Classic CPG marketing often entails the ongoing search for small brand advantages that drive market share gains. Blockbuster innovations or breakthrough brand campaigns notwithstanding, many marketing efforts are designed to eke out a few incremental percentage points from a large, mature market. After all, even a modest share gain in a lucrative category, such as hair care or coffee or laundry, will frequently be enough to meet a brand’s financial objectives for the year. These share gains are not easy, of course, and new claims or product packaging is typically researched thoroughly in order to select those actions most likely to drive a significant marketplace win. Despite all this, brand managers are leaving money on the table by managing packaging only for the physical shelf and ignoring the digital one.

If we take a closer look at the actions marketers generally take in order to “beat the fade,” we see new claims, package designs and other measured modifications intended to give the brand the best chance of success. Even in a year with a major innovation or re-stage, the package remains a critical vehicle for delivering the brand’s new message. The brand, design and agency teams involved develop packaging through an iterative strategic and creative design process that results in something new and – ideally – positively disruptive at shelf. However, the very definition of “the shelf” is changing and not all brand managers have received the memo.

According to a May 2014 report of the U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce, the percentage of Total Commerce represented by retail e-commerce was 6.2% with the dollar figure increasing by 15% versus the same period a year ago. The report also reveals that e-commerce has been growing each quarter versus the prior year by 13.7% to 18.9% over the past 18 quarters. Prior to the economic downturn of 2008-2009, those figures are as high as 27.9%. We know this. We all buy products from Target.com or Diapers.com or Amazon or FreshDirect or whatever. What is fascinating – perhaps horrifying – to brand owners is the state of product packaging being displayed on many of these websites and apps.

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Outdated packaging, old claims and poor approximations of brand assets and visual equities are rife on the sites of popular online retailers. All the hard work of well-meaning brand teams doesn’t necessarily get translated to the digital shelf. Those new winning concepts are not working for brands across the full marketing mix. Brands are, as it were, leaving money on the table. What’s more, any difference in the shopper experience between the physical and digital shelf can undermine the trust and confidence that consumers have in the brand or the retailer. It is easy to imagine a consumer cancelling an online purchase due to an outdated pack shot. They might think it isn’t the product they’re looking for or, worse, figure it could be old product being liquidated.

So, how and why does digital packaging go awry? Very often it is due to an overly complex supply chain. Or there is a lack of process ownership. Or digital brand standards are missing, incomplete or never considered. The good news is that much of this can be overcome. Awareness is the first step to progress. You – yes you – might even spend a few minutes after reading this article searching for your own brands on popular e-commerce websites. See if your packaging is up to snuff. If not, then begin the investigation.

First, ensure that your digital packaging is sourced from the same files as your physical packaging. Confirm that appropriate standards are in place and clearly understood. Then tackle the distribution chain, which itself may have several hand-offs. It’s no longer acceptable to treat the digital shelf as an afterthought – or a nonthought – as e-commerce becomes increasingly relevant across the full spectrum of CPG categories. By managing both shelves, managers give their brands a greater chance of success.

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