By Fresh Produce Marketing founder Lisa Cork

I recently had an interesting experience that reminded me how important it is to consider your perspective. Let me explain.

I've recently been redecorating my house. Nothing major, just some new paint and a few pieces of new furniture. For the past two years, I’ve been frustrated with one room. While the room technically was big, it felt small. The room has two wall-mounted lights and as a result, I have always centered the furniture between the lights.

The other day, a girlfriend and I were pondering the room and she simply said, "Don’t center the furniture piece." What? Don't center it? Wait a minute. So I tried it and interestingly enough…once the piece was moved off center the entire room opened up. Where once the room felt small, the room now feels open and quite big. All it took was a change of perspective.

This story is relevant because in most of the produce packaging I see, to take a pack from less effective to more effective, all that is required is a change of perspective.

Let me share some examples.

Here is a pack of Sweetheart cabbage. One of the rules of packaging effectiveness is answer the shopper's unanswered question. For me, as a shopper, my questions for the pack are, "What is Sweetheart cabbage? Is it a sweeter variety? A different shape? A different flavor? Do you use it like normal cabbage or differently?"

When you change your perspective and look at your packaging through the shopper's eyes, it opens up new opportunities to communicate information of value.

Here is a beautiful pack of apples. Another rule of packaging effectiveness is to optimize the 'buy me' message on pack. Typically, the most important buy me message should be in the visual sweet spot – the spot on the pack easily and readily seen by the shopper.

In the case of this pack, look what’s in the sweet spot. The store name and a picture of an apple. Now I will argue that the shopper knows where they are shopping and the bag contains apples – so putting those messages there misses opportunity. Instead, the bag would have better communicated information of value to the consumer had it put Pink Lady in the sweet spot and moved the variety description up the pack.

A final example is to ensure your packaging delivers information of value to the shopper. Take this salad pack from a retail store in Shanghai. Salad greens are an emerging category in China due to food safety issues. So the fact the lettuce is triple washed is really important to address consumer concerns. So can you see on the pack where is says, 'triple washed'? The first bullet point under the Tuna Fish and gold writing says 'tripled washed' but it is so small no one can see it.

Whether you are a grower or a packer and you package your produce, be willing to step back and see your produce packaging with fresh eyes. Be willing to evaluate and potentially change your perspective.

Often, people ask me what their pack is doing 'wrong'. It is not so much right versus wrong, but more can it work harder for you to sell your product? You have to pay for packaging – it should be working as hard for you as possible.

Keep in mind these rules:

1.    Answer the shopper's unanswered question

2.    Optimize the 'buy me' message on pack

3.    Delivers information of value to the shopper

Use these rules to evaluate your perspective…and see if your pack is on track.

www.freshfruitportal.com