Do people judge chocolate by its cover?
We are well acquainted with the popular English idiom ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’, but people do judge chocolate by its packaging, a study has found. What is more, people express a strong emotional association with the packaging of a chocolate than they do from the tasting. Intriguing, right? As per the researchers of the study, while the taste is always considered as the principal factor in determining the purchases, perception of taste is influenced by emotions induced by packaging.
“There’s a difference in how consumers perceive intrinsic product cues — like flavour, aroma, and texture — which are associated with sensory and perceptual systems, and how they perceive external cues — like packaging materials, information, brand name, and price — which are associated with cognitive and psychological mechanisms,” explained co-lead investigator Frank R. Dunshea, PhD, School of Agriculture and Food, VIC, Australia.
Researchers analysed 75 participants, who were between 25 and 55 years of age, wherein 59% of the participants were female.
The researchers found that there was a moderate positive association between liking the packaging and the taste of the chocolate and had a direct influence on the acceptability of the chocolate.
“An estimated 60%t of consumers’ initial decisions about products are made in stores solely by judging the packaging,” explained co-lead investigator Sigfredo Fuentes, PhD, also of the School of Agriculture and Food, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia.