Last Updated on June 1, 2023 by Packoi Team
The key lies in the design of your folding carton boxes.
In this article, you’ll discover several design inspirations that you can use to make your folding cartons visually appealing to your customers.
Common Folding Carton Styles Available
Before anything else, let’s start by understanding the common styles of folding cartons. By understanding the available folding carton boxes, you can start to visualize the type of design that you want your packaging to have.
Here are the top 5 styles that you can use.
If you’re interested, you can read more about folding cartons styles.
Straight Tuck Boxes
A straight tuck box is characterized by the closure panels at the top and bottom of the box. Both panels fold in the same direction and are tucked in place to lock and close the box.
Using a straight tuck box is only ideal for light to mid-weight items. Otherwise, the bottom lid might give way. Even is most of these boxes have end slits that help the lids stay tucked, they can only bear so much weight.
Reverse Tuck Boxes
These are like straight tuck boxes but instead of having the lids folded in the same direction, they face the opposite. This means the reverse tuck box is more expensive to produce. The way the box is positioned wastes more paper when it’s cut during production.
Since there’s no real benefit for the reverse tuck box lids other than the way it looks, you can choose the straight tuck style to save on packaging costs.
Auto-Lock Bottom Boxes
These have a special bottom that locks automatically as it’s being assembled. The bottom flaps interlock with each other for a secure fit. The top lid of auto-lock bottom boxes is simply folded and tucked.
Because of the design of the bottom, this style is perfect for heavier items. It can hold greater weight without giving out. With the right paperboard thickness, this box can even hold the weight of wine bottles and products in larger containers.
Snap Bottom Boxes
The snap bottom name comes from the fact that the bottom flaps of the lid push into each other to close. It makes for a sturdy bottom that can also hold heavier weight. It can take the weight of bottles of alcohol and even large candles.
Another name for this folding carton packaging is 1-2-3 bottom box. It’s because folding this packaging only takes 3 simple steps. That means it’s very easy to assemble without taking too much time.
Two-Piece Boxes
Unlike the other folding cartons, these come in two pieces – the top lid and the bottom tray. The lid is usually bigger than the tray so it fits over the top. This means the box ends up with double walls – which provides better protection for products.
This is an ideal box for those who need extra protection for the contents. It’s also easier to make this look luxurious. Which is why it’s a common choice for pieces of jewelry and other premium items.
4 Functional Designs for Folding Cartons
When it comes to the design of folding carton boxes, you shouldn’t just focus on the visual appeal. You should also consider the functionality of the box.
This means you have to think about the customer when you’re designing the folding carton packaging. How will they open it? How can you design your folding boxes so it makes the product experience better?
These are important questions you need to ask yourself so your packaging can create a positive customer experience.
Here are some of the functional design options that your folding carton can apply.
With Custom Inserts
Folding cartons are meant to hold and protect products. But unless your box is the same shape as your product, you need to put something that’ll keep your product from moving around. Otherwise, it might get damaged or scratched.
This is where custom inserts come into play. These are trays with molds on them that are the exact shape of the product. This ensures that the product stays in place. It provides extra protection so your customers can enjoy your product in good condition.
With Tear Strips
If your product isn’t meant to be consumed in one sitting, your customers would need to find a container to keep what’s yet to be finished. Instead of making your customers find another container, why not make them reuse your folding carton packaging?
Put a tear strip on the top lid so customers can seal the box after they’re done with it. Think of a cereal box. It usually has a tear strip that reveals a lid that allows the consumer to close the box to secure the remaining cereals inside.
With Windows
Another functional design for folding cartons is windows. Give your customers a peek into what’s in store for them when they open the box.
These windows will require a PVC cover so nothing will contaminate the inside.
If you decide to use this design for your folding carton boxes, be sure to consider how the product will look from the outside. You might have to put custom inserts to ensure that when the customer looks inside, the product is presented neatly.
Also, consider the inner design of the box so it’ll look visually appealing when the customer looks at the box as a whole.
With Display Capabilities
You can also design your folding cartons to allow the proper display of the product. Sometimes, the window isn’t enough. Some customers like to handle the product.
You don’t want customers to keep opening the box because it might get damaged. While paperboard can be sturdy, frequent handling could damage it. Creating a folding carton design that allows an open display of the product would be ideal for solving this problem.
10 Design Elements to Put on Your Folding Carton Boxes
Once you’ve considered the functionality of folding carton boxes, it’s time to consider the visual aspect. How can you make folding cartons appealing to the eye?
The goal of your design is to catch the attention of potential customers so they’ll be interested enough to look closer. This will give you the chance to impress your customers and encourage them to buy.
Here are some of the design elements that you can put on folding carton boxes to make them visually appealing.
Color Bursts
A simple way to make your folding carton design eye-catching is to give it a pop of color. Choose colors that either represent your brand or your products.
You don’t have to make it too colorful. Putting a splash of color on a white background is sometimes enough to make your folding cartons look attractive.
Stickers
You can make your folding boxes look creative by using custom stickers to design them. This is a cost-effective way to create unique folding carton styles.
You can order plain boxes in bulk so you get to save on the cost per piece. Then you can put the stickers to make each box unique to the product that’s inside it.
You can put more than one sticker in a box – one for each side if you wish.
Bold Texts
Colorful and bold print fonts can also be used to design your folding cartons. But you have to choose the words that’ll make up the design of your box. It could be your brand name. Or it could be a collection of words that describes your products. Or you can choose words that your customers can relate to.
When you’re using this design, make sure it fits the folding carton styles that you’ll choose. That way, there’s alignment and harmony in the overall look of your box.
Packaging Sleeves
Just like the stickers, this design strategy will allow you to order folding carton boxes in bulk. Then you can just order unique box sleeves based on the product that you’ll put inside.
This works if you don’t need custom inserts for your folding cartons – or if you can use a generic one.
What’s great about this design is that the sleeves add an extra layer of protection for the product. It also gives you a lot of space to provide information about your brand and product.
Playful Images
If your market is young, use playful images to design your box. Appeal to the humorous side of your target market.
Print creative images that’ll make your folding carton styles look fun and exciting. Position brand mascots and characters in such a way that creates a story in your box. This will make your product packaging stand out and it’ll leave a lasting impression on your customers.
Cartoons and Doodles
You can also use cartoons and doodles to add character to your folding carton boxes. It could be just one image or drawing. Or you can fill the whole surface of the box with the design.
The thing about this is you can choose the type of drawing that your customers can identify with. It could be fun and playful. Or it could be more feminine.
Make sure your design will also reflect your brand and product so your customers won’t get confused with your design.
Informative Content
No matter how amazing the folding carton styles are, if it can’t give customers the right information about the product, they would hesitate to buy.
For instance, if you sell food products, your boxes should contain nutritional information as well as the ingredients used. The same is true for cosmetics.
Your folding cartons should have the right information that complies with industry standards. This will help your customers make the right choices about their buying decisions.
Creative Die-Cuts
If you want to put windows on your folding carton boxes do it in such a way that shows your creativity.
For instance, if you sell cookies, draw an open mouth around the window. Make it seem like the window is the mouth and someone is eating the cookies inside.
Or if you sell cologne with fruity scents, you can cut windows in the shape of fruits.
Foil Prints
Your folding carton can also use a foil print technique as the design element. Use it to highlight your brand name or logo.
You can even use it to highlight patterns or lines and silhouettes.
If you have a luxurious brand, using foil stamping can elevate the value of your packaging design. You can choose gold, silver, or other metallic colors that represent your product and brand well.
Simply Branded
Finally, you can opt to just put your brand on the packaging. Simplicity suits all folding carton styles.
Choose one color for the box and then just print the brand. Or you can have an all-over print of the brand logo.
It all depends on how you want your brand to be highlighted. This is a great way to use your folding carton as a marketing tool to advertise your brand.
Do You Want to Explore More Possibilities with Your Folding Cartons? Packoi Printing Can Help Expand Your Options.
Choosing the design of your folding cartons is a simple thing to do – as long as you are aware of the options that you have.
If you need in designing an effective folding carton for your products, Packoi Printing is here to help. We can show you several samples that you can draw inspiration from.
Give us a call so we can talk. We’ll get back to you with a fair quotation in no time.
