Our monthly report series covering marketing’s most pressing issues.
The WARC Guide to effective packaging
- Why it matters
- Packaging as a communications tool
- Delivering brand experience
- Sustainability and the pandemic
Author Q&A
WARC Talks
Clean, green and affordable: Striking a balance between sustainability, hygiene and value in packaging
Tuesday 17th November 9:00am EST / 2:00pm GMT
This deep-dive deck into effective packaging is exclusively available to WARC subscribers.
Contributing articles
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FREE ARTICLE
As connected packaging reaches tipping point: Six watchouts for brands
Author Rob Hollands
Company SharpEnd -
FREE ARTICLE
In the beginning were the words – how consumers read packaging: Four principles
Author Martin Lee
Company Acacia Avenue -
FREE ARTICLE
10 techniques for effective packaging
Author Roger Horberry
Company Independent copywriter, author and trainer -
The importance of investing in sustainable packaging designs
Authors Alex Baverstock & Ian Payne
Company Ipsos -
Seven packvertising principles: The importance of packaging design in the marketing mix
Author Simon Gore
Company Big Fish -
Delight at the doorstep: Letterbox packaging – the new moment of truth
Author Jenn Szekely
Company Coley Porter Bell -
Author Jessica Trief
Company Sterling Brands
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FREE ARTICLE
Author Jenny Stanley
Company Appetite Creative -
FREE ARTICLE
Pepsi China celebrates COVID-19 heroes through packaging design
Author Gianmauro Vella
Company PepsiCo -
Author Carla Buzasi
Company WGSN -
Four tips for brands: How to win with packaging design and influence people
Author Rachel Forster
Company Design Bridge London -
Connecting through packs that matter: Innovative digitally-printed packaging in China
Author Victoria Andersen
Company HP -
Using neuroscience to assess the effectiveness of packaging redesigns
Author Aoife McGuinness
Company HeyLab
The WARC Guide to brand activism in the Black Lives Matter era
Read the summary deck on brand activism in the Black Lives Matter era, which looks at what consumers want brands to do and how supporting Black Lives Matter can underscore a brand’s purpose, if a brand is prepared to acknowledge their truth and make change.
The WARC Guide to marketing in the gaming ecosystem
Read the summary deck on marketing in the gaming ecosystem, which looks at the major opportunity in esports and how gaming is changing the rules of brand loyalty – gamification is out; mobile branded games are in.
The WARC Guide to e-commerce and the future of effectiveness
Read the summary deck on e-commerce and the future of effectiveness, which looks at how e-commerce growth has accelerated globally and the fundamentals of product, packaging and price points.
The WARC Guide to Planning for Attention
Read the summary deck on planning for attention, which looks at the value of attention, attention as a measure and how brands are using it to drive ROI.
The WARC Guide to Marketing in the COVID-19 recession
Read the summary deck on Marketing in the COVID-19 recession, which looks at what we know so far about the pandemic, planning for the recovery and early lessons from China.
The WARC Guide to Structuring for effectiveness
Read the summary deck on Structuring for effectiveness, which looks at some of the key structural considerations for client-side marketers looking to invest effectively.
The WARC Guide to making segmentation work
Read the summary deck on making segmentation work, which looks at how to use segmentation in 2020, finding meaningful audiences and segmentation in a world of AI.
Creating a sports sponsorship framework
Read the summary deck on creating a sports sponsorship framework, which looks at creating a clear and focused measurement framework, choosing the right sponsorship property and how to approach e-sports sponsorship.
Digital strategy in healthcare marketing
Read the summary deck on digital strategy in healthcare marketing, which includes how to build inclusive healthcare tools, balancing rational claims with emotional branding and building higher levels of trust.
Smart approaches to occasion marketing
Read the summary deck on occasion marketing, which focuses on shared human moments, capitalising on occasions to drive year-round benefits and avoiding missteps by focusing on fresh audience insights.
Read the summary deck on partnering for growth, which explores how brand partnerships are creating a new genre of advertising and ways marketers can plan against failure.
If you are interested in contributing please email Lena Roland, Managing Editor, WARC Knowledge.
The subjects of articles should relate to the interests of the WARC Guide's core readership of senior executives working in planning, strategy and insight within communication agencies, advertiser marketing departments, market research agencies and the marketing and research side of the media.
Word Counts
WARC Guide features are typically either 1500 to 2000 words but can be extended by agreement.
Author credits and promotion
Author credits will be given in the byline to the article. A brief biography of the author of up to 30 words can be sent with the submitted copy. Some articles will feature in WARC News. Authors might be invited to do a short Q&A video on their focus topic, or a spin-off webinar with WARC. Authors will be sent a PDF copy of the WARC Guide article.
Writing style
The WARC Guide focuses on giving marketers the confidence to tackle marketing’s biggest challenges through ideas and evidence. This should influence your writing style, namely, that propagation of ideas and arguments is fine, if backed by evidence – brand examples, research, case studies.
WARC Guide articles are not an opportunity to promote the author's company or products. Any such overt references within articles may be edited out.
Articles should include a summary of what this means for marketers and/or agencies. Conclude with a list of key implications or things to consider.
Bear in mind that the WARC Guide has an international readership, so parochial references to brands, marketing examples and topical matters that are well-known locally may be unfamiliar to many people.
Do not include a list of references at the end of the article. References should be embedded within the body copy.
Copy should not depend on charts and tables for its comprehension. Charts should provide supplementary information and enhance the presentation of the article. They must be capable of being remade in Admap's house style. Suggested headlines, standfirsts and cross-heads can be included in the copy, but may be changed in the editing process.
Copy should be filed as a Word Document. Present the copy as a fully formed article, not a presentation. Key points can be numbered, or bulleted.
Accompanying photography and charts
Advertising campaign stills, product shots or other imagery relevant to a submitted article are welcome. These should be in jpeg or tiff format and a minimum of 14cm in width and 300 dpi in resolution. They should be sent as separate files – do not embed them into the copy.
Charts can be submitted, but will need to be remade in the Guide's house style and will be included at WARC’s discretion. Hence, submitted copy should not depend for its reader comprehension on the inclusion of charts as some, or all, may not be published.
Editing and publishing
We reserve the right to edit copy. Should significant editing be required that would materially change the article, the author may be asked to redraft the article. The decision whether to publish the article rests with the WARC Knowledge team.
Copyright assignment
Authors will be asked to sign a form that will assign copyright in the article to WARC, giving WARC the exclusive right to reproduce and distribute the article in any form. This form must be signed and returned before the article can be published.