package Design
The next step was to begin creating the packaging design. Before I started, I researched how existing brands have designed their product, including colours and placement of elements.
Research
Modern can packaging is made of lightweight, recyclable aluminium. Most cans share the same opening mechanism, allowing customers to open their drinks without using tools and with ease. Before this, cans were non-recyclable and heavyweight; they looked like our tins look today. The cans were harder to handle and more challenging to open since they required tools such as a can opener. Nowadays, the design is more suitable for handling and drinking purposes.
Regarding visual design and the contents, around 25% of the net design is typically dedicated to important information listed in the section below. The rest is saved for the design itself. Relating back to post one and figure one, the design focus is usually either on the logo or the packaging design.
What to include
By law, there is a very particular set of rule to abide by, the list is as follows:
- the name of the food
- a ‘best before’ or ‘use by’ date
- any necessary warnings
- net quantity information
- a list of ingredients (if there is more than 1)
- the country or place of origin, if required
- the lot number or use-by date
- any special storage conditions
- instructions for use or cooking, if necessary
These ingredients should be visible, easy to understand and easy to read.
Packaging Design Development
My aim for the packaging design is to keep it simple, the final logo is already bold, and if I overcomplicate the design of the can, the packaging design overall may appear overwhelming.
While developing the overall design, I attempt to explore a handful of backgrounds. The logo already portrays the flavours of the drink, so I don’t feel it is essential to alter the colours of the can to reflect the drink’s flavour. However, I still explored this option.
Testing
I used the grapefruit flavour during most of the testing; the initial testing was finding the right placement for the elements and which had the better appearance.
After analysing some existing energy drink and soda packaging designs, I had a rough idea of what I wanted to include. The recycle symbol was found on each can, which prompted the idea of incorporating it into my own. I created my own barcodes using a barcode generator, each being personal to the flavour, and added the best-before date beneath it. On the nutrition facts, I again took into account the actual ingredients and warnings found on a Monster Energy can and used this as a reference for my own design.
Once I had the design for the required information, I then began testing the placement of the elements.
Design One
This was my first attempt at the design. The net design was kept simple, with just the logo and the label. Once I imported this onto the 3D can, I found that there was too much empty space, and it almost looked boring.
The colour of the can itself was picked from the inner of the grapefruit, but I found this contributed to the dullness of the overall design.
Design Two
With design two, I took a slightly different approach regarding the colour of the can. Instead of using the colour of the flavour, I used black. I enjoyed the look of this as it allowed the logo to stand out and take centre stage. I also altered the colour of the label to appear white so that it was visible.
The difference between design two compared to the first is that I duplicated the logo in an attempt to fill in the empty space. I also included the drink’s flavour in the text as the image could portray other fruit or confuse the target audience, leaving them questioning the flavour.
The 3D mock-up showed the positioning, and the logo sizes didn’t look right; it left too much space at the can’s top.
Design Three
Because I enjoyed the appearance of the black background, I followed this through to the third design. I rearranged the logo to fit better on the can and didn’t leave too much space between the top and the bottom. However, In the 3D design, there was a large gap between the logo and the label on the side of the can, which left the overall design to appear sparse.
I changed the text of the drink’s flavour to the same typeface as the logo, and I feel this elevated the design slightly and made it look like it was part of the branding.
Final Packaging Designs
Once I had found the best component placements, I looked back through my previous post. After designing the logo, I intended to use colour to make the packaging look vintage, hopefully reflecting the audience and evoke feelings of nostalgia.
Through the design development, I enjoyed the black background’s look, but it seemed too modernised. I drifted further from the target audience, and my designs felt like they needed to be more suitable. Whilst I previously mentioned that I wanted the design to look somewhat modern, I did so through the logo. That then meant relying on the overall design.
I altered the background to be a yellow beige for the final designs. The muted tone helps portray the vibe of vintage and complements the brighter colours in the logo.
Kiwi
Net Design
Design Testing
Grapefruit
Net Design
Design Testing
Orange
Net Design
Figure 12: The net design of the final Orange packaging.
Design Testing
Apricot
Net Design
Figure 14: The net design of the final Apricot packaging.
Design Testing
References
- Gov.uk. Unknown. Food labelling and packaging. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.gov.uk/food-labelling-and-packaging/food-labelling-what-you-must-show. [Accessed 24 February 2023].