Packaging Perception is Reality

You’ve probably seen the new TV spots for Anheuser-Busch’s national relaunch of the lower calorie Budweiser Select. The campaign shows Budweiser’s head brewer taking a lie detector test. He wants to prove the new product “tastes just like Budweiser.”

I don’t doubt that a blind taste test likely supports the claim. But here is the problem with blind taste tests: SIGHT plays a crucial role in taste and may alter a consumer’s sensory dynamics.

The product’s packaging has key cues that convey taste. In fact, Charles Spence from University of Oxford says “color may well be the single most important sensory feature of product packaging.” 

In 2011, Coca Cola launched a white holiday Coke can. After one month, the seasonal cans were removed. One reason: some consumers were convinced that the brand changed the formula and the product did not taste the same. Without the iconic red cans, consumers questioned the taste!

In my own experience, my entry level advertising professor at the University of Florida brought up students for a blind taste test on the first day of class. He claimed that not only would students be unable to tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi in a blind taste test… they would also be unable to differentiate Sprite from Coke and Pepsi. It sounded crazy, but he was correct! Many students were unable to distinguish the three drinks in a blind test.

I’m not suggesting Budweiser Select will fail. Rather, I’m underscoring the importance of packaging. It has to stand out on the shelf. The black packaging may help it do just that. It also has to quickly tell a “story,” communicating the key benefits and important product cues. Black may work well in conveying “sophistication” and “premium.” And, Coke Zero has been successful with its black. But if the key story is that Budweiser Select tastes the same as regular Budweiser, it may be risky shifting too far from the brand’s strong association with red, white and blue.

The point is to understand the power of packaging far beyond aesthetic appeal. If you are introducing new products or refreshing your packaging, I’d love an opportunity to discuss our contemporized packaging research platform called Package Choice ArchitectureTM.