3,2,1, mine – this is how quickly cosmetics packaging on the shelves has to attract the attention of potential customers. Otherwise, they’ll forget about any interest they had in your product. Therefore, the design of cosmetics packaging needs to: attract the attention of the target group, appeal to their taste and be convincing even after closer scrutiny. This is especially true for trademarks, because packaging is often the only advertising medium in use. It is generally estimated that about 57% of consumers decide to try out a product after being attracted by the packaging.

Colours and design for men and women

The packaging design of cosmetics depends essentially on two aspects: emotional impact and functionality. When we think of emotion, this also involves colours and thus psychology and gender-specific differences. Dark colours such as blue, grey etc prevail for men’s products, whereas women’s products are fresh, bright, and colourful. Gentle colours indicate naturalness and health, green freshness, etc. The psychology of colours is particularly relevant here, and directly affects the the client’s subconscious reasoning. The size and shape of the packaging design as well as the place of purchase – whether department store or pharmacy etc. – plays a central role in the design of packaging for cosmetics.

Attract attention at all costs – but not to the point of affecting product recognition

If you want to be noticed, why not consider gender specifics in design and get creative with this – a path taken by the brave. However, it is very important in this case to precisely define the target group and its sensitivities, and to take into account the cultural development of the target group. Has the emotional balance between the sexes been evened out, or is there still a classic distribution of roles. Gender marketing is definitely an exciting and constantly expanding field of inspiration for the packaging design of your cosmetics.

However, the same rule applies here as for alternative approaches: the product as such must remain recognisable, otherwise customers will become irritated. You should act cautiously when dealing with traditional brands or long-established brands and products, when a re-launch in cosmetics packaging design is in the works, for example, in order to attract new customers. Old customers must still be able to recognise “their” product and be able to identify the good with the new design.