The product: packaging and positioning

Psychology A2 · Consumer Psychology. The idea in plain words, the rules to remember, the mistake to avoid and a worked example, written and checked by Mega Lecture.

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The idea

Packaging changes how people judge what is inside. A gift is wrapped to create surprise and to show care. Givers believe that wrapping shows thought; recipients tend to feel more positive about a wrapped gift.

With food, qualities of the package are passed on to the product. This is sensation transference. In the key study by Becker et al. (2011), shoppers tasted the same yoghurt from pots that differed in shape and colour. The angular pot gave a stronger, sharper taste impression, mainly in people who are sensitive to design.

Position matters too. A planogram fixes where each product sits. In the central gaze cascade effect, the eyes go more and more to the central item just before choosing, and that item is chosen more often.

Rules to remember

Gift-wrapping: creates surprise, hides the gift, shows care and marks the item as a gift.
Types of wrapping: traditional paper and ribbon, gift bags and boxes, or shop wrapping.
Sensation transference: features of the package (shape, colour, material) are transferred to the product.
Becker et al. (2011): field experiment in a supermarket; IVs were pot shape (angular or rounded) and colour saturation; the yoghurt was the same in every pot.
Becker et al. result: angular packaging gave a more intense taste impression, mostly for shoppers sensitive to design.
Planogram: a diagram showing where every product goes on the shelves.
Atalay et al. (2012): eye-tracking showed that items in the horizontal centre get more looks and are chosen more often.

Common mistake

Students say the angular pot changed the yoghurt. The yoghurt was identical; only the impression of taste changed, so the data are subjective ratings.

Worked example

Two identical fruit drinks are sold, one in a soft rounded bottle and one in a sharp-edged bottle. Which drink is likely to be rated as having the stronger taste, and why?

The drink is the same, so any difference must come from the bottle.
Sensation transference says that features of the package are passed on to the product.
Becker et al. found that angular shapes gave a more intense taste impression.

Answer: The drink in the sharp-edged bottle, because the angular shape is transferred to the judgement of taste.

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