A fantastic way to stand out from the pack and establish your brand identity is to combine a design and packaging business with your start-up idea. This works best if you are re-selling items or if you are the craftsperson making the items you sell.
On the other hand, you can offer other SMEs and start-ups your services as a designer for their packaging needs. The fact that you can not only design but also print and provide the packaging will make you a desirable prospect for them.
Make Sure You Can Get the Materials and Machines
You cannot offer a one-stop solution for design and packaging needs if you do not have the equipment to deliver. Luckily, there are quite affordable and easy-to-operate machines out there that can render the designs you create and assemble the box automatically. Contact manufacturers of materials directly, you are more likely to get discounts or negotiate deals to buy at factory prices.
Do some research and reach out to suppliers of automated machines that can create the end package product. Look into high-speed box folding machines as these are machines that do a variety of tasks in one and greatly increase the number of packages you can supply.
Decide on Your Target Market
Once you are sure of your ability to provide high-quality designs and packages, it is time to find your customer base. This is your target market, the people most likely to require the services you can provide.
Make sure to approach the people within the target market who will have needs that you can meet. As you are a start-up small business yourself, begin by approaching other small businesses. It is simply a case of being able to supply according to demand. More big businesses are starting to work with smaller indie designers but it might be best to get your feet wet with small businesses first so you can establish working protocols and guidelines.
Offer Better Value for Money
Do not just give the client what they paid for, go above and beyond the call of duty and provide as professional and detailed a service as you are able. This is because the secret to staying in the business and outperforming other similar companies is your bespoke services.
Your profit margins rely on receiving constant and consistent work. So it is in your best interest to deliver a higher quality product and service than the client may be expecting. This is also how you can attract bigger clients with bigger budgets and bigger campaigns. Hopefully, this will translate into you being on retainer for future campaigns, guaranteeing you a steady income.
Outsource Design to in-House Staff
This step is for the second round of business considerations, but it is good to have it in mind from now. When you begin to attract clients, it might be feasible to hire another designer. This will require you to reinvest any profits into the business more vigorously, but it would be a measure that guarantees future success.
Even if you are certain of your design skills, having a second set of designs to offer clients will make the business seem more professional and also give the clients the impression that you are a bigger business. This will make them more likely to keep hiring you and using your services as they can count on a range of design ideas and bespoke service at lower rates. Lower rates for them still mean a steady income for you.
Give Your Business a Professional and Memorable Name
It can be tempting to give your business a funny name or use a pun, but keep in mind that you will be giving that name out several times a week. Choose something that rolls off the tongue easily and is amusing but not a joke.
Clients will like the hint of humor but if the name is only there because it is funny, they may subconsciously struggle to take you seriously. It can be quite challenging to choose an appropriate name. So much so, that there are guides to naming businesses such as How to Name a Business or business and brand name generators such as Namelix.com.
However, you come by your business name, try not to name it after yourself as your company will need to be a separate entity for business and tax purposes.
With some research and a well-planned business model, you could start your packaging and design business in a very short time. Revenue can be very high in this field once you get yourself established, so start strong to guarantee that you stay strong and achieve success.