Seren-chip-idy? Two packages identical in style, subtly different in function; creating wireframes for competitive analysis

I happened to have an almost finished bag of chips on the table, next to a new bag I just picked up — and I noticed that the bags look almost identical! Well, at least at first glance.

Both bags have:

• similar colors in similar locations
  • large green stripe across the top
  • bold red brand name
• color palettes of “natural brown paper bag,” “corn-ear yellow,” “corn-stalk green,” and prominent use of red
• subtle watermark-style corn graphics
• scripty fonts
• little windows to see the chips
• chip-shaped textures and decorations

Trademark industry-me would say these bags could be deemed “confusingly similar,” because they are the same product in the same goods & services class — but the logos themselves are different.

It prompted me to break down the information a bit more to see the differences. In this case, a wireframe of each bag helps define the bag space allocation and messaging without the style applied — a much easier way of evaluating the content and hierarchy of information.

Reduce the designs to wireframes for easier analysis

Now that we can see things this way, package design aside, we can see that the bag on the right, Late July, has a lot more information on it pertaining to why you want these chips, where to eat them, and a few more dietary certifications. The organic / flavor / style is also a lot more prominent. The bag on the left, Mission, is going for simplicity and using a real “authentic” paper bag for the bag material. Aesthetically, I prefer the Mission bag because it gets to the point in a quicker way, there’s less text and you know to focus down the center of the bag — nothing is diverting your attention from that nice round window of chips in an illustrated bowl — but, the most prominent word besides the brand name is “Rounds” (“Tortilla” is getting lost on the yellow background) which is less important and less interesting to me than Late July’s “Organic Sea Salt Thin & Crispy.”

So basically, Mission is selling Tortilla Rounds made from 4 simple ingredients including sea salt and Late July is selling Organic Sea Salt Thin & Crispy Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips which are amazingly delicious and perfect for parties with friends. Wow, that’s a mouthful (pun intended), but at least I know what to expect from my chips and how to enjoy them. Do I need to know this? I’m not sure. I’ve had plenty of chips before so I already know I can have them at parties with friends, I’m more concerned about the style and flavor of the chip — “thin & crispy” makes it more enticing.

If I were a first-time chip buyer and saw them side-by-side on a shelf and had to choose, I would next evaluate them based on the nutritional information on the back and the price. Then take the preferred option home and try them out for flavor. I already know which brand I prefer (neither), but since my favorite wasn’t available the last few trips to the market, I decided to try these.

At the end of the day, are all sea-salt restaurant-style tortilla chips the same? Package design aside, if taste is your main evaluating factor, there’s only one way to find out.

Next steps: conduct a blind taste test. Look at nutrition tables side-by-side. Look at prices side-by-side. Make a large bowl of guacamole.