How to best promote my product? Comparing the effectiveness of sensory, functional and symbolic advertising content in food marketing

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (8) ◽  
pp. 1792-1806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janina Haase ◽  
Klaus-Peter Wiedmann ◽  
Jannick Bettels ◽  
Franziska Labenz

Purpose Advertising is one of the most important components of food marketing. However, there is uncertainty over the optimal means of convincing consumers to buy a product. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of advertising content comprising text (sensory, functional and symbolic messages) and pictures (product image) on food product evaluation. Design/methodology/approach Two online experiments investigating strawberry advertisements were performed. Study 1 incorporated only text, whereas study 2 investigated combinations of text and pictures. Analyses of variance were conducted to determine any significant differences among the three texts (sensory, functional and symbolic) and among the combinations of text and pictures. Findings Study 1 revealed no significant differences. All three texts were well received, which shows the relevance of all the product benefits – sensory, functional and symbolic – for food products. In contrast, study 2 identified significant differences. The data analysis indicated that advertising effectiveness increases with the complementarity of the text and picture. Notably, the combination of the product picture and symbolic text was scored the highest for effectiveness. Originality/value The findings provide new insights into advertising design that food firms can use to enhance consumer product evaluations in terms of expected taste, perceived experience and quality, overall attitude and purchase intention. Further, the results contribute to the research stream of food product benefits by highlighting the relevance of sensory, functional and symbolic design elements.

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donata Tania Vergura ◽  
Beatrice Luceri

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of different spatial representations (foreground and background) of a product image on the package on the consumer emotional state and intention to buy the product, drawing upon the construal level theory (CLT). Design/methodology/approach Two between-subjects experimental designs were conducted. A face-reading software was used to measure the emotional reactions of participants while watching the stimuli. Findings Empirical results showed that the foreground representation of the product, triggered by a lower perceived psychological distance between the subject and the product, generates more positive emotional responses compared to the background representation. However, the purchase intention did not significantly differ between the foreground condition and the background condition. Research limitations/implications The study enriches the literature on CLT and provides some guidance to manufacturers and product managers for the understanding of the role of packaging in influencing consumer behaviour. Originality/value The paper contributes to the research on the presence of the product imagery on the package. The focus is shifted from the presence/absence of the picture to its position (proximal or distal). This aspect has been neglected in previous studies. Moreover, it is the first application of face reading to support CLT basic assumption and enrich extant marketing research on packaging.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fei Qiao ◽  
William Glenn Griffin

Purpose This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a brand imitation strategy for the package design of male-targeted, female-targeted and gender-neutral products. Design/methodology/approach Three (2 × 2 × 2) between-subjects factorial experiments were conducted with three independent variables, namely, visual shape, color and logo, each classified as relevant/divergent. The dependent variables were participants’ attitudes toward the brand, attitudes toward the product and purchase intention. Findings There were no significant main effects or interactions for the male-targeted product. The results for the female-targeted product revealed no significant main effect of visual shape, a significant main effect of color and significant two-way interactions between visual shape and color and between visual shape and logo. Significant main effects were found for visual shape and color for the gender-neutral product. Practical implications A color scheme similar to that of a leading brand in the same product category more powerfully influenced participants’ attitudes and purchase intention, while a more holistically similar design had greater impact than a less holistic design. Some “divergence” or distinctive design elements of the female-targeted product positively influenced participants’ attitudes and behavior. These findings suggest that a brand imitation strategy offers a means for competing in the marketplace, but should be used with caution. Originality/value A conceptual continuum of brand imitation is proposed, incorporating visual semiotics, creativity theory and gender differences in cognitive styles to provide a more systematic method for delineating brand imitation levels.


2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (12) ◽  
pp. 2604-2628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manveer K. Mann ◽  
Yuping Liu-Thompkins

Purpose This study aims to examine gender differences in the impact of imagining product use on purchase decisions. The authors argue that while imagination can enhance purchase intention for female consumers, it can be detrimental to male consumers. This study explores the conditions under which imagination can be turned into a positive device for male consumers. Design/methodology/approach Three experimental studies were conducted. The first two studies illustrate the differential effects of imagination on males vs females. Given the negative effect found among males, the third study focused exclusively on male consumers to identify conditions under which the negative impact of imagination on these consumers can be alleviated. Findings Studies 1 and 2 show that while an imagination tactic has positive or no effect on female consumers, a generic imagination request lowers male consumers’ purchase intention. Focusing on potential ways of alleviating this negative effect, Study 3 shows that for males without prior brand ownership experience, imagining product use in a less-typical context can increase purchase intention. Research limitations/implications The results provide evidence that gender impacts the effectiveness of imagination in improving product evaluation. Furthermore, the context of imagination and previous brand experience can be used together to determine how male consumers respond to imagination. Practical implications The study’s findings warn against the blind use of imagination tactics. Instead, retailers need to customize imagination tactics based on gender, previous brand experience and product usage context. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first papers to examine the impact of gender on the influence of imagination on product evaluation.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cayetano Medina-Molina ◽  
Benito Pérez-González

PurposeSpain decided to implement NutriScore with the objective of helping consumers to choose healthier foods. NutriScore is a summary indicator interpretative nutritional labelling. This study aims to verify whether the coexistence with other interpretative labelling may influence NutriScore effectiveness.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire was used to analyse two different brands in the same category; one of them ranked with a “B” NutriScore rating and the other with a “D” NutriScore rating. The product packaging was shown in four different ways: without indications, with nutrient-specific labels, with summary indicators (NutriScore) and with both interpretative indicators. Having positive and negative evaluations of NutriScore allowed us to assess its impact. Structural equation modelling (SEM), Student t-test and F-test were employed with a sample of 301 questionnaires.FindingsThe different formats of the interpretative labels did not moderate the relationship between perceived healthiness and purchase intention. When a food product is given positive evaluation from NutriScore, nutrient-specific interpretative labelling reinforces the effect of NutriScore. When a food product is given negative evaluation from NutriScore, nutrient specific interpretative labelling cancels the effect of NutriScore on perceived healthiness and purchase intention.Originality/valuePrevious studies have analysed the interaction between NutriScore and nutrient-specific interpretative labels, but they attribute a negative message to the product (warning labels). This study was aimed at analysing the interaction between NutriScore and summary indicators nutrient specific with positive message about the nutritional quality of the food item.


2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 166-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoon Jin Ma ◽  
Helen Koo

Purpose The purpose of this research is to investigate users’ expectations and preferences for transformable design functions of transformable party dresses to extend the life cycle of the clothing. With transformable design elements added to a party dress, a user can wear her one-event dress more than once, encouraging sustainable consumption. Rather than looking for a new dress, users can wear their party dress with one or even several new looks. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected through purposive sampling from female college students who had purchased at least one party dress. The survey questionnaire was self-developed based on the literature review and consisted of items that measured fashion behavior in relation to party dresses; shopping orientations, focusing on confident/appearance and fashion-consciousness, economic/price consciousness and convenience/time-consciousness; perceived importance of design and functional elements in party dresses; perceived reasons for the limited use of party dresses; perceived importance of design elements of transformable dresses; purchase intention for transformable dresses; and demographic characteristics. Findings As consumer groups of diverse shopping orientations demonstrated purchase intentions for transformable party dresses, transformable features may become an important component of party dresses. Considering the main reasons for users’ limited use of party dresses, designers need to improve the versatility of the dresses’ design and functional elements, focusing on style and occasion, dress length, size/fit, silhouette and color/pattern, so that users can wear their party dresses more than once and ultimately enhance their sustainable apparel consumption practices. Originality/value The findings regarding users’ expectations and preferences for transformable party dresses can help apparel designers and fashion businesses understand potential users when developing transformable dresses and develop strategies to help with sustainable apparel consumption.


2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (11) ◽  
pp. 2293-2321 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guowei Zhu ◽  
George Chryssochoidis ◽  
Li Zhou

Purpose This paper aims to address how adding food ingredients to a packaged base food affects consumers’ calorie estimation of the new augmented product. Design/methodology/approach The four performed experiments and analyses of variance demonstrate an underlying psychological mechanism, explained below. Findings Results show that the healthiness of the added food ingredient (AFI) does not matter if the base food is healthy, and consumers’ calorie estimates of the augmented packaged food product are accurate. When, however, the food base is unhealthy, and the AFI is healthy, consumers underestimate the new product calories. This underestimation effect increases further when the healthy ingredients multiply. This underestimation effect endures when these ingredients are presented in a visual form, but it becomes smaller when these ingredients are presented in a verbal form. A justification mechanism is relevant. Research limitations/implications Further research should test across the broader range of the food product matrix. There is a great diversity of AFI presentations, and further research may deal with the impact of AFIs of these different forms on consumers’ calorie estimation and healthiness perceptions. Research may also test sensory-arousing mechanisms that can help understand how consumers perceive the calories of the augmented food. Practical implications The findings suggest that consumers should be cautious of the judgment bias caused by the presence of an AFI on food packages and raise their awareness regarding nutrition implications and dietary effects. From the perspective of food manufacturers, although adding healthy AFIs to unhealthy base foods may increase consumers’ purchase intention and bring higher profits, it may not be sustainable as a marketing strategy in the long term and has immediate ethical implications. Social implications Policymakers should introduce voluntary schemes to monitor and restrict the improper presentation of AFIs, aiming to rule out the abuse of healthy AFIs on unhealthy packaged food. Originality/value This work offers three major original and valuable contributions. It explains the effects of AFIs on calorie estimation and consumer healthiness perceptions in a context not studied before, namely, packaged food products. Next, it advances the literature on consumer judgment error and heuristics concerning product package attributes. As adding ingredients is integral to product line extension decisions, the results also clarify how marketing can safeguard firm social responsibility in combating obesity.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asuncion Hernandez-Fernandez ◽  
Ines Kuster-Boluda ◽  
Natalia Vila-Lopez

Purpose Rates of diseases caused by poor diet have seen no reduction in recent years. In this scenario, nutritional information labels and health claims could play a decisive role in modifying product attitudes and purchase intention (consequently, eating habits). In this frame, the first objective is to analyze the role of three antecedents on attitudes toward nutritional labels and credibility from health claims. These three starting antecedents are as follows: psychological characteristics of the consumer associated with eating disorders, body image attitudes and affective reactions (pleasure and arousal). Second, this paper aims to analyze if both elements (attitudes toward nutritional labels and credibility from health claims) improve (or not) food product attitudes and then, its purchase intention. Design/methodology/approach The sample comprised 300 young people between 18 and 25 years old. They provided their opinion about a healthy product by completing a structured and personal questionnaire after inspecting the packaging. Path analysis with partial least squares (PLS) was carried out to test the hypotheses stated. Findings First, psychological characteristics associated with eating disorders (self-concept and self-esteem) have a positive significant influence on body image attitudes. Second, attitudes toward their body image have a great effect on the perception that these consumers have about the information provided by healthy food packaging. Insofar as those whose attitudes toward their body image is “damaged” seek in the nutritional label indications that make them feel calm understanding that the food they are going to buy is not harmful to their health. Moreover, credibility from health claims improves positive attitudes toward the nutritional label. On the contrary, those consumers with higher punctuations in body image assigned lower values to those items concerning nutritional information and health claims in the packaging. Third, if attitudes to nutritional information improve, then product attitudes improve too. Fourth, if product attitudes improve, then purchase intention improves too. So, food product managers should be aware of the need to improve product attitudes by working on the packaging (label and claim) to improve purchase intention. Originality/value First, although previous literature has investigated individual psychological characteristics related to food disorders in the health area, the study of these specific individual psychological characteristics (ineffectiveness, perfectionism, interpersonal distrust, interceptive awareness, maturity fears), is under-researched in the marketing discipline. Second, to date, different authors have investigated how important the use of credibility from health claims in packaging can be in terms of increasing product attitudes and purchase intention, as well as the development of positive attitudes toward nutritional information on the label. However, the joint study of both information sources in the packaging (credibility from health claims and attitudes toward nutritional labels) remains under-investigated.


Author(s):  
Gina María Maria Pipoli de Azambuja ◽  
Iñaki García-Arrizabalaga ◽  
Gustavo Rodríguez-Peña

Purpose This study aims to examine the relation between the purchase intention of Peruvian maca and each of the following variables: Peru’s country image, maca’s product image, Peru’s country familiarity and maca’s product familiarity. Design/methodology/approach To compile primary information, a survey of closed questions was applied to students in two countries with different levels of familiarity with Peru: France and the USA. Findings There is a direct association between the studied variables in the cases where the foreign consumer has a high familiarity with Peru. Similarly, there is a positive association between maca’s product image, Peru’s country familiarity and maca’s product familiarity with the consumer purchase intention of maca from Peru in the cases where the consumer has low familiarity with Peru. Research limitations/implications The characteristics of the sample did not allow to analyze the purchase intention according to gender, age and socioeconomic level. Practical implications This study provides innovative insights to design international marketing strategies for Peruvian maca entrepreneurs and export promotion policies to policymakers, to support them to overcome the increase of the global competitive environment of maca. Social implications The paper helps maca producers and exporters to develop international marketing strategies to position their maca products in markets with high or low familiarity with Peru. Originality/value The uniqueness of this paper is based on the study of the purchase intention of agricultural products such as maca, which is a developing product available in Peru.


2014 ◽  
Vol 116 (11) ◽  
pp. 1692-1709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katia Laura Sidali ◽  
Sarah Hemmerling

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an authenticity model for food specialties considering both the subjective and the object-based dimensions of authenticity. Moreover, the relationship with personality traits – such as consumer self-concept and identification with the product – (antecedents) as well as with the consumption intention (consequences) are measured. Design/methodology/approach – Hypotheses were analyzed by means of a structural equation model using AMOS. Calculations were based on data collected through an online survey of 138 German respondents who were recruited by a consumer panel. Findings – Both subjective and object-based perceived authenticity significantly influence the purchase intention. Object-based authenticity's role is mediated by the subjective authenticity, which is affected by the consumers self-identification with the product and personality traits such as determination and passion. Research limitations/implications – The results presented in this paper will help to understand what influences the perception of authenticity of a traditional food product and how it affects purchase intentions. More influencing variables should be considered in future research, as well as other product groups. Repeated analyses considering larger samples are necessary to confirm the presented results. Practical implications – A deeper understanding of which psychological and social factors affect the perception of a product's authenticity is important for creating appropriate marketing strategies. Originality/value – While there is a vast literature on authenticity theories, remarkably few scholars have provided empirical evidence on this subject by using a quantitative research design.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Okkyung Lee ◽  
Yejin Lee

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the effects a cushion has on electrophysiological signals and to identify the important design elements required for manufacturing better therapy cushions.Design/methodology/approachFour types of attachment cushions were manufactured by changing the shell fiber (cotton or microfiber) and the interlining (synthetic loose fiber or buckwheat). The products were evaluated by 20 healthy individuals (10 stable cushions and 10 unstable cushions). We examined the participants by electroencephalography (EEG) and electrocardiography (ECG).FindingsThe authors found significant differences in both EEG and ECG between participants with unstable and stable attachment types.Originality/valueA complex approach to emotional product evaluation was attempted by analyzing differences due to design variables of cushions through subjective evaluation as well as EEG and ECG.


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