NYTimes B2B Coverage on Packaging

The New York Times featured an article on shorter cycles in package development. The opening paragraph is startling:

“In the last 100 years, Pepsi had changed the look of its can, and before that its bottles, only 10 times. This year alone, the soft-drink maker will switch designs every few weeks.”

This trend has huge implications for packaging but the story for B2B is even bigger.  Packaging changing rapidly means that an entire supply chain must change rapidly — and there is real value in the ability to change rapidly.  In the B2B space new technologies as well as flexibility are the key selling points.  And while a low price may have been appealing to purchasing in the past, the ability to quickly innovate and implement may be the hot buttons in selling to marketing and branding personel.

‘Everyday low prices’ are still going to demand streamlined manufacturing, but articles like this show there is a very real and growing demand for innovation and service.

(Link to the NYTimes article)

(Link to ABI article “Seven Marketing Mistakes”. Alan Isacson, president of ABI, offers tips on aiming for the marketer rather than the purchaser.)