How to Apply Behavioural Science for Better Results in Packaged Goods

At Capuchin, our behavioural science approach has increased revenue by 12% for one brand; and increased sales by 2.6% at a new time of year for another.

Picture: Edward

🧠 The psychology of packaged goods

A misunderstanding of psychology cost Tropicana $30m in sales just 2 months.

They spent a lot of time and money researching a change to their packaging. They strategized it, they brainstormed it, they focus grouped it – but they didn’t think about the behavioural science.

As beautiful as the new packaging was, it had removed the brand’s key branding element, an orange with a straw in it. Shoppers – largely rushed and ambivalent – couldn’t easily find Tropicana, so they bought something else. In one fell swoop the brand had lost decades of brand equity in its packaging which, fMRI research shows, actually makes products more pleasurable to consumer.

On the other hand, it was a keen understanding of behavioural science that helped us double the conversion rate for a multichannel marketer, among many other things.

Behavioural science is vital for survival in packaged goods. Without it, you risk losing to the competition as they better understand and influence the market.

The fact is, all of us – including your customers – are cognitive misers. That means we have very limited brainpower for paying attention to the world and for making decisions. It’s impossible to put a number on it, but one guess based on sensory neurons firing in the brain is that we’re consciously aware of only 0.0004% of everything the brain is processing at any one time.

We can’t think through all of our decisions carefully, so we have to rely on quick shortcuts called heuristics. If one supermarket is close by and one is far away, which will you choose? It’s an immediate gut response with little careful thought.

This reliance on heuristics is particularly true in the hyper-competitive world of packaged goods. It’s been found that shoppers take just a third of a second to make a purchase decision (and taking more time doesn’t change their minds), that two thirds of purchase decisions are made on impulse, and that a third of products receive zero eye fixations on-shelf. In short, engaging the emotional brain is do or die.

Here are just three examples of how to nudge behaviour in packaged goods:

👀 Saliency. We tend to act on whatever is easy to remember, notice, or reach for. Countless studies have shown the commercial value of putting products at eye height, at the end of aisles, or with attention-grabbing displays.

⚡️Priming. Our thoughts and behaviours can be triggered by stimuli in our environment. That’s why research found that people were more likely to buy expensive wine when classical music was playing, and French wine when French music was playing.

⚓️ Anchoring. We don’t judge numbers in a vacuum, but rather, relative to other information. That’s why a sign saying ‘Buy 18 for your freezer’ significantly increased sales of ice-cream bars in one study.

How does it work?

Whatever your challenge, we’ve most probably faced it - or very similar before.

From healthy food to indulgent treats. From laundry products to non-alcoholic beer. The everyday, the alternative and the premium.

Wherever your customers are in the world and whatever their mood or mode. And whether you sell direct or through stores.

Example 1 - Reveal new opportunities

We show you the real traits, motivations and triggers that drive your market. We quantify the value of commercial opportunities, then precisely detail the best ways to address them based on their psychological makeup – even down to specific iideas, words, language, images and colours that will be most persuasive.

We used this approach to improve national sales by 2.6%.

Example 2 - Be more persuasive

We create greater appeal for what you offer, based on how your audiences consider and mentally process decisions in your category. We do this using bespoke psychological research techniques like psychodynamic qualitative interviews or implicit testing.

We used this approach to improve YoY revenue by $15m for a client in retail.

Example 3 - Shift behaviour

We identify psychological motivations and triggers at the most crucial points in the customer journey. We use our understanding of cognitive biases to create behavioural “nudges” to shift your audience’s behaviour.

We used this approach to increase the customer base by 4,000 for an investment app.

Ready to Nudge?

Wherever there’s behaviour to change, we can help.

Share your challenge, and we’ll show you an agile, effective way you can start applying behavioural science.

Talk to us today about how you can start scientifically improving results.

Still more questions? Just ask.