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This paper analyses the influence that certain aspects of packaging design have on the consumer expectations of a series of sensory and non-sensory attributes and on willingness to buy for a bag of crisps in Spain. A two-part experiment was conducted in which 174 people evaluated the attributes for different stimuli using an online survey. In the first part, four stimuli were created in which two factors were varied: the packaging material and the image displayed. Interaction was identified between both factors for the attributes Crunchy, High quality and Artisan. For the attributes Salty, Crunchy and Willingness to buy, the image was the only significant factor, with the image displaying crisps ready for consumption being the only one that obtained higher scores. For the attribute Intense flavour, no statistically significant differences were identified among the stimuli. In general terms, the image displayed on the bag had a greater influence than the material from which the bag was made. In the second part, an analysis was made of the most effective way (visual cues versus verbal cues) to transmit the information that the crisps were fried in olive oil. To this end, two stimuli were designed: one displaying an image of an oil cruet and another with an allusive text. For all the attributes (Intense flavour, Crunchy, Artisan, High quality, Healthy and Willingness to buy), higher scores were obtained with the image than with the text. These results have important implications for crisps producers, marketers and packaging designers.

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Many food packages on the market show an image of the product contained inside or the ingredients with which the product was produced. During the packaging design process, it is the job of the designer or the marketing team to decide which specific image will be depicted on the packaging. This paper analyses the potential implications of this decision by studying the influence that the visual appearance of the product pictured on the packaging has on the way consumers perceive the product during consumption. Two packaging designs for apple sauce were created; the only variable was the visual appearance of the apple displayed: one showed a red apple and the other showed a green one. The 147 participants in this between‐subjects experiment tasted and evaluated six product attributes (Sweet, Acidic, Intense Flavour, Healthy, Natural, and Quality) as well as Liking and Willingness to buy. The results of a MANOVA‐Biplot analysis show that the visual appearance of the product pictured affects Liking, Willingness to buy, and some product attributes. In fact, a strong positive relationship was identified between the attribute Healthy and the perceived quality of the product with Liking and Willingness to buy; if one of these attributes scored higher, the higher score was extrapolated to the others. The study also shows that gender differences exist as these effects do not affect all consumers equally, with women being more sensitive to them than men. This paper discusses the implications of these results for the food industry, for packaging designers and for marketers.