QUANTITATIVE METHOD RESEARCH 9 PAGES

Abstract

Packaging is essential in attracting consumers attention towards a product. It is an effective way that encourages consumers to make instant purchases.For this research paper, the researchers are conducting a study titled “ The Effect of Packaging on Consumers perception”. The researchers are willing to find by the end of the research the different factors that encourages consumers to buy a specific product and how does packaging affect their decision. To do so, the researches will conduct a qualitative research to have a better understanding of how consumers think as well as their perception about the importance of product packaging.

Introduction

Product packaging is a great factor in determining whether consumers buy a product or not. Packagings usually attract consumers to actually grab the product and use their senses to touch and feel the product which ultimately increases their purchasing power. Research have shown that more than 50% of consumers purchases are instant and unplanned, this is caused due to the in-store stimuli which have a direct impact on their decision making process. Marketers and businesses nowadays are emphasizing on the importance of packaging and in-store storing since it is considered an effective way of advertising and promotes instant purchases.

Throughout the study ,the researchers will be collecting both secondary and primary data. The methodology used by the researchers will also be clearly stated and the research will be concluded with some discussions and recommendations.

Literature Review

In today’s world, packaging is playing such an important role in our everyday purchases. As technology rapidly grow the production of products also increases which pushes marketers to distinguish their products in the market from other products. Most marketers or corporations tend to differentiate their products by adding value for their consumers. In this regard, marketers add value by their packaging strategy since it's an important factor that consumers look for. From consumers point of view, packaging has several benefits. It eases the consumption as well as the handling process. It has been said that packaging affect the decision making process when purchasing not only a product but food as well.

In food, packaging plays an important role in providing information about the product as well as the brand image and quality. Recent changes in lifestyle , empowered consumers to learn and differentiate more about healthy and unhealthy choices which forced many marketers to improve packaging designs or even create new ones. Moreover, It is very important for marketers to understand consumers’ new perception about food and their expectations about packaging in order to deliver the most desired packaging for them.

Unlike other products, food is a complex process that requires different factor including sensory and non sensory characteristics. Nowadays, non sensory characteristics along with the sensory characteristics plays a really important factor due to fast marketing developments. Non sensory characteristics such as packaging and pricing is also an important factor in determining consumers purchase decision for food. In today's’ world, packaging is not only the container anymore that facilitates the product transportation it is also essential in attracting and influencing consumers purchase decision. For example, in self service food retailing, the last chance for attracting consumers is the packaging. Since many different products are available, the product must be differentiated properly in the market with a well designed packaging that communicates the products’ benefit to consumers. Moreover, the nutrition facts and calories became one of the most important factors when determining whether to purchase an item or not. (A.Eldesouky, A.F.Pulido, & F.J.Mesias, 2015)

According to the study by Vila (2006),packaging plays a big role in influencing the perceptions and attitudes of consumers towards a product. Consumer perceptions on a product also play the role of guiding companies and inspiring strategies. It is due to this ability that companies should understand the perceptions of their consumers to determine the type of product packaging. The article Vila (2006)is, therefore, an experimentation-based empirical research carried out to help in the understanding of the role of various packaging elements such as color, typography, shape, image among others in determining consumer product positioning in the mind. The study took part in two phases, carried out on a sample size of forty six customers who were presented with products with simulated packaging. The selected seven product-positioning strategies were presented to the consumers and consumers asked to choose the product that best fit the graphic variables description.

The results from the study helped to understand the role of each packaging element in determining consumer perception. By use of multidimensional scaling, it proves that every positioning strategy has its set of packaging elements that influence it and consumers’ perceptions on a product are highly influenced by packaging. The findings of this study should, therefore, act as a guide to package designers. Accordingly, the right product package design should be a representation of the consumers’ mind positions about the product, and this can only be achieved when the designer understands consumer perceptions. Packaging has the great ability for differentiation of products and formations of identity thus largely influence consumer perceptions and behavior.

Another study by Steenkamp & Gielens (2003) states that there are various market factors that determine the way consumers make decisions to purchase certain products and leave others. According to the authors, it is the impact of such factors that determine the adoption decision and shape consumer behavior. The term adoption in this study refers to the first time purchase, which is commonly seen as high risk due to lower product knowledge associated with it. The changes in the market factor, thus play a role in the continuous changes experienced in consumer purchase habits and this highlights the importance of understanding market factors and their way of influencing consumer behavior.

To avoid bias, the study also looks in the major effects of the new products in market and interaction on the trial probability of the products. The methodology involves a systematic examination of the collected data using theory based hypothesis that depends on understanding and explanation. The considered factors particularly informing the consumer trial probability of new products is determined empirically through generalizations allowed within the Consumer Packaged Goods domain. The results of the study support that consumer dispositions and market factors influence consumer adoption behavior. Furthermore, the major factors influencing trial probability over a large number of CPGs is the innovativeness, consumer dispositions and susceptibility of consumer to normative impudence. Empirical prediction indicates that the consumer disposition to purchase new products marketing communication and the marketed characteristics of the product which keeps varying with time. Market factors and marketed product variables thus play a larger role in determining consumer dispositions.

The fourth study by Ahmed & Parmar (2014) ascertain that many organizations in the current market utilize packaging as a marketing tool for sales promotion because the type and manner of packaging contains the ability to stimulate buying impulses from the buyer in such a way that it triggers impulse buying. The article describes packaging as a marketing method on its own and insists on its ability to increase sales, enlarge market share and ultimately reduce promotional and market costs. The article, therefore, is a study to determine the ways in which product packaging and packaging elements has an impact on various aspects of consumer factors. Various aspects of consumers and their behavior were put into consideration such aspects include the buying behavior, consumer adoption decision and purchase behavior and to identify the major elements, to highlighted in packaging and design. Thus, the study is empirical and determines the main features influencing on consumers’ choice in the market where multiple and different choices of product exist.

The study results show that Packaging as a whole plays a huge role in influencing consumer behavior and purchase decision. However, different packaging elements affect consumer purchase decision differently and this further places more emphasis on type of packaging used in regard to design of packaging wrapper, color, type of packaging material and innovation as the most important factors to consider. These factors were found to be the major determinants of consumers’ disposition, product positioning and buying decision.

As for the last study which is by Dantas, Minim, Deliza, & Puschmann (2004), the authors agreed that packaging plays a vital role in determining and influencing the intentions of a consumer to buy. According to them, packaging is likely the first contact existing between consumer and the product. Therefore, packaging plays a fundamental role on consumers’ intention to purchase as it may be the first visual contact between the consumer and the product. The presentationof packaging elements such as color, packaging wrapper among others of the product that predispose the consumer and trigger sensory impulses that lead to impulse buying. The quality of sensory triggers determines consumer perception and repetitive purchase behavior. The study entails experimentation conducted on a “Focus Group” with the aim of obtaining information on the attitudes, thoughts, opinions and concepts that inform a consumer choice on minimally processed products.

The results of the study indicated that the packaging elements such as color have greater influence on the perception of the consumer. Also in the study, one particular color- green received much preference from the customers while heavy decorations and excessive instructions and information about the product on the packaging material received less preference. The article thus supports the idea that packaging is the most important aspect in marketing and should be used to inform the packaging designers. The article also indicates that packaging that attracts customers emphasize on the visual elements and the ability to trigger customer impulses to consider purchasing the product. In this regard, the pack must communicate the message in a very short period of time and at the same time convince the consumer to buy.

From the ideas presented in the articles, packaging occurs to be the ultimate marketing tool because it highly influences consumer perceptions and purchasing decisions. This indicates the important role of packaging designers in influencing consumer behavior. In essence, packaging should be done in a way that it creates the perceptions of a consumer, fulfil consumer expectations and at the same time influence formation of a repetitive purchase behavior for the consumer.

Methodology

As mentioned above, the research strategy used by the researchers to conduct the study is purely qualitative. A qualitative research is mainly used to have an in- depth understanding of the phenomenon. A qualitative research is an exploratory research that helps the researchers to get a deeper understanding of the problem. As for the methods, qualitative research can be done through interviews, focus groups or observation. The researchers will undergo a face to face interview with 5 different participants in order to explore more and get different views. This will allow the researchers to obtain an accurate findings and avoid bias results.

As for the questions, the researchers will obtain a structured interview with the participants in order to cover all the objectives of the research. However, during the interview researchers might add additional question and exclude some.

Sampling techniques

For the sampling technique and since the researchers are conducting a purely qualitative research, the most applicable type of sampling in this case would be the convenience sampling.

Convenience sampling technique is a non probability type of a sampling techniques that depends on the availability of the participants to be part of the study. The researchers will conduct the face to face interview with the 5 different participants conveniently to understand consumers perception about the topic.

Ethical considerations

The researchers will follow the “No Harm Rule”to ensure that the participants are not exposed to any form of harm including emotional, physical and mental harm. This will be done by using a consent form which clearly states and explains to the participant the purpose of the research. Furthermore, the researchers will ensure anonymity and confidentiality to all participants by avoiding leading questions and other personal questions, such as name and location. To ensure the validity of the questions, the researchers will pilot test the questions on individuals to make sure that respondents won’t experience any difficulties while answering the questions. This will also help researchers to change or restructure some ambiguous or misleading questions.

Research limitations

The researchers couldn’t interview more than 5 participants due to time constraints. Also, interviews were mainly done with female participants between the age of 17- 26.

Research question

Q1. How important is the packaging of the product to you ?

Q2. What’s the main thing you look for when purchasing a new product?

Q3. What attracts you to the product through the packaging (shape, color, font)

Q4. When do you mostly care about the packaging?

Data Analysis

Participant 1:

The first participant explained that packaging is one of the most important attributes that attracts her while purchasing a product. Her facial expressions and body language clearly described how packaging is important to her. Also, she said that when buying a product that she knows nothing about, packaging in terms of size and look grabs her attention the most. The participant said packaging matters to her , however, she pays more attention to the packaging of a product when its for gifting. She said that when she wants to gift her friends, family or relatives , packaging matters more than the product itself. The color, size and the wrapping of the product itself encourage her to get the product since it will appeal more to person she is gifting.

Participant 2:

The second participant stated that packaging is very important to her since it represents the professionality of the product. She said she wouldn’t give the product a chance if it’s packaging was bad and she normally doesn’t likes to try new brands, in makeup for example, but would give it a chance if the packaging did grab her attention. The main thing she looks when purchasing a new product, other than it’s good packaging as stated before, is the quality and ratings from other consumers and the way they describe it, and if there’s any guarantees if it was an electronic service. The participant explained that what attracts her the most through the packaging is if it’s simple and linked with the main theme of the product, not too sophisticated that she feels that she doesn’t want to open it, also practical and can be recycled. Lastly, she clarified that she mostly cares about the packaging if she wants the product as a gift or if it was from a famous brand.

As for the third participant, She demonstrated that packaging is as important as the product itself when purchasing. She justified that the packaging gives value to the product, so it’s important to her to have a high quality packaging. Moreover, she stated that the first thing that attracts her when purchasing a new product and the thing she looks for is the design and creativity of the packaging itself with the name of the brand and it’s logo. She said everything is ofcourse important but the color plays a big role in attracting her and most consumers, which makes her remember the brand because of the colors they use. She said she honestly cares about the packaging all the time because it what mostly excites her when buying a certain or new product, so it has a huge effect on her.

The fourth participant thought the topic was really interesting, since she has a shop that serves flowers, wrappings and balloons etc. She explained that most of her clients usually come to the shop looking for the best wrappings for their products.The participants said that most of her consumers always tell her how important the outer look of the product is. Moreover, she clearly stated that for her, packaging is more important than the product sometimes. She believes that the design, color and size of a product is capable of delivering the right message to the customer. All of sudden, she started describing the last gift she brought her mom and how packaging played an important role in her purchase decision. She explained that when purchasing the perfume all what mattered at that time was how it looks as well as the size of it.

However, the last participant thought that packaging matters but not all the time. She started explaining that marketers shouldn’t spend a lot on the packaging, she had a completely different view compared to the other 4 participants. She said that what matters the most is the quality of the product and its functionality. From her perspective, she sees that packaging shouldn’t be the main concern of marketers and consumers.However, she ended the interview by saying sometimes I get attracted to how the product looks ,but it's not what makes me buy a specific product.

Findings

Based on the interviews and answers that was done and mentioned above in our research,we noticed that the majority thought that packaging is an essential element when purchasing a product. Different factors of packaging were determined while conducting the interviews. The first factor was “Gifting”, which clarified how some consumers focus on the packaging more when it’s something that will be gifted to someone, so even if the product was tested or used before and had a positive outcome, they would still reconsider getting another one that has a more attractive design and packaging especially if it contains the information needed to know more about the product ,since some packaging stand out as the design but doesn’t really include enough information to excite the consumers to go for it. Simple mistakes differ in the selling point.

Another factor that was determined was the “Color” . Some participants mentioned on how it’s very important to them since it helps them differentiate their favorite brands, which does really catch their interest and attention. Example, when one thinks of the color tiffany and white, some would directly think of the brand “Tiffany”, which helps many, not only them, remember the brand by this way, which definitely makes it stand out with their competitors and make it what it is today, a successful brand.

Third factor is “Recycling” , some participants care and would pay more attention if the packaging can be recycled, because most of them prefer to use eco-friendly products. When we researched, we also found out that 65% of the consumers globally always or mostly recycle product packaging, so this factor surprisingly plays a big role too.

The fourth and last factor was the “Label” , because some do value label in the products since it’s an east way to get information about the product in store, its origin, content, usage, and so on. It’s important for them because it shows them the price, quantity, the product’s features and helps them to understand more about the product like mentioned above.

So overall, packaging does represents a good means of marketing communications towards those consumers, because they value the elements that are represented on the package.

Conclusions and recommendations

To conclude, the results of this research on the role and effect of product packaging on consumers showed the importance of packaging on consumers decision making. It’s clear that the package can be a selling point for a lot of consumers based on this research and in what we’re noticing around too in real life, by of course delivering quality and by reflecting this product’s brand image. Lastly, packaging designs not only attract consumers ,but also change their perception about a product compared to its competitors. Moreover, it clearly shows that it is one of the most important tool in marketing. Any businesses with weak packaging should consider changing their design and outer look into a more creative, eye-catching elements that can be done through the color, design, font, and other branding elements. Furthermore, packaging not only attracts existing customers , it's also powerful in grabbing the attention of new customers. The overall branding strategies of a brand help marketers to create customer based brand equity.

References

Ahmed, R. R., & Parmar, V. (2014). Impact of Product Packaging on Consumer's Buying Behavior. European Journal of Scientific Research 122(2), 125-134.

Dantas, M. I., Minim, V. P., Deliza, R., & Puschmann, R. (2004). The Effect of Packaging on the Perception of Minimally Processed Products. Journal of International Food & Agribusiness Marketing, 71-73.

Steenkamp, J.-B. E., & Gielens, K. (2003). Consumer and Market Drivers of the Trial Probability of New Consumer Packaged Goods. Journal of Consumer Research 30, 368-384.

Vila, O. A. (2006). Consumer perceptions of product packaging. Journal of Consumer Marketing 23(2), 100 - 112.

A.Eldesouky, A.F.Pulido, & F.J.Mesias. (2015, June 29). the role of packaging and presentation format in consumers’ preferences for food: an application of projective techniques. journal of sensory studies.