How To Package Your Services

Virtually everything you buy has some type of packaging. The packaging your product comes in protects the product from being damaged when shipped, from getting dirty, or from deterring someone from tampering with it.

From a marketing standpoint, the packaging is a primary means of differentiating one product from another. When you buy a book from a bookstore, the packaging is the stand up display the book may be sitting on, whether the book is hardbound or soft cover, what the cover looks like, what the blurbs on the inside cover and back say, what type of paper the book is printed on, whether it’s full color or black and white, and so on.

Packaging creates an emotional connection to the product. Sometimes, it can enhance the product - anyone that purchases electronics from Apple loves the sleek product design and way it makes them feel hip and creative.

Other times, packaging can position a product as “for men” or “for women”. Back in mid 2005, a startling discovery was made after a user of Gillette’s men’s shaving gel left the bottle in his shower too long. The label began to peel away to reveal a label for Gillette’s women’s shaving cream. The same product was being marketed to men or women by simply changing the label!

Packaging a service is a bit more complex than packaging a product, yet it’s fundamental to how you market your product. For services, packaging includes:

• Your Unique Selling Proposition
• Your answer to “What do you do for a living”
• Your marketing materials’ design and copy
• Your visual identity
• Your process for delivering your service
• Your price for your services

Why does all of this matter? Because as I’ve mentioned in previous articles, services are intangible so prospects must evaluate whether you can do what you say based on things that are tangibles - like your marketing materials, testimonials from past clients, how you dress, what your office looks like, and so forth.