For many baked foods and snacks, quality is all relative. But when consumers are willing to spend more money for a premium product, they want an upscale experience from the time they open the bag. While the closure might signify the end of the process for the producer, it’s a first step in the user experience.

Little touches like a heavier-gauge twist-tie can help communicate that a product has something more than the next one on the shelf, said Mitch Lindsey, technical sales, Burford Corp.

“We can run a variety of colors and patterns on a heavier gauge wire or even wireless material,” he said of Burford’s twist tyer systems.

Closures can also provide additional marketing and branding opportunities. For example, Kwik Lok can add custom branding to its plastic closures.

“What we have found is that when people add labels to their closures, they can cross-market and cross-promote to create brand affinity that’s integrated into the packaging,” said Karen Reed, director of marketing and communications, Kwik Lok. “It’s something extra that creates more visual value.”

Extras on the closures not only create brand awareness, but they also can nudge a shopper to purchase by creating instant value.

“We have a machine that will put a tag under the twist tie for tear-off recipes, cross-promotion or point-of-sale coupons,” Mr. Lindsey said. “It allows our customers to uniquely identify their products while giving consumers the additional incentives to buy.”

With these kinds of opportunities, the closure shouldn’t be an afterthought on the line but one of the first thoughts on the shelf.

“You put a lot of money and effort into your packaging, and adding that extra touch of branding with your closure can really complete the package,” Ms. Reed said.