Consumer neuroscience on branding and packaging: A review and future research agenda

Abstract

In an environment of extreme competition, it is essential to have a differentiated brand that adds value to consumer communications through packaging. Neuroscience research techniques have undergone remarkable development, facilitating the understanding of consumer brain mechanisms in the choice and purchase decision‐making process. This article presents the first systematic and specific literature review of the branding and packaging from the consumer neuroscience viewpoint. The main objective is to carry out analysis focused on the study of packaging and branding from the field of consumer neuroscience. We used a hybrid methodology. First, a descriptive bibliometric study is applied based on the Web of Science platform, where results confirm that the study field is in a phase of an exponential growth and with high fragmentation of the literature, consistent with its multidisciplinary origin. Using data mining for nodal network analysis with the VOSviewer programme, four clusters of authors and five thematic areas of interest were identified. Finally, a content review provided a list of more than 50 relevant findings in the study field, which are presented through a novel classification approach based on key mental processes in branding and packaging research (attention and memory, emotions and motivation, and reward and decision‐making systems). Thus, it has been possible to classify, order and discuss them, facilitating a comparative analysis and suggesting a possible future research agenda. This research intents to be a guide for branding and packaging professionals and researchers who are interested in learning about the use of consumer neuroscience techniques and theories.

Análisis De La Identidad Visual De Marca en El Sector De La Comida Rápida: Un Estudio De Neuromarketing

“…En concreto, muchos de estos estudios se han interesado en el análisis del branding y el packaging. Destaca la reciente publicación de la revisión de Rodríguez et al, (2023), donde los autores analizan de modo pormenorizado los principales hallazgos encontrados en estas áreas desde el campo de la neurociencia del consumidor. Entre otros aspectos, destacan que, ciertos correlatos biométricos confirman que la conductancia de la piel se reducía cuando los consumidores veían la marca que más les gustaba (Walla et al, 2011).…”

“…Según los autores, destacan la necesidad de tener en cuenta el diseño experimental, la naturaleza de los estímulos y el contexto de los sujetos. Asimismo, y a pesar del gran número de académicos que investigan sobre branding y packaging utilizando herramientas de neuromarketing (Stasi et al, 2018), se ha comprobado que es una disciplina relativamente nueva (Rodríguez et al, 2023), donde no es tan frecuente encontrar estudios sobre la identidad y la imagen visuales de marca. Además, se requiere un esfuerzo conjunto con el fin de conseguir estandarizar el contexto teórico y metodológico para avanzar en la disciplina.…”

Using Event-Related Potentials to Evidence the Visual and Semantic Impact: A Pilot Study with N400 Effect and Food Packaging

“…Multiple facets of product design, particularly in the domain of packaging, have been gradually embracing innovative evaluation techniques. Notably, this shift has witnessed a significant acceleration in recent years [ 24 ]. Several studies, primarily focused on neurosciences, have demonstrated the effectiveness of neuro-techniques in analyzing the perception of the aesthetics, brands, packaging, and pricing of products.…”

Review of Studies on User Research Based on EEG and Eye Tracking

“…Slanzi et al [5] evaluated the click intentions of network users by merging pupil dilation and EEG responses based on physiological analysis. Rodriguez et al [15] systematically explained the brand and packaging of products from a neuroscientific perspective. We can interpret the brain and psychological activities of users when they browse specific advertisement information on a page, including attention level, memory, and emotional response.…”