PACKAGING

RESEARCH
 MEANING
Packaging is the science, Art and
Technology of enclosing or protecting
products for distribution, storage, sale and
use.

Packaging also refers to the process of

design, Evaluation and production of
packages
 How packaging can have an effect on your
product marketing?

Product packaging is always known to play a very important in the

marketing mix. It acts as an important medium in the marketing
mix in various aspects like promotion campaigns, establishing
brand identity, reflecting the impact of all other product groups,
defining its character and a lot more. Packaging is often the last
impression that the consumer has on your products and as a result
you need to ensure that it is done in the best possible way.

in present times, packaging has evolved to great heights and has

developed way beyond its original function which is a means of
product protection. With the role of packaging in the marketing mix
gaining momentum, research in this area becomes extremely
important
 PACKAGING RESEARCH
Packaging graphics and copy are critical marketing variables In
many product categories, particularly for non advertised or
under advertised brands in self serve shopping environments

The package on a retail shelf is the last opportunity to influence

the consumers before they decide to buy.

The better the package design and copy, the greater is the
likelihood that consumers will choose that brand. Any new
package design, or significant change in an existing package,
should always be subjected to critical observation of consumer
research
PROCEDURE OF PACKAGING
PACKAGE OPTIMISATION
PACKAGE SCREEN
PACKAGE CHECK
PACKAGE TEST

AD HOC PACKAGING RESEARCH

SHELF IMPACT
 PACKAGE OPTIMISATION
PackageOpt (Package Optimization)
A package, or package design, consists of shapes, colors,
images, fonts, brand name, and messages. The number of
permutations of these elements (i.e., unique package designs)
can run into the thousands. With PackageOpt, it is possible to
predict consumer reactions to all possible combinations of these
package elements.
How Does PackageOpt Work?
Once the basic variables of effective packaging for a brand are
identified through qualitative research, Decision Analyst's
PackageOpt research methodology identifies optimal prototype
packaging concepts, using choice-modeling experiments.
Different brand name treatments, messages, themes,
illustrations, imagery, colors, layouts, etc., can represent
thousands of possible package designs. Each respondent usually
sees 5to 10 scenarios (i.e., combinations of variables).
PackageOpt tests subsets of all of these possible combinations
to predict the effectiveness of every possible set of elements.
The top 10 or 15 packaging concepts are identified for additional
package testing, beginning with PackageScreen.
 PACKAGE SCREEN
The package design process typically begins with the creation of
a large number of rough or early-stage designs. Thislow-cost
packaging research system evaluates early-stage packaging
ideas and concepts in batches of 10 to 20 at a time. It identifies
the package designs that resonate with consumersso that
creative efforts can be focused on the better designs.
How Does PackageScreen Work?
A representative sample of 300 target-audience consumers are
recruited. These participants are invited to come to our
encrypted web server and view the early-stage package designs.
Each respondent sees all of the package designs one at a time
(front panel only) on his/her screenin randomized order. Then
each person views the package designs a second time and
answers a series of questions about each design. The answers to
the survey are fed into a mathematical model to calculate an
overall score for each design. The highest-rated designs are
recommended for further development.
 PACKAGE CHECK
The next step in the design process is to learn more about the
better designs so that further improvements can be made.
PackageCheck provides this diagnostic feedback.
PackageCheck is a proprietary online-based, monadic
pretesting system to evaluate early-stage packaging concepts.
How Does PackageCheck Work?
A representative sample of target-audience consumers is
recruited to view each package design online. Each respondent
sees only one package design (i.e., a monadic test) and then
answers a series of questions, including open-ended questions.
The report includes answers to standard questions, compared to
Decision Analysts action standards, as well as verbatim
responses to open-ended questions. The verbatim detail is
valuable to creative teams as they strive to improve the graphic
designas well as the copy. A typical PackageCheck study is
based on 75 to 100 target-audience consumers.
 PACKAGE TEST
As packages near the end of the design process, a more complete
evaluation is required, includingcomprehensive measurements to
assess all of the important elements of package design.
PackageTest is Decision Analysts comprehensive, online
packaging research system to evaluate finished (or near-finished)
package designs.
How Does PackageTest Work?
A representative sample is recruited from one of our worldwide
online panels, and qualified respondents are invited to evaluate
the package design. Recommended sample size is 200.
Respondents first see the packages front paneland later view the
other panels. The research design is monadic (i.e., no respondent
evaluates more than one package design). The respondents
complete a battery of questions and diagnostic ratings about the
package. The report includes answers to standard questions, as
well as the coded responses to all open-ended questions, along
with analysis and interpretation.
 ADHOC PACKAGING RESEARCH
Shelf Impact
Regardless of the method of testing, one of the focal points of
package research is the shelf impact or attention value of the
package in the context of competitive packages. Does the
consumer notice the package on the shelf? Can the consumer
quickly identify the brand? Is the package appealing enough
that the brand gets considered for purchase?
To evaluate shelf impact, we typically create representative
displays of the test package in a competitive environment.
The test package is rotated within the display. The displays
(with the rotations) are shown to a representative sample of
consumers. The respondents are questioned about what they
see and what they understand as the length-of-time exposure
increases. This methodology helps determine the visibility (or
attention value) of a test package, relative to competitive
packages. The attention value and brand registration of every
package design are constant focal points of Decision Analysts
research.
INNOVATION IN PACKAGING
 PACKING
Logistics also have to look upon the packing terms of the customers.
Packing in which logistics deal is:
Either the packing should be in cartons or in pallets or both.
These packings depend upon from customer to customer the country having high
labour cost will prefer to buy a machine called fork lifter in order to carry pallets.
While the country with low labour cost would not like to invest in machine hence
will prefer labour only.
 LIMITATIONS OF PACKAGING
Cost
While packaging can do a lot to get customer attention, and may
even add value to a product, it also adds to the cost of production
and the eventual retail price. According to Know This, packaging
can represent as much as 40 percent of the selling price of
products in industries such as the cosmetic industry.
Landfill Impact
Packaging is responsible for significant portions of the waste
stream. According to the Ashland Food Cooperative, packaging is
responsible for about one third of the municipal waste in the United
States. Some waste can be recycled, but many materials are not
appropriate for recycling. Post-consumer recycled content is often
usable only in specific contexts. For instance, many types of
recycled plastic may not be used in food containers, even if the
original plastic came from food containers. Much of the waste
produced by packaging ends up in a landfill.