Page 50 - Packaging News Magazine Jan-Feb 2019

IMAGE: CONSTANTIA FLEXIBLES | PHOTOGRAPHER MICHAEL VORSTANDLECHNER
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ACTIVE & INTELLIGENT PACKAGING
The next level of smart
www.packagingnews.com.au
January-February 2019
LEFT: Interactive packaging is on the up.
BELOW: Anthem’s campaign for Fanta enjoyed high engagement via connected packaging.
If proof were needed that active and intelligent packaging is here to stay it came at the recent AIPIA Congress in Amsterdam. Writing exclusively for PKN, the association’s communications director Andrew Manly offers a selection of highlights, as well
Tas insights on what to expect in this sector in 2019.
HE opening keynote address ers, understand them better and pro- from AIPIA president Dick de tect their brand image and reputa- Koning set the tone for this tion,” he said. “The centrepiece of year’s congress on all things the event this year is the GSK Chal- active and intelligent in pack- lenge and this confirms just how se- aging. It was clear, he said, that rious global brands like Glaxo- the message was changing. No SmithKline are about A&IP and how
longer were people asking ‘How does it adds value in various ways.”
DOUBLE DIGIT
it work?’ – the question is now ‘What can it do for my product?’
AIPIA’s executive director Eef de Ferrante reinforced the president’s remarks. “The number of brands at- tending the congress this year is at a record level. They are all asking how they can benefit from active and intelligent packaging (A&IP) technologies to engage their custom-
Other themes that resonated over the two days with the 350 delegates were sustainability and waste is- sues, recycling and the latest de- velopments in printed electronics (PE). Connectivity with consumers is increasingly important and this was reflected in several presenta- tions from RFID and NFC chip and tag developers.
Rob Hollands, managing director of global agency Anthem, explored the way consumers are engaging with A&IP and explained the opportunities that connected packaging offers by showcasing the agency’s connected work for FMCG brands Nestlé’s KitKat chocolate bar and Coca-Cola’s Fanta soft drink. In both cases the target markets achieved double digit growth through direct consumer engage- ment. The Takeover Fanta campaign in 2017 used augmented reality (AR) to engage directly with consumers via their smartphones and resulted in 70,000 unique hits. There were 40,000
engagements with the compe- tition that formed part of the campaign. According to Hol- lands, in this ‘best ever’ promotion for the brand, product volumes increased by 15.8 per cent and sales by more than 10 per cent.