When faced with two equally new products, which one is more appealing: the one with an attractive visual appearance or the one that looks ordinary? Most people choose the product with the more visually appealing design. Products packaged attractively are better at capturing attention and stimulating purchasing interest among consumers.
To assist SMEs in enhancing the value of their products, FEB UGM, through its Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and SME Research Division, collaborated with Rumah BUMN at FEB UGM to organise an integrated training programme titled “Enhancing Product Value Through Effective Packaging Design,” held at FEB UGM on Wednesday (23/07). The event featured Abang Edwin Syarif Agustin, S.Sn., M.Ds., a product design consultant.
Abang Edwin explained that product design is the process of creating and developing physical products that encompass various aspects, such as form, function, aesthetics, materials, and the use of technology. The main objective of product design is to meet user needs and preferences while ensuring that the product has quality, durability, and visual appeal that can attract the market’s attention.
However, product design not only refers to packaging design but also includes the design of the product and its packaging. Both are essential in strengthening brand identity and distinguishing a product amid market competition. Creating an appealing product design requires a deep understanding of the market, consumers, and existing industry trends. Design is not a one-way process dictated solely by the seller, it must also incorporate feedback from consumers as the end users in the buying process.
Product design, he continued, involves several creative stages that are iterative and user-experience oriented. It begins with building empathy to understand the problems customers face, followed by clearly defining the problem to serve as a guide in the design process. The next phase is idea development, where several rough product sketches are created to explore initial design concepts. From these sketches, a few are selected to be turned into physical prototypes, allowing the product to be experienced tangibly and assessed visually and functionally. In the final stage, the prototype is tested on users to gather feedback, which is then used to refine the design. This stage is typically repeated several times until an optimal final form is achieved.
At the end of the session, Edwin emphasized that attractive product design is not merely about enhancing appearance, but also about increasing the product’s selling value. With superior design, entrepreneurs can raise product prices due to a heightened perception of quality and value in the eyes of consumers.
“For MSMEs aiming to compete sustainably and create unique product value, considering design, both in packaging and product form is a crucial step that must not be overlooked,” he said.
Reportage: Najwah Ariella Puteri
Editor: Kurnia Ekaptiningrum
Sustainable Development Goals
