New moves towards product transparency – whether it’s about the environment, labour rights or traceability – are making packaging work much harder.  Last year was a pivotal year for responsible marketing with the smoking ban, junk food ad restrictions and the Stern Review on global warming.  The pendulum has swung and it will become essential for brands to demonstrate their virtuous aspect.

As environmental issues take centre stage, brands will be obliged to use less packaging, make use of biodegradable materials and find ways of reusing and recycling containers.  There are those who predict that after five years of labels becoming crowded with information, there will be a backlash against this trend and a significant shift back to emotional branding in packaging.

A pressing task for digital designers will be to overcome a barrier to the expansion of on-line shopping – people’s wish for a greater physical interaction with the goods they buy.  Web designers must find ways of humanising the Internet shopping experience, even through simple effects like creating catalogues with pages that appear to physically turn rather than using hyperlinks.

Another important digital trend is the rise of the small-screen world.  As mobile technology takes off and people start using their phones to access Internet and television, designers will have to change their mindsets.  Branding and logos must work in miniature as well as on a larger scale.  This could provide lots of rebranding work as existing brands do not tend to look good in a small-screen environment and may need to be completely overhauled to stand out in the new, miniaturised universe.

Brands will appeal to the self-interest of consumers by offering them increasing scope to personalise the look and feel of their goods.  In the US, Jones Soda encourages drinkers to download their own photographs to its website, then prints the images onto the bottle labels.  It will send you a crate of soft drink bottles with pics of you and your cat on them if you wish – such user-generated design is expected to start making an impact in the UK this year.  It is already in action with personalised shopping brochures and the pick ‘n’ mix design of the Mini.

Then there is mass-premiumisation, which is expected to continue this year with an explosion in premium products and upmarket versions of existing brands.  Rocketing raw material prices in 2008 will mean many brand-owners have to push through price rises.  Designers will have to find ways of updating packaging and branding to make these rising prices look reasonable.