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Shaping designs : Effects of the graphic design of packaging sales promotion shapes and products’ packaging shapes on customers’ expectations, pre-purchase attitude and purchase intention

Schoonbrood, J.M.J. (2016) Shaping designs : Effects of the graphic design of packaging sales promotion shapes and products’ packaging shapes on customers’ expectations, pre-purchase attitude and purchase intention.

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Abstract:An English idiom is ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’, but when it comes to buying products, it may be useful to take a good look at a product’s packaging, because it can say a lot about the content. Several studies have been done on the graphic design of a product’s packaging and the effects of the shape of graphic elements on customers’ responses. Besides studying the graphic design of a product’s packaging, it is also important to study the graphic design of packaging sales promotions, since they are often used to stimulate sales. However, studies that address the graphic design of packaging sales promotions, or the interaction between the graphic design of packaging and packaging sales promotions are scarce. The aim of the present study was to find the most optimal way of shaping a product’s packaging and its sales promotion. This study examined the influence of the graphic design on customers’ expectations, pre-purchase attitude and purchase intention. Customers’ choice process present in a product’s category was also taken into account. Customers either have a tendency to switch brands within a category, which indicates variety-seeking behavior, or show apathy towards brand switching, which indicates inertia-prone behavior. To examine the influence of the three principal variables, 16 different visuals were created. These visuals differed in sales promotion shape (angular vs. rounded), packaging shape (angular vs. rounded) and choice behavior dominant in the product category (variety-seeking vs. inertia-prone). Over 240 respondents participated in the study, and after they saw one of the 16 visuals they filled in an online questionnaire. As expected, it was found that rounded sales promotion shapes and rounded packaging shapes caused the most positive responses, compared to angular shapes. Further, the results showed that variety-seeking products led to higher expectations. But, inertia-prone products led to higher purchase intentions, a higher expected retailer’s price for the product and a higher price that customers were willing to pay for the product. There was also an interaction effect found between shapes and choice behavior, which showed that rounded shapes had the most positive influence on customers’ responses, but only in inertia-prone product categories. Limitations, recommendations for further research and practical implications are discussed.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:05 communication studies
Programme:Communication Studies MSc (60713)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/69473
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