You may have read about P&G’s major decision last week to reduce product packaging sizes in its liquid detergent business. The company intends to double concentration of detergent in smaller bottle sizes. Yes, the change is better for the environment and will trim costs, but could there be something deeper at-work here?

P&G is well-known for its attempt to differentiate through product design. Alan Lafley (CEO) has described it as the company’s core competency. In the case of products like detergents, more concentrated packaging makes a lot of sense from a user experience perspective, which is what design is all about. Who wants to lug around or store in the supply closet a container bigger than it has to be? Why not simplify the experience while promoting social responsibility?

Last week’s news is just another sign that product packaging is experiencing rapid transformation. It’s taking place across consumer categories as we enter an era where companies attempt to leverage design for competitive advantage.

There’s no better example of this upheaval in packaging than on the web through the deployment of interactive technologies such as Ajax and Flex. The purpose of these technologies is to strike at redundant and excessive packaging straight in the gut. In the digital world, its the organization and structure of information flows that influences product packaging. How much of the system needs to be involved when the user interacts with the product by specifying action — such as providing feedback, selecting navigation, filtering options, setting criteria, launching a request?

Ajax is shorthand for Asynchronous JavaScript + XML. The purpose of the technology is to decouple user interaction from server requests and activity. Ajax asks — why should every part of the system be involved in fulfilling a response to user interaction when we already know the scope of possible user behavior? Why not embed some of those possibilities upfront? This makes allot of sense for a few reasons. Sure, it’s faster and more convenient for users, but you can also bring to market more complex applications (see more below).

P&G’s CFO has been quoted as saying “We expect this to be win for consumers, retailers, the environment, and P&G.” You could say the same thing about how Ajax makes life a lot better for users, designers and product architects. Users get a more streamlined experience without compromising on functionality. Designers win because people find products to be more useable. Reliance on the back-end creates latency which has traditionally bogged down the flow of the user experience. It’s also a boon to product architects. Now product innovators can conceive of applications that rely on richer information constructs while designers can simplify that richness around user interaction and context. These applications can grow the scope information consumption/processing that web users find manageable. Imagine designing applications that churn out complex information streams (like a modern Quotron machine or Bloomberg terminal) for consumer-level usability.

P&G’s decision is certainly an influential one — the company has a 60% market share of the liquid detergent market in North America — dominated by its Tide brand. According to one newspaper account, “concentrating detergent reduces shipping and packaging costs, but requires manufacturers to spend on persuading customers that they are not spending more for the smaller packages.” For web app companies this is informative commentary. It won’t be all cake-and-candy bringing Ajax applications to market. Users will need to get accustomed. Some users might respond in unexpected ways. They could say, “I like to see all the stuff on the page at once, not piece by piece.” Or, “I like the old way of clicking through multiple page because then I can easily go back and forth.” These are real challenges that should balance the design strategies of new, interactive applications.

The good news is that we’re entering an age of very informed consumers. Consumers can really get onboard when the change proposition and message are clear. Web apps have the added advantage of communicating this proposition through action in real-time. Some splash pages and a guided experience for first-time users are some tools to demonstrate a change proposition in action.

• P&G to concentrate on less packaging

Filed under: User Experiences, Web Apps, Innovation

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Tags: Ajax, Flex, Procter Gamble, Product Packaging, Tide, Useability,