A meaningful shape

The shape of a pack says a lot and in some examples just everything. In a lot of cases the shapes become generic as it tends to get the same across most of the Brands. Similarly the materials used to create the shape also gets uniform , as it gets tried and tested. Most Marketers would perhaps like to have a Packaging shape which defines the category as they feel it is the first step in building a bridge with the consumer. Truly this may be the right way to move ahead with a new Brand, perhaps in a not so saturated a category. Here the Packaging has a certain meaning to the consumer in terms of the product protection, dispensing, disposability and the Habit. Changing this very often may not be advisable as it may create a dissonance in the consumer mind and make things that much more difficult for a Brand. In such cases the dependence increases on the Graphics and the Brand communication.
A unique shape often gets a birth consequent to a new product offer, trying to meet a latent need for the consumer. In such a case a lot of consumer understanding in terms of usage, imagery, habits , lead to the shape development. Very often several rounds of consumer research lead to a fine-tuning of the Packaging shape and the structure for a just right solution.
While protection , dispensing and transportation get addressed , very often the imagery aspect of the Packaging does not get completely fine-tuned. The reality is that the imagery association of a Packaging shape falls into the realm of Consumer Psychology and often takes a little time to get completely answered.
An innovative shape in a category which uses a generic shape can create a huge amount of excitement and start redefining certain parameters and assumptions. In a changing society with the changing consumer patterns such innovations are a necessity to fight for the consumer mind space. However in such cases a thorough research , trials, testing and simulations need to be done with the utmost detailing and accuracy.
The Packaging shape acquires meaning only and only if the consumer connect is evident or else it remains meaningless.