Effects of packaging design on sensory liking and willingness to purchase: A study using novel chocolate packaging

Abstract

Packaging is the first impression consumers have of food products which determines likelihood of purchasing. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of chocolate packaging design on sensory liking and willingness to purchase (WTP) of consumers (n = 75) under three conditions:(1) blind [product], (2) packaging, and (3) informed [product and packaging]. The same chocolate tasted in (1) was wrapped in six different packaging concepts (bold, fun, every day, special, healthy, premium) developed based on TNS NeedScope™ model for (3). There were significant differences in liking towards taste based on packaging. Liking scores for (3) reduced when expectations created by packaging were not met. Regression analysis explained, taste had strongest association (r = 0.73) towards WTP. Cochran's Q and McNemar tests showed significant differences in frequencies of emotion-based terms between packaging and informed conditions. These findings can be used in product design to evaluate product attributes by enhancing emotional attachment towards chocolate.

Understanding American premium chocolate consumer perception of craft chocolate and desirable product attributes using focus groups and projective mapping

“…Our study findings are consistent with Australian chocolate consumer attitudes that product liking is affected by the expectations generated by the packaging [ 25 ]. Throughout all four focus groups, participants opted to discuss packaging extensively and appeared to have a higher emotional attachment to the packaging than the taste of the product [ 25 ].…”

“…UK chocolate consumer research concluded that the flavor and brand of the chocolate bar must be congruent to elicit a positive emotional response and recurrent purchases from consumers [ 21 ]. A recent study with Australian chocolate consumers found that packaging was a strong driver of consumer expectations and liking [ 25 ]. Overall, these studies determined that consumer attitude and behavior towards chocolate product attributes are strongly linked to consumer location and cannot be transferred to consumers from other countries.…”

Virtual reality environments on the sensory acceptability and emotional responses of no- and full-sugar chocolate

“…However, only a few of these products succeed in the marketplace based on the sensory data. The inability of consumers' methodologies to predict the food-related behaviours and purchase decisions is the main factor that contributes to the high failure rates in the marketplace (Gunaratne et al, 2019). In traditional sensory testing panels, participants generally are placed in isolated tasting booths located in a sensory laboratory facility (Lawless & Heymann, 2010).…”

Non-Invasive Biometrics and Machine Learning Modeling to Obtain Sensory and Emotional Responses from Panelists during Entomophagy

“…Therefore, the initial assessment of the visual attributes of dishes of insect-based foods is very important, as they create the first impression for consumers and determine their eagerness to taste the product or not. Furthermore, the presentation of food, beverages, and even the packaging of food products using imagery presented on digital screens renders statistically similar information when presenting the same product for taste or handling, as it creates the first impression for consumers when judging a product [ 15 , 16 , 17 ]. Hence, the visual renderings of insect-based food may help to break negative emotions related to first impressions.…”