AJEBM, Vol. 2, No.

4, NOV-DEC 2019
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

ISSN: 2576-5973
Vol. 2, No.4, Nov-Dec 2019

The influence of Branding and Packaging on choice an overview of

the retail market
Umer Qadir Sofi1
1
University of Latvia, Latvia

Correspondent author: [email protected] DOI 10.31150/ajebm.Vol2.Iss4.100

Abstract: In marketing, product packaging is very significant. Unforgettable speech influences consumer’s
perception and ensures that customers keep coming back. For years, companies have been investigating how color
influences purchasing decisions. Yellow color causes joy or fantasy, s - the beauty and perfect sensitivity of women's
perfumes, cosmetics and lotions, black - strength and strength, and so on. The color that the company chooses for
packaging influences the choice of the buyer and often influences whether consumers remember the product with
love and whether consumers let it is bought again.
Keywords: Consumer, Marketing, Packaging, Branding, Business, Innovation.
Jel code: M1 M31 M37

Introduction
The packaging of a product has a very important role because it offers safety
and conservation during transport and storage, and makes it possible to have a good
presentation to potential consumers. It is important to produce a product based on
what consumers consider necessary. So it is important to first understand the
dynamics that affect consumer’s decisions and the role of packaging for consumers.
It is common to mention impulsivity in the impulsive or compulsive purchase as if it
were same, however, before addressing the issue of impulsiveness in the purchase, it
is important to point out the difference between these concepts in order to have more
clarity about it.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

Importance of packaging
Consumer Satisfaction and Packaging. According to …., the behavior of
impulse buying as a repeat purchase, hurried, urgent and hedonistic, where the speed
of the impulse purchase decision excludes reasoning and prevents consideration of
all information and the choice of alternatives. It is an unplanned purchase, features a
quick decision, for having a subjective content in favor of a possession immediate.
….. describe that in this type of behavior is a greater arousal, there is less deliberation
and irresistible purchase ducts in comparison to the planned buying behavior 1. The
people that are characterized by having levels high impulsiveness in purchasing,
generally consumers usually have a little thoughtful thought, they are emotionally
attracted and immediately gratified. Further, these people usually pay little attention
to the negative consequences derived from their impulsive acts. It is important to
make a brief comparison between planned purchase and impulse purchase goes.
Buyers are divided in terms of how much planning consumers do before doing a
purchase . Customers know in advance what products and brands but they are not
decided by any specific brand until they are in the store, and buy them. Impulsive
purchases do not make any kind of prior planning. Facing the unplanned purchases,
another researcher, states that in many occasions’ purchases are made to obtain
psychological benefits, more than economic or utilitarian.
According to recent studies, 70% of purchases come from the point of
purchase. Packaging influences marketing decisions because it delivers product
information and stores it safely. Consumers appreciate the information that is added

1 Ambrose G, Harris P. Packaging the brand: the relationship between packaging design and brand identity. Bloomsbury Publishing; 2017 Sep 7.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

to the marketing news, meaning that information that contains a sense of humor must
be taken into consideration when buying.
Packaging is one of the important factors when buying goods in stores. With
the growing trend of self-service packaging one put themselves on the shelf of a
“seller” and become a source of communication and branding. The packaging must
offer a consumer response to the goods. People do not have the time to become more
dependent on impulsive purchases. That is why the packaging must promote the
content, decorate and add value. Consumers are now better educated and await a
decision about the purchase, which has led them to impulsive purchases. The
packaging must itself contain additional information and a stimulus. Because self-
service. Packaging can give a more attractive appearance, it is useful for both low and
high penetration products, it can be compared with other products and offers
recommendations for use. This makes customers happy. Studies have shown that
packaging is also expensive.
Consumer Positioning and Branding. It must be positioned or distinguished
from other products in terms of signs, logos, trademarks, symbols, colors, shapes and
other characteristics. Packaging has a significant influence on the purchasing decision
process. In some cases, customers will be more careful with package labeling.
Packaging has a dual function: logistics and marketing. Logistics only protects
products against damage, but Marketing becomes a means to convey attribute
information. If it effectively communicates information, consumers expect it to be a
high quality product, and if this is not possible, consumers expect it to be low quality
and not likely to buy. There are packaging elements that influence consumers'
purchasing decisions (visually and informatively). Visual effects include images,

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

shapes, sizes and are dependent on emotional or subjective decisions. The

information element contains2
The information provided by technology depends on cognitive or objective
decisions. For products with a low risk and low involvement, shoppers do not fight
for information. Packaging is such a tool that marketers can use to deliver their
messages directly to potential customers. For many brands, packaging leads to the
successful integration of brand communication and the creation of a brand image.
This study shows that the mood of stores is directly influenced by the mood of
consumers, which becomes an important factor for their buying behavior.
Packaging design draws the consumer's attention to special trademarks,
stimulates the image of the product and influences the perception of the product by
the consumer. Visual elements (such as color, quality and general appeal) play an
important role in influencing customers. The visual element refers to the product for
many buyers who have virtually no information. In this case the consumer fully relies
on the recall value of the package and gives a boost. The biggest challenge that
marketers face today is to turn packaging into attractive purchasing decisions. In
modern stores, consumers are directly confronted with the location, with different
brands.
Packaging and Meeting Point. Packaging plays an important role at this
meeting point, also known as the point of purchase, as this is the most important point
of interaction between the brand and the consumer, at this stage the consumer decides
which brand to buy. Packaging is the company's primary means of communication
for brand information. Moreover, the importance of the packaging as a

2van Ooijen I, Fransen ML, Verlegh PW, Smit EG. Packaging design as an implicit communicator: Effects on product quality inferences in the
presence of explicit quality cues. Food quality and preference. 2017 Dec 1;62:71-9.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

communication element is very evident if both reasons that cause the attraction for a
product on the shelf and the consumer’s buying behavior are analyzed. The role that
product packaging plays today as a marketing strategy is extremely important since
it somehow connects the need with the client’s senses, being a direct bridge of
communication between the product and the consumer in which the creativity
combined of the versatility and innovation they can get to stimulate the purchase
process, arriving directly at the final receiver. Therefore, one should stop thinking
about packaging as a simple requirement for the product as it seeks a before, during
and after for the benefit of both the manufacturer and the consumer 3. The key is to
stand out, to attract the customer to make the first purchase of the product, it is
necessary to know what causes a consumer to approach a product of a linear and not
another.
Today’s consumers are more analytical, looking for more innovation and more
solutions in product packaging; however, it is not just about being disruptive but
about the consumer understanding why the packaging is innovative or different, that
they know why they help make customers life easier, more convenient, safer in terms
of the product consumer is consuming. Only then will it be possible to establish
emotional connections with customers, according to another researcher, who
commented that there are three types of connections that can be achieved: the
practical connection, in which the user buys it for its functionality.
There is also the rational connection where the consumer sees the difference in
the packaging and understands the reason for that difference; and the emotional
connection is when the user sees a package and thinks it is really fun, and although

3Skaczkowski G, Durkin S, Kashima Y, Wakefield M. Influence of premium versus value brand names on the smoking experience in a plain
packaging environment: an experimental study. BMJ open. 2017 Jan 1;7(1):e014099.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

he does not need that product, he wants to have it because that connection is given.
When one can make a connection with consumers at a practical, rational level, even
in this irrational and fun connection, then that is what will create solutions and
innovations for packaging.
Product Type and Food Packaging
An investigation revealed that in terms of food packaging a very dominant
percentage of consumers (59%) said they have tried a new product only for the
packaging, and 66% considered that the packaging would at least cause them to see
a new product. There are four main factors, and in all of them the packaging has its
importance. First, on one of every three occasions the attraction is caused only and
exclusively by the container. On one of every four occasions it is the price that causes
such attraction. The package is important in determining the price, since the package
is part of the product and, therefore, of the cost. Additionally, an optimization of the
package can result in a reducing the costs that leads to a decrease in the price, making
the product more competitive. Moreover, a good package can serve as another
argument to sustain a high selling price if that is the company’s strategy. On one of
every five occasions the attraction is caused by the fact that the consumer remembers
or has in his mind the product. It can be said that they contribute to this circumstance
both to advertising and packaging. Finally, on one of every five occasions the
attraction is caused by some particular aspect of the product. The consumer may
already know that particular aspect beforehand from advertising, but even so on the
packaging that aspect should be highlighted either to show for the first time or to
reinforce the advertising message.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

With regard to consumer behavior, the behavior of consumer can be irrational

or rational. The consumer knows in advance which product he wants and sometimes
even the rational behavior of the brand implies planned purchases. In contrast,
irrational behavior is an impulse purchase rather than a response to real demand, and
the impact of such irrational behavior on external stimuli (advertising, packaging,
products, etc.).
However, there are subcategories of planned and impulsive purchases, but the
basic idea is the same: advertising and brand identity are already in the minds of
consumers and need to be strengthened, or they are called consumer attention. Use
products and packaging at points of sale.
One of the main tools with which companies can enhance their corporate
identity and increase sales is packaging .
Force of Packaging. The packaging of a product has a very powerful force to attract
the consumer and influence their final purchase decision. That is why, every
entrepreneur must pay close attention to the packaging of their products and
incorporate elements that attract attention in the consumer’s subconscious. To design
the packaging of a product, marketing manager must know how to recognize those
specific design elements that will attract the attention of the consumer and determine
their purchase decision4.
The first thing that a product’s packaging must convey are the company’s
principles and values. Moreover, in today’s world no one can imagine a company
with a social responsibility focused on caring for the environment by offering a
packaging made of polluting material. If this happened, the company would surely

4Tremelling J, All A, Lleras L, Cancel A, Jenkins D, Pina C, Goldstein D, Broxton C, Hamel S. Poor quality male latex condoms found in Dominican
Republic: Quality assurance evaluation and public health impact. PloS one. 2019 Jan 7;14(1):e0210150.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

lose all the credibility of the consumer 5. For this reason, it is necessary for the
packaging to represent the brand, and there is no better way to do it than by
representing the company’s storytelling.
Another aspect that should be highlighted in the design of the packaging is
the color, which has a high power to attract the attention of the consumer. Due to its
use, one can provoke sensations, highlight values and create a recognition link.
Furthermore, the size and shape of the packaging are also two of the elements to
consider to design an attractive packaging. To choose the most appropriate and
practical format it is important to keep in mind the nature of the product. In addition,
it has to be designed to meet consumer comfort and use. For this reason, it is important
to know their objective target to adapt the packaging to the needs and tastes. It is very
clear in a more or less significant way, the packaging decisively influences the
differentiation of their product and the consumer’s purchase decision. Therefore, it is
necessary to invest time and dedication to find the ideal packaging for the product. In
addition to this, the role of marketing and product packaging is often mentioned in
the analyzed literature, as is the use of product packaging in communication
marketing tools for brand marketing.
Packaging and Influence on Decision Making Process. Packaging has a significant
influence on the purchasing decision process. In some cases, customers will be more
careful with package labeling. Packaging has a dual function: logistics and marketing.
Logistics only protects products against damage, but Marketing becomes a means to
convey attribute information. If it effectively communicates information, consumers
expect it to be a high quality product, and if this is not possible, consumers expect it

5Lee JG, Blanchflower TM, O'Brien KF, Averett PE, Cofie LE, Gregory KR. Evolving IQOS packaging designs change perceptions of product appeal,
uniqueness, quality and safety: a randomised experiment, 2018, USA. Tobacco control. 2019 Jun 4:tobaccocontrol-2018.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

to be low quality and not likely to buy. There are packaging elements that influence
consumers' purchasing decisions (visually and informatively). Visual effects include
images, shapes, sizes and are dependent on emotional or subjective decisions. The
information element contains
The information provided by technology depends on cognitive or objective
decisions. For products with a low risk and low involvement, shoppers do not fight
for information. Packaging is such a tool that marketers can use to deliver their
messages directly to potential customers. For many brands, packaging leads to the
successful integration of brand communication and the creation of a brand image.
This study shows that the mood of stores is directly influenced by the mood of
consumers, which becomes an important factor for their buying behavior.
Packaging design draws the consumer's attention to special trademarks,
stimulates the image of the product and influences the perception of the product by
the consumer. Visual elements (such as color, quality and general appeal) play an
important role in influencing customers. The visual element refers to the product for
many buyers who have virtually no information. In this case the consumer fully relies
on the recall value of the package and gives a boost. The biggest challenge that
marketers face today is to turn packaging into attractive purchasing decisions. In
modern stores, consumers are directly confronted with the location, with different
brands.
Force of Packaging
Research suggests, for example, that delivering a product called “packaging”
to continent is just as important as the house it comes from (brand). From a marketing
perspective, a series of studies discussed the indicators of brand success through the

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

power of brand marketing strategies, in particular packaging design strategies.

Packaging is considered as an effective form of advertising in stores. With regard to
the improvement of the product at the time of sale, it appears that the packaging is
even more effective than conventional forms of advertising, whereby consumers not
only buy, but also promote the products by time that consumers use it.
As the packaging design for the product itself can be seen, the packaging also
plays the role of a seller in the store. Therefore it sells the package and the images for
Identify and promotes the brand. Similarly the research defined the package design
as a “silent seller” who attracts consumers more than other means of communication 6.
The previous study has a clear correlation with this study, which demonstrates the
importance of using the packaging design as a seller, who can even identify the shelf
of the brand, since 70% of the purchasing decisions are made at the time of the
assessment. This is important for different products on the shelf. According to the
info graphics brands have only about seven seconds to make a good first impression
to their potential customers, which mean that the packaging, which is often the first
eye contact of a brand with its Buyers, it is of utmost importance. Effective packaging
can not only allow a consumer to make decisions faster and easier, but also a striking
design can attract the attention of a potential customer. Research shows that at least
one third of the decision is based on the packaging, along with personal preferences,
although the influence of the product packaging is unconscious 7.
Undoubtedly, the purchase decision is finally taken at the point of sale since it
is there where a whole ritual is developed towards the purchase, a propitious scenario

6 Skaczkowski G, Durkin S, Kashima Y, Wakefield M. Influence of premium vs masked cigarette brand names on the experienced taste of a
cigarette after tobacco plain packaging in Australia: an experimental study. BMC public health. 2018 Dec;18(1):295.
7 Fernqvist F, Olsson A, Spendrup S. What’s in it for me? Food packaging and consumer responses, a focus group study. British Food Journal. 2015

Mar 2;117(3):1122-35.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

where a series of agents begin to take on greater relevance, be they differentiation

strategies which are used in the same product category as are the drivers, tastings or
the design of the packaging itself. According to the infographic, 52% of online
consumers said that if they get a packaged premium product, they can buy it again.
After the purchase, 90% of them used reusable boxes and packaging bags. But
customers can even become a different marketing channel: if it is interesting, 40% of
people share packaging photos8.
Ease of Packaging. The ease and cost must be adjusted to the requirements
and expectations of the manufacturer, based on essential characteristics to be taken
into account such as: capacity, ease in manufacturing and distribution, scope and
innovation. Similarly, the packaging must convey a message, feelings that attract the
attention of the consumer that in turn are linked to the language of the brand, and
finally is to think about the after packaging in which it is intended to go beyond the
usability and design seeking to give the consumer a reuse of it and where a series of
meanings associated with the brand is provided. The first intention that develops the
packaging is based on the color that seeks to draw attention under iconic elements
and perception denoting certain values, in the same way there is a scale of perception
against the colors being orange the one with the most attention followed by red, colors
that stand out and set a pattern in the category.
Innovation and usability will always be important factors that will make a
product stand out in its packaging, but for this it is essential to know the consumer to
whom they are communicating so that the brand stands out before the services
presented by the competition. To give a better result to the indicated choice of

8Khan H. Effects of personal dispositions, familiarity and consumption situation on Western brands’ packaging. Journal of Consumer Marketing.
2019 May 13.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

packaging that best suits a company’s product, the company should rely on research
as a measurement and success tool in each of the alternatives that brands seek to
generate greater closeness with consumers.
Much has been written about consumer behavior, but little has been said about
the items that customers consider when buying. A recent study by Consultant reveals
that the consumer values the content of a product, but packaging also plays a decisive
role. Two out of every three consumers buy a new product when the package catches
their attention, according to data from the survey conducted by the international
consultancy. So a good design is key to being on the shelves of supermarkets.
In fact, a brand can make a good impression on potential buyers in about 7
seconds. As per the efficient design, consumers can not only make faster and easier
decisions, but attractive aspects can also attract consumers. Studies show that at least
a third of product decisions are based on packaging and personal preferences, which
means that packaging is sometimes just as important as internal products.
Conclusions
The easiest way to get attention is to choose the right colors. This is the most
direct and easiest way to combine the brand. However, the curtains must be attractive
to the target market and set the right tone for sending information about that product.
For example, yellow tends to convey happiness, while black means control.
The third way to stand out is environmentally friendly: nowadays,
environmentally friendly packaging is popular with customers. That is why
recyclable or recyclable materials are good for business and the environment. This
does not mean that it should be boring. For example, one can be creative by
reinventing old materials such as paper bags. But taking into account all these factors,

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

one thing has to be taken into account: when working with packaging, certain
functions have to be taken into account. It must be easy to navigate, contain only the
necessary text and protect the inside of the product. Packaging must also help
consumers to understand their brand. When consumers see packaging, the brand
should at best be the first to identify.
Some brands succeed in making packaging the most important part of their
brand image. But the company also strives for innovative and sustainable packaging.
For example, they created a can for sports and when the ideal cooling temperature
was reached, an image of ice cubes appeared. Packaging is not only the physical
aspect of the product; it also plays a relevant role in the consumer’s purchase decision,
so remember: consumers have only one time to impress the potential customers and
show them why the brand is the best purchasing decision. The brand name is a
concept given by Chinese scholars and the public, there is no corresponding to
English vocabulary. A brand is a name, logo, symbol, color term that identifies a
product from one seller from another seller. The word mark comes from the word
“burner”, which means “burning”. It is a valuable asset owned by a company that can
build positioning and assets by improving brand strategy 9.
The brand is a set of positive and negative attributes that is projected on the
products after processing the information that the company projected (through
Marketing and Corporate Communication) and mixing it with customer’s
experiences. Most brands that consumers choose to buy are based on impulse

9Dzodzomenyo M, Fink G, Dotse-Gborgbortsi W, Wardrop N, Aryeetey G, Coleman N, Hill A, Wright J. Sachet water quality and product
registration: a cross-sectional study in Accra, Ghana. Journal of water and health. 2018 Aug 1;16(4):646-56.

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 AJEBM, Vol. 2, No. 4, NOV-DEC 2019

purchases. The brand name on the package increases customer response and impulse
preferences. Unique brand names play a crucial role in all parts of the company10.
References
1. Ambrose G, Harris P. Packaging the brand: the relationship between packaging design and
brand identity. Bloomsbury Publishing; 2017 Sep 7.
2. van Ooijen I, Fransen ML, Verlegh PW, Smit EG. Packaging design as an implicit
communicator: Effects on product quality inferences in the presence of explicit quality
cues. Food quality and preference. 2017 Dec 1;62:71-9.
3. Skaczkowski G, Durkin S, Kashima Y, Wakefield M. Influence of premium versus value
brand names on the smoking experience in a plain packaging environment: an experimental
study. BMJ open. 2017 Jan 1;7(1):e014099.
4. Tremelling J, All A, Lleras L, Cancel A, Jenkins D, Pina C, Goldstein D, Broxton C,
Hamel S. Poor quality male latex condoms found in Dominican Republic: Quality
assurance evaluation and public health impact. PloS one. 2019 Jan 7;14(1):e0210150.
5. Lee JG, Blanchflower TM, O'Brien KF, Averett PE, Cofie LE, Gregory KR. Evolving
IQOS packaging designs change perceptions of product appeal, uniqueness, quality and
safety: a randomised experiment, 2018, USA. Tobacco control. 2019 Jun 4:tobaccocontrol-
2018.
6. Skaczkowski G, Durkin S, Kashima Y, Wakefield M. Influence of premium vs masked
cigarette brand names on the experienced taste of a cigarette after tobacco plain packaging
in Australia: an experimental study. BMC public health. 2018 Dec;18(1):295.
7. Fernqvist F, Olsson A, Spendrup S. What’s in it for me? Food packaging and consumer
responses, a focus group study. British Food Journal. 2015 Mar 2;117(3):1122-35.
8. Khan H. Effects of personal dispositions, familiarity and consumption situation on Western
brands’ packaging. Journal of Consumer Marketing. 2019 May 13.
9. Dzodzomenyo M, Fink G, Dotse-Gborgbortsi W, Wardrop N, Aryeetey G, Coleman N,
Hill A, Wright J. Sachet water quality and product registration: a cross-sectional study in
Accra, Ghana. Journal of water and health. 2018 Aug 1;16(4):646-56.
10. Vyas H. Packaging Design Elements and Users Perception: a context in fashion branding
and communication. Journal of applied packaging research. 2015;7(2):5.

10Vyas H. Packaging Design Elements and Users Perception: a context in fashion branding and communication. Journal of applied packaging
research. 2015;7(2):5.

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