Packaging, authenticity and taste in the consumer age (I)

Packaging Design: The Distinctive Features of the Consumer Age
No one can deny that we have entered the consumer era - everything is rapidly commoditized. Even intangible things that are traditionally spiritual, have also been tagged with value and appear to be available for sale. In the consumer age, nothing is priceless. Since it is necessary to sell, to obtain profits, the necessary packaging is essential.

Packaging, the darling of industrialization, has gone through more than 150 years of history. With the increase of industrial mass production capacity and the development of human science and technology, packaging design, as a result of commercial activities, trade competition and cultural development, has entered every corner of the world and is closely associated with people's lives.

Commodity packaging first appeared in the United States in the 1850s. Prior to this, for the problem that grocers at the time were often adulterated in foods and lacked in both goods and services, a tea merchant named John Honeyman had previously packaged the tea and marked his name on the packaging. The address of the factory and the words “the amount of pure blended tea” should prevent grocers from doing things. Product packaging was born. However, this practice has been resisted by grocers because of their reduced retail profits. John Hornyman’s revolutionary initiative in this business area undoubtedly played the prelude to modern business.

By cutting and folding a piece of paperboard into a complete box instead of wrapping paper, it has many advantages: it can be flat, save space, and easy to store before use; it is easy to be formed when used, convenient and quick, and can be greatly Improve packaging efficiency; facilitate distribution during distribution. This method first appeared in the United States in 1850 and was welcomed by manufacturers, distributors, and consumers. As for how to reduce the cost of cartons to ensure a sufficient amount of production, as well as the rational design and use of carton patterns, it is something in the coming years.

Large-scale industrial production leads to a substantial drop in product prices, and at the same time, it will inevitably bring about changes in sales methods and revolutions in circulation. Shops in the modern sense replaced traditional grocery stores and became visible after the First World War. Since the 1930s, industrialization has led to a series of social changes that have stimulated the emergence of new packaging design concepts. Special packaging design teams have formed in European and American companies. Packaging design has become an integral part of social production activities. Link. Design is no longer a matter that only a few elites can enjoy. Instead, it enters millions of households and becomes an integral part of people's daily lives. The huge market demand, in turn, promotes the development of packaging design concepts, packaging technologies and materials. The rapid identification of products from a wide range of products remains the core of packaging design. Replace traditional glass bottles from plastic bottles and wax boxes, replace traditional wrapping paper with plastic film, cellophane, and tin foil, replace paper bags with plastic bags, and spray cans into canned foods made of various materials (tinplate Canned foods, can-drinks, beverages and beer.... The revamping of packaging materials, the dazzling packaging technology, and the continuous improvement of the packaging process make it easy for people to obtain a wide variety of consumer products, provided that they have sufficient Money. The strong demand for packaging design style is one of the important features of the consumer society after its formation.

Self Packaging: Video Resume Resume
When the goods are greatly enriched, the frequency of homogenization is also increasing. How to avoid homogenization, so that a large number of consumers are admiring your products and then favor your products, it can be said that this is a headache for Chinese manufacturers in recent years. Given the similar price/performance ratio of the product, how to make your product unique in its own style is really difficult. Like manufacturers selling goods, it is not uncommon for university students to pack themselves and market themselves when they graduate. In the face of fierce competition, it is not only once but also N times.

There is a saying nowadays that "in the 1990s, student employment was seen in clothing, and modern students were employed in packaging." The first step in packaging yourself is to start with a resume. How to stand out from numerous job applications and let employers take notice of you is the key to making resumes for job applications. Various universities have set up employment counseling centers to provide guidance to graduating undergraduate students. There are many professional counseling books on the market that specifically introduce them. As a result, students’ resumes are getting more and more beautiful and they have to admire them. The effort and wisdom spent on resumes, especially those female college students.

The resume of the female college students’ job hunting entails a “low-breasted shot.” ​​It was once reported as a news story, which made the streets seem to be another powerful example of people’s convictions and worldliness. Today, a new personal resume - "video resume" appears in the recruitment market in Nanjing.

"Video Resume" is a resume created by using computer multimedia video software. It records personal situations and talents through television images and provides them as video materials to recruiters. Like a text resume, a video resume is also a form of self-marketing. As a brand-new application method, in the highly competitive talent market, all-round display of its overall strength, rapid communication and exchange with recruiters, video resume has advantages that traditional candidates cannot match: in almost uniform text resumes. In addition, attaching a VCD or DVD to stand out and attract recruiters' eyeballs equals an opportunity for an interview. It can also be linked to the Internet. Recruiters can open video files at any time to more fully understand themselves and save time. Avoid the pain of running around. It is said that this new type of resume is very popular with graduates from Nanjing colleges and universities. The business of small stores engaged in the production of video resumes is booming. The number of graduates per year in Nanjing colleges and universities has reached around 100,000. The consumption of college students who only recommend “packaging” for employment may be as high as tens of millions.

College students have self-packaged to adapt to the fierce competition in the employment market, originally was understandable. Imagine spending money in the family for three or four years, and finding a good job after graduation is no more than normal. It also reflects the progress of the concept of college students. However, it is not enough to rely on self-packaging alone. Talented learning is the ability to make oneself invincible. Over-pursuing packaging, comparing with each other, or even defrauding, or concealing a kind of vulgar action such as “low-breasted”, I believe it is the behavior of a few college students, which is not universal.

The ultimate packaging: careful plastic surgery
CCTV's “Social Watch” column recently broadcast a program about plastic surgery, which has caused widespread social repercussions. According to the situation disclosed in the program, female college students and female middle school students occupy a large proportion in female cosmetic surgery. When asked about the motives of cosmetic surgery, the responses of the girls who were interviewed and who were undergoing cosmetic surgery were quite representative.

The plastic surgery of the female students is aimed at two things: beauty and job hunting.

Heart of beauty in everyone. The pursuit and longing for beauty is a natural right of any individual. This is because the United States can bring more opportunities and wealth to young women. In the national university campus of the 1980s, people’s concepts were far less open than they are today, and there is often such an interesting phenomenon: school flowers, flowers, and beauty are all undergraduates, followed by masters, and doctors are the worst. Although they will not be able to marry, the risk at that time will increase year after year. It has become a hot topic of social concern for some time. Of course, this is not entirely a beautiful issue. Time passes, and now plastic surgery is quietly becoming popular among female university students. Being beautiful will help increase your chances of finding a job; finding a good job and benefiting your future development will lead you to a happy life. It's that simple.

Female undergraduates are not as popular as female college students. They may face worse public opinion than female university students. Most of the female high school students who are consciously “self-described” by their parents’ consent are only able to walk into the plastic surgery hospital.

Despite repeated warnings from experts, the effectiveness of cosmetic surgery can only be maintained for 10 years, and the damage to the body is life-long and cannot be repaired. However, women who come for cosmetic surgery are still rushing. The explosiveness and high profits of the cosmetic industry can be read from various types of advertisements. The cosmetic work of female college students and female middle school students can also be called the ultimate form of self-packaging, or should be treated with caution.