FEATURE
Digital Print
Continues To Disrupt Packaging
BY FESPA
The potential of digital print is broadening , and packaging companies are only just beginning to realise the benefits on offer .
The rapid growth and success of digital print are prompting brands to experiment with marketing – improving approval ratings and brand loyalty from consumers – as well as meeting new regulatory demands and evolving new business models .
According to Smithers Pira ' s new report , The Future of Digital Print for Packaging to 2022 , digitally printed labels and packaging is worth R174 billion ($ 13.4 billion ) in 2017 . While the label sector has been the early adopter and is mature in some regions there is very strong growth in corrugated , carton , flexibles and direct-to-shape , with developments in metal printing .
By 2022 , the rapidly expanding digital ( inkjet and toner ) packaging market will grow by almost 13 % annually to exceed R286 billion ($ 22.0 billion ).
The market for digital print is expanding at over 15 % for all formats – except labels where it is already well-established . Digital print platforms are opening up a world of possibilities for boosting emotional engagement with a consumer , and creating new revenue streams .
This is allowing brands , design agencies and retailers to become more creative , with many launching innovative campaigns to enhance approval ratings ; while other businesses across the value chain can evolve new , lucrative business models .
Figure E . 1 Five-year growth rates in the value of digital packaging sectors from 2012 to 2022
Smithers Pira identifies the key drivers that are making digital print such an attractive option :
Economic Short Runs As with most print products , the average run length for packaging jobs is decreasing . Analogue processes are well suited to minimise the costs of long and medium runs that used to account for the bulk of pack and label work .
This situation is changing with more fragmentation and versioning , as new small businesses and boutique retailers join the market . There are many more short runs and high prepress and finishing costs , often added as a ' one-off ' charge when an initial order is putting off some new designs and products .
The ability for digital to produce short runs economically has changed the label sector and it will do so for other parts of the packaging market . Eliminating the minimum order quantity will open high-quality packaging and labels to many more players , and grow the overall market significantly .
Digital is well suited to short run production , as there are no plate costs . Using online web-to-pack portals is reducing administration and prepress costs for producing press-ready artwork and will further boost the acceptance of digital labels and packaging in the future .
The Power Of Engagement The digital print for packaging sector has a lot to thank the Coca-Cola Corporation for . The well-known ' Share a Coke With …' series of marketing campaigns brought the capability of digital printing into the mainstream for brands , designers and converters .
Labels
Corrugated Cartons
Flexibles
Rigid plastics
Metal packaging
Average CAGR 2012-17 Average CAGR 2017-22
All labels and packaging
The main campaign was a mass-customisation versioning of PET bottle labels , supplemented by one-off specific names printed on-demand for glass hobble skirt bottle packs via a website , and more generic versioning of metal cans .
It was the biggest series of marketing campaigns run by Coca-Cola , putting the packaging as the message . The packaging design – of form , function and graphics – has always been important , but the Coca-Cola campaigns showed that the pack can be a critical part of the customer experience .
Packaging is being specifically used as a component of the brand strategy to win customer approval , as consumers spend more time interacting with a product after it has been bought .
There were many copy-cat campaigns brought to market with names , places or sports teams featuring on the pack . Many companies put forenames onto their packs , for instance Nutella and Marmite , while Oreo cookies ran a campaign to
PG 40 JANUARY 2018 AFRICA PRINT JOURNAL www . AfricaPrint . com