Unwrapping colour

Brand awareness and colour are synonymous with each other. Dave Howell tells Converting Today how to manage these - a vital skill that all brand-owners need to master.

Colour is an essential component of brand recognition and differentiation in the marketplace. Indeed, research has indicated that colour is a subjective experience, but when placed in the context of product marketing, particular colours are associated with specific brands and market sectors; the blue of IBM, the red of Coca Cola or the yellow of McDonalds, for example.
In The psychology of colour in marketing and branding, author Gregory Ciotti explains: "In regards to the role that colour plays in branding, results from studies such as 'The interactive effects of colours' show that the relationship between brands and colour hinges on the perceived appropriateness of the colour being used for the particular brand; in other words, does the colour 'fit' what is being sold?"
With research indicating that 85% of shoppers choose a product primarily based on colour, the management of colour is a priority for all brand-owners. As packaging technology has expanded and diversified, maintaining a good colour balance that supports the core brand values has become a major challenge.
In a report to the packaging industry, Ernst & Young states: "Packaging producers have to be able to deliver new shapes, use new materials, print more colours in greater definition and deliver short-run lengths economically. These capabilities require investment in new capital equipment and training. Packaging companies that don't invest in the right technologies and capabilities are at a competitive disadvantage."

A commercial imperative
The management of colour is a commercial imperative that can't be ignored. The 'Share a Coke' campaign, which has now been running for several years, is a great example of how colour management has been of paramount importance. The personalisation of Coke bottles required a combination of Cl flexo and gravure printing techniques with additional digital printing. Using the HP Indigo press, a special 'Coke red' was developed to ensure brand consistency throughout the print process.
Strongbow has also used colour as a strong marketing component in its latest packaging, as Heineken launched a new 400ml Super Sleek can. Partnering with Rexam, the brand has been developing its products for a younger audience. Strongbow's Apple Cider cans have a matt-over-varnish finish to deliver a premium feel to its end consumers. Anna Bizon, marketing manager for Strongbow Cider CEE, says: "Rexam's brand-new 400ml Super Sleek can is perfect for our new Strongbow Apple Ciders range. It provides an innovative packaging solution for our contemporary and urbanite audience, as well as a convenient serve size."
Branding can influence the perception of a product. Strong branding messages are often communicated through bold graphics, imagery and the right choice of colour, which must remain consistent if consumer awareness and recognition are to be built and maintained. The new packaging and colour scheme for sports nutrition brand Multipower illustrates this.
Moving from a mixed and often confusing colour palate, the new packaging, designed by BrandMe, uses a neon colour range with clear visual messages to communicate each brand message.
Commenting on the new colour and packaging design, Manuela Ufer, senior brand manager lifestyle at Multipower, says: "Our new look will better help us relate to gym-goers who now hold performance and aesthetics as key motivators. The new packaging and logo will give Multipower far more impact and greater on-shelf recognition, which will help differentiate it from its competitors."
Companies such as Crown are actively developing their services to ensure they can offer brand-owners and converting partners precise colour management. A good example is Crown Accents, which offers the ability to mix up to 24 different can designs into a single pallet. Matt Twiss, marketing and business development director at Crown Bevcan Europe and Middle East, says: "To cater to its customers' needs, Crown Bevcan Europe and Middle East has recently revamped its European Design Studio to serve as a one-stop shop for brand-owners across the region. Located in Leicester, UK, the studio features cutting-edge pre-press and print technology that is among the most advanced in the industry, and offers customers a wholly integrated design service in one single location."

Brand communications
Colour, then, is a vital component of all brand management. Having the ability to manage colour across a number of workflows is often a challenge for converters, but one that must be addressed as packaging technology and substrate development move forward. Last year, at the On Demand Conference in Tokyo, InfoTrends' director of production for Workflow Software Services Kaspar Roos showed a slide that illustrated the steep increase in colour management software.
InfoTrends' survey concluded that over a third (38%) of commercial printers and nearly a quarter (22%) of in-plant printers cited colour management as a core component of their purchasing decisions. This is in response to the expansion of multiformat printing, which is now commonplace. Brand-owners demand complete colour consistency. For converters and their print partners, this will often mean colour management across digital, offset and inkjet print output, not to mention corrugated, and the growing move towards larger format printing.
Printer vendors have been in a constant state of development to keep pace with the colour demands of brand-owners and their converter partners. "Our customers are always seeking ways to improve productivity and diversify applications so they can deliver more value to brands and end customers," says Alon Bar-Shany, vice-president and general manager of the Indigo Digital Press Division at HP. "The latest releases of our industry-leading portfolio demonstrate our commitment to providing customers with state-of-the-art digital printing technology to meet these needs, while also offering an upgrade path that helps to protect their capital investments."
Paul Fennessy, senior manager of Graphics for CROWN Beverage Packaging North America, states: "In a global marketplace, where brands are competing for consumer attention as well as shelf space, the visual aspects of a package are extremely important. In stores, a consumer's first experience with a product - and its packaging - is visual, and it is said that first impressions last a lifetime."
Ball has a long history of developing partner strategies for can packaging. Peter Mertens, graphics manager at Ball, explains. "Print process for Ball is always the same - no CMYK printing, as we make use of spot colours. Substrate choice affects the need for specific equipment to use for colour management. Ball prints a lot of graphics directly on to aluminium substrate using the advantage of its brilliance.
"Most of the inks applied are transparent or semi-transparent, and this results in metallic colours that can only be measured with a specific device. Further, metallic inks tend to 'flip' when cans are viewed from different angles; avoiding this phenomenon requires special attention when the inks are created. QA checks reviewing SPIN and SPEX results is mandatory."

Colour DNA
Ensuring colour consistency is of paramount importance for converters. Last year, heads were turned at the FFEI stand at IPEX, where the company showcased its Graphium modular UV inkjet press. Offering converters increased flexibility and productivity, they can accept complex projects requiring a wide range of colours on virtually any substrate. Graphium offers the unique capability from a single vendor of being able to integrate optional flexo and finishing stations inline for conversion in a single pass.
Colour consistency will always be at the heart of all colour management where brand-owners are concerned. With shelf space becoming increasingly limited, brand-owners need to ensure they are front and centre in a consumer's mind. Colour is a powerful weapon to achieve that recognition. Converters, print suppliers and the whole packing design industry is geared towards innovation, but colour consistency and management must also develop in parallel with achieve long-term brand recognition.