Impact of Product Packaging on Consumer Buying Behaviour

Impact of Product Packaging on Consumer Buying Behaviour

“Packaging is to products what clothes are to human beings.”

Introduction

Packaging is the final and one of the most important steps in marketing a product. It serves as an opportunity for the marketer to visually convey the brand’s message and what the product stands for. This paper examines how product packaging impacts the buying behaviour of the consumers, why packaging is important and what are the essential elements of packaging.

Consumers today are faced with an ever-increasing number of products. According to Belch & Belch (1999), the average American supermarket holds approximately 20,000 products that are competing to attract the consumers’ attention. Keller (2008) expresses a similar opinion when he states that consumers are faced with more than 20,000 choices within a 30-minute shopping session. With so many options available just before a purchase decision is made, the product packaging is one of the best marketing tools companies can use to sell products. (White n.d.)

The role of packaging in marketing has become quite significant as it is one of the ways companies can get consumers to notice products. The only way to get some consumers to notice the product is through displays, shelf hangers, tear-off coupon blocks, other point-of-purchase devices, and, last but not least, effective packages. Considering the importance placed on the package, it is not surprising that a great deal of research is spent on motivational research, colour testing, psychological manipulation, and so forth, in order to ascertain how the majority of consumers will react to a new package. (Boundless Marketing n.d.) The ‘right’ packaging comes with understanding the consumer buying process and the elements of packaging that are linked with the consumers’ buying decisions.

Earlier packaging was regarded as a mere protective tool but today it is considered as an important component of marketing process. Nowadays...