Semiotic Breakdown of Product Packaging

Product packaging has always been a controversial topic in terms of how necessary it is, the total volume of packaging, as well as the affects it has on the environment. Products travel all across the globe from one country to another, so it is extremely important that the packaging connotes the same message and has the same intended affect on each and every consumer. While packaging was initially used to simply protect the precious product being transported, in today society, packaging holds much more significance. Packaging can relay messages about the product or how the producer wishes the product to be precieved in society. I will be breaking down step-by-step on how to properly and effectively analyze product packaging for any product.

Photos of all aspects involved in your products packaging

When trying to chose a package to analyze, think about the products you use in your everyday life and take a moment to remember a time when the packaging gave you an inital 'wow' feeling. This helps you breakdown the individual semiotics of the package much more easily. For my instructable, I am going to be using the packaging of Seed which is a competive probiotic company, specifically because of its packaging.

To begin, I always like to deeply think about what the packaging means to me, how it makes me feel and the relation that has to the actual product inside of the packaging. Asking yourself continous questions and writing down quick notes can help you get a feel for how to analyze the more intericate semiotics. Who knows, you might have even noted some semiotics at this point and not know it, which is great! All of this initial analyzing is what we like to call 'denotation' (definition: the most basic or literal meaning of a sign). This inital analyzation helps flow into to the following steps, where we deconstruct the packaging in all of its elements.

The first thing I like to look for when analyzing the semiotics of a package is the material used, this can tell you a lot of information about the connotation intended by the producer. The material can express the producers values, and intentions, as well as what sort demographic they are targeting. The different sorts of materials used are all strategically used to connote distinct messages.

Wood for example is used to connote various meaning potentials such as:

• Natural
• Hand crafted
• Eco-friendly
• Not mass produced
• Rustic

Glass is used to connote messages such as:

• Artisinal products within
• Small batches, hand made and packaged
• Specialty production, a sense of uniqueness
• Strong and durable, possibly to be reused in a way

Cartons meaning potential could be:

• A more natural product because of the way it is packaged responsibly
• Cartons are meant to be opened and looked into as if it as a present, the process of unboxing

Paper can have a few meaning potentials such as:

• evironmentally firiendly because it is so thin
• exposing the shape of the product inside
• easily accessible, more about the product rather than significant connotation

Plastic can have a few opposing meaning potenitals like:

• being reuseable, even after the product has been used, strategically designed to be eco-friendly
• It can also connote cheapness and protecting the product for the time being, therefore being harmful to the environment
• It can connate similar messageslike glass but inexpensively and extremely more harmful to the environment

Lastly Metal can cannote:

• High end products
• Great quality and value
• Typically holds fragile and more expensive items

However, for the Seed packaging seen in the image, they fall under honest branding and use eco-friendly and sustainable materials such as glass, paper, and natural ingredients to protect their product. These combinations of material can potentially mean that the product within is expensive and of high value however, it is sustainable, efficently prduced, and environmentally friendly. The combinations of these different materials connote that Seed is branding themselves as exclusive but still enrionmentally positive with reusable containers, and biodegradeable components.

The textures within a package can help the consumer understand the sort of brand and product they are about to see inside. Just like the materials, textures specifically can tell the consumer if the product is natural, its intended demographic, quality of the product and much more. Understanding the texture combinations together can map out the meaning potential prescribed by the producers.

Rigidity can connote:

• The expected use of the product. E.x. how often you would use it, what age groups use it, etc.

Relief can connote:

• A more rigid feeling in the hands for masculinity, or naturalness.
• A smooth label all around can point towards simplicity and sleekness.

Regularity can potentially mean:

• Is there a specific gender, class, or age group that this product will attract or be able to physically use?
• Because of the level of regularity, how does that make the consumer feel?

Naturalness' connotation can be:

• Is the product inside environmentally friendly or not?
• Is the product naturally produced, or heavily processes?

Viscosity potentially means:

• Is it slipper? Grippy? A mixture of both - some portions are slick and smooth while others are sticky and grippy?

Liquidity has the meaning potential of:

• Is the packaging traditional for this product?

For my example of probiotics from Seed, the texture of the actual container is ridged around the lid having a connotation of being easily opened and accessbile because of the available grip. The bottom of the container is lifted slightly, as opposed to lying flat on a surface which can connote easy pick-up daily as probiotics are typically prescribed for everyday. Furthermore, the natural feeling of the box and insulation potentially means the product inside is naturally produced, good for the environment and good for the consumer. Lastly, the matted finish on the containers both suggest a high end product and notions of a quality experience to the touch unlike sticky and grippy plain glass.

The shape of packaging always plays a role in potential meaning for the product within. I like to look at how effective the shape of the packaging is in terms of the use of the product, as well the protection and other services it could provide. As the denotation of packaging is usually to protect a product, lets take a look how shape can connote some different messages.

Front and back:

• By default majority of products use the front and back of their packaging to display the mixture of colour, symbols and typography. Product names and other selling information usually appear here.

Vertical and horizontal:

• The dimensions of a packaging can have meaning potential about the product inside, short and sturdy might imply the product inside needs to stay grounded and secure on a surface i.e. fragile.
• Opposed to something tall and slim, might need to be more mobile i.e. shampoo bottles.

Curvature and angularit:

• Is the packaging tall, curvy, and feminine or is it short, rigid, and masculine? By societal cues taller items are usually more feminine due to travel necessities, ability to hold, and frailness.

Size

• Large packaging usually means the item is mass produced and in an abundance while smaller packaging might suggest the product is precious and highly effective even with small amounts.
• Size typically correlates to the quality and sort of luxury the brand does or does not have.

All these component play a role on how the packaging for Seed probiotics is connoted within society. The packaging is seen as very round, short, slightly rigid, but also smooth. The combinations of all these indications might have the meaning potential that it is intended for women (by smooth and curved) and men (short and rigid). However, the travel container is thinner and taller, which might indicate that Seed is trying to signify and appeal to women consumers because they prepare on the go, travel more, or carry various items in their purse.

The use of colour in product packaging is one of the first things people notice when they receive their products. The colour can explain and activate certain emotions and feelings when looked, so producers use various colours strategically. Colour can be broken down in several categories beginning with:

Hue:

• The range from warmth of red to coldness of blue

Brightness and Saturation

• Truth as opposed darkness
• Is there information the consumer is kept from? Or exposed to?

Purity

• Modernism and certainty
• Do the colours look grey and dull or vibrant and alive?

Differentiation

• Is there a full range of colours or is it monochromatic?

At first glance the packaging for the Seed probiotics are entirely green, and dark. However, the choice of a colder green, and use of purity on the packaging it reveals a notion of high class with a matted finish over the containers and outer box. Due to the matted finish the brightness is dulled and the darkness from the shade almost hides the rest of the container which could connote a secrecy of the product within in leaving the consumer wanting to break it open and reveal what's inside. The use of colour on the packaging for Seed potential leaves the consumer wanting to reveal more of what Seed has to offer inside.

The Writing and typography almost act as a complimentary way to connote a message from the producer to the consumer. Although words usually mean what they read, in semiotics the type of font, placement and use of words can affect the connotation.

Brand and Product name:

• Is the brand name the most salient writing on the primary display panel (usually the largest side i.e the front)?

Call out:

• Does the writing appear in a graphic informing you the good about the product?

Sell copy:

• Does the packaging have information in wordy blocks with important information that might convince you to buy the product even further?

Mandatory copy:

• Does the packaging include nutritional information that is hard to read but required by law?

Looking for all of these aspect on the packaging of a product can hold meaning potentials, such as small writing hiding harmful ingredients can relate to a company that wants to hide potential issues. However, when it comes to Seed probiotics the packaging contains very limited writing which might indicate that it is a natural substance that does not need a long list of ingredients to hide. Of course there are links and additional information on the back of Seeds container, but this lack of ingredients legally, suggests there is nothing to hide for this honest branding. Also the limited word count might connote simplicity and peace of mind, very similar to the way Apple packages their products and thrive on their simplicity.

Lastly, I like to look at the iconography which is similar to typography except it relates to the symbols and other icons. Icons represent often represent something and trigger a feeling and sensation. Think about seeing a Nike Swoosh and the impact it holds. Some forms of iconography are:

Objects

• Are there any objects in the packaging that would not be there normally but could be used to represent another meaning, when put together with the product conjure a complete idea?

Settings

• What setting is the packaging using and how is it effecting the connotation of the potential product?

Persons

• Is there a figure or person present and what significance do they have in that context?

Emblems

• Is there an object, colour, or logo on the packaging that immediately tells you potential facts about the sort of product within?

Emblems help the producer communicate certain connotations to the consumer by emerging them in feelings. These feelings come from a mixture of colours, logos, and objects seen on packaging. For Seed, they have no setting, objects, or persons but they do include an emblem. The emblem is as simple as their company name, which produces a feeling of professionalism, security, and naturalism through the simplicity it uses.