Exploring consumers’product-specific colour meanings

Hannele Kauppinen-RaisanenHanken School of Economics, Helsinki, Finland, and

Harri T. LuomalaUniversity of Vaasa/EPANET, Foodwest Ltd, Seinajoki, Finland

Abstract

Purpose – The impact of colour is acknowledged, yet empirical studies on colours with marketingimplications are rare. The paper seeks to advance our understanding of the role of package colours inconsumers’ product experiences by studying the relationship between colour meanings and product. Italso aims at offering insights into the meanings associated with colours in a product context.

Design/methodology/approach – Understanding of package colours was elicited by applying thepreference-consumption difference interview technique. The data were analysed applying means-endchain. Accordingly, it was possible to detect, not only the multifunction played by package colours, butalso meanings that colours conveyed at different abstraction level. As colour research withinmarketing was fragmented and no such colour theory exists, the paper developed a theoreticalframework for the paper.

Findings – Based on the evidence, the proposed framework is further elaborated so that it couldbetter capture the connections between colour and consumers’ product experiences. Hence, the papersupports the significance of the functions emphasised by past research and uncovers the qualitativeconnections between packages colour meanings and product type.

Research limitations/implications – Future research should extend the size of the sample, typesof products, geographical area, and colours.

Practical implications – The evidence shows that colours should be carefully considered whenlaunching new brands or, indeed, when brand packages are redesigned, the multifunction of coloursshould be taken into consideration.

Originality/value – The paper covers an area neglected by past research, which has implications forunderstanding consumers’ brand preferences.

Keywords Colour, Marketing communications, Packaging

Paper type Research paper

IntroductionThe selection of colour is an inevitable package design issue. Past researchacknowledges that the effort put on designing packages is worthwhile as consumersnotice package design and the aesthetic impression evoked by it (Kreuzbauer andMalter, 2005). Further, it is documented that consumers’ brand choices may be basedon aesthetic value that design creates (Bloch et al., 2003); nevertheless, package designand colours do not serve aesthetic purposes only. A review of extant marketingresearch reveals that package colours have two additional functions: colours attractattention (Grimes and Doole, 1998), and consumers use colours as stimulus-basedinformation (Garber et al., 2000a).

Past research acknowledges the influential aspect of packaging appearance and thesingle elements that constitute the appearance, i.e. pictures, materials, colours, shapes,and letter fonts (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Gordon et al., 1994; McDaniel and Baker, 1977;

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Qualitative Market Research: AnInternational Journal

Vol. 13 No. 3, 2010pp. 287-308

q Emerald Group Publishing Limited1352-2752

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Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Hence, these studies suggest among other things thatthe elements may infer product quality as well as convey product meanings (Funk andNdubisi, 2006; Garber et al., 2000a, b).

Although past research recognizes that colour is an influential design element,empirical studies on colours with marketing implications are rare. Accordingly,surprisingly little research has examined package colours, not to mention therelationship between package colour and consumers’ product experiences (Garber et al.,2000a; Gordon et al., 1994; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). For instance, in the case offood it is commonplace that food colour can influence product expectations andperceptions, such as its taste (Garber et al., 2000b; Koch and Koch, 2003).

Our study focused on the qualitative connections between colour meanings andproduct, i.e. on the meanings that package colours communicate about the product.In order to detect the nature and content of those connections, we also studied the roleof context, i.e. product type, which we did by including two product classes in the study.As no previous research has to our knowledge explicitly investigated these connections,this study contributes to our understanding of the functions of package colours byexamining them in context. This paper has three objectives. To begin with, as colourresearch within marketing is very fragmented, and no colour theory in marketing hasyet developed (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Grossman and Wisenblit, 1999), the firstobjective is to review extant colour research in order to be able to develop a theoreticalframework for the study. The second objective is to use findings of an exploratory studyto demonstrate the extent to which colour meanings vary across two different but relatedproduct types: painkillers and sore throat medicines. The third objective is to refine theoriginal theoretical framework on the basis of the qualitative findings. To meet theseobjectives, the theoretical base of the study is described first. Second, the method, datacollection, and sample are introduced. Third, analyses of the two sets of qualitative dataare reported and the revised framework model is presented. The paper concludes with adiscussion concerning theoretical and managerial implications, limitations, and futureresearch suggestions.

Theoretical frameworkThe proposed framework is shown in Figure 1. It is based on the literature review andincorporates the functions of involuntary and voluntary attention due to colour

Figure 1.The theoretical framework

Color and product type interaction

Involuntaryattention

Voluntaryattention

Aesthetic experiencebased on attractiveness

Communication of qualityand brand identity

Deviation + Deviation –

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deviation, aesthetic experience based on colour attractiveness and communication ofquality and brand identity, and their interrelationships.

Package colours as means of attracting attention, creating aesthetic experiences, anddelivering communicationIn order to influence consumers in the shop, some stimulus must attract consumers’attention; this is a precondition for any further product evaluation, regardless if it relatesto aesthetics or information processing. Hence, attention precedes the two otherfunctions of colours in our framework. Past packaging research has documented thatshape (Bloch, 1995; Schoormans and Robben, 1997), pictures (Underwood et al., 2001),and colours attract consumers’ attention (Grimes and Doole, 1998; Gorn et al., 1997). Theattention-getting device of colour, in particular, is stressed, implying that it is the mostessential visual cue (Danger, 1987b) as it is found to be the first package cue noticed byconsumers (Danger, 1987a). It is also pointed out that colour has an ability to maintainthe attention of consumers’ in some cases (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Previousstudies support the idea that package colour attracts attention, especially whenconsumers seek variety in their brand choices (Garber et al., 2000a; Schoormans andRobben, 1997). In particular, bright, novel, and warm colours are emphasised(Garber et al., 2000a; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Moreover, attention appears toincrease with the degree of colour deviation (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). We suggestthat involuntary and voluntary attention presented by Kahneman (1973) can explainthose findings. Involuntary attention refers to novel and surprising cues; it may even be aphysiological response. Above all, these cues attract attention as means of colourdeviation from what would be typical of a product class. Voluntary attention means thatpackage colours attract attention because they are relevant for the task at hand. Thisidea is supported by findings documenting that consumers use colours to search for andto identify brands (Garber et al., 2000a). These cases of visual search and recognitionrefer broadly to habitual choices where the consumer is influenced by attitudes based oninformation processing that has taken place before the current choices (Fazio et al., 1989).In essence, this refers to re-buy situations, which means that the consumer recalls brandinformation from memory, such as the colours of a chocolate bar (Lynch et al., 1988).

The role of design has changed, and nowadays it is regarded as a key marketingelement (Bloch et al., 2003; Creusen and Schoormans, 2005). Recently, products shouldnot be designed in order to meet functional needs only; they should give an aestheticappeal as consumers are concerned with design issues and aesthetics. The strength ofaesthetic appeal is supported by findings according to which consumers’ brand choicesmay be based on aesthetics, when considering between two products, for example(Bloch et al., 2003; Kotler and Rath, 1984). This means that consumers’ responses toappearance are converted into brand preferences (Stoll et al., 2008). Moreover, researchreveals that the design elements that constitute products’ appearance, such as coloursderive arousal aspects of emotions, i.e. attractiveness (Abbott et al., 2009; Bloch, 1995).Colours as means to create aesthetic experience is particularly essential as attractivepackages are found to attract more attention than unattractive packages (Stoll et al.,2008). Moreover, Stoll et al. (2008) emphasise that attractiveness may in fact maintainattention, which enables information processing. Thus, the aesthetic experience basedon attractiveness is included in the framework. Colour preferences and colours as meansto evoke aesthetic responses have been studied extensively (Belizzi and Hite, 1992).

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However, the link between colour preferences and context has not. Hence, only fewstudies have focused on colour preferences as a function of product type, although theinfluence of colour preferences on product evaluation is supported as the most popularcolours for clothing are blue, red, and black, whereas blue, gray, red, white, andblack cars are preferred (Mundell, 1993). It has also been shown that children favourcertain colours when choosing sweets (Walsh et al., 1990). Accordingly, studies on colourattractiveness have focused on detecting universal colour preferences, on culturallyrelated preferences and on preferences arising from gender, race, age, and personality.For example, the universal preferential order blue, red, green, purple, orange, and yellowhas been proposed (Eysneck, 1941). Support for colour liking being culturally bounded isfound in research according to which red is preferred in Senegal, blue, in Austria,Colombia, and Taiwan, white in Brazil, and the range of blue, black, pink, white, red, andgreen in Malaysia (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Madden et al., 2000; Wiegersma and van derElst, 1988). When it comes to gender, race, age, and personality, the results of suchstudies imply, for example, that men prefer blue, African-Americans like the range ofred-purple-black, Caucasian Americans prefer blues and greens (Silver and Ferrante,1988), adults favour the range of blue, red, green (Terwogt and Hoeksma, 1995), andintroverts like cooler and calmer colour in contrasts to extroverts (Robinson, 1975).

The third function of colours in our framework relates to colours as conveyors ofcommunication. Earlier packaging research supports that single design elements mayinfer product quality. For instance, McDaniel and Baker (1977) found that packagematerial influenced expectations and evaluations of the product, whereas Underwoodand Klein (2002) suggest that pictures serve as cues of product-related informationhaving an impact on product evaluation. Colour research support that also colours inferproduct quality and product meanings (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Garber et al., 2000a).For example, blue is in general related with high quality ( Jacobs et al., 1991). Therelationship between package colours and brands has also attracted scholarly interest.Accordingly, colours are used to create brand identity (Underwood, 2003), evaluatebrands (Gordon et al., 1994; Schoormans and Robben, 1997), and create brand meanings(Garber et al., 2000a; Gorn et al., 1997). Hence, our framework includes package coloursas conveyors of brand identity and product quality.

The role of product type in colour meaningsSeveral studies acknowledge that colours have an impact on various consumer issues.The majority of prior colour studies with marketing implications have focused onadvertisements (Chamblee and Sandler, 1992; Gorn et al., 1997; Greer and Lohtia, 1994;Huang, 1993; Kaufman-Scarborough, 2001; Kimle and Fiore, 1992; Kirmani, 1997; Leeand Barnes, 1990; Meyers-Levy and Peracchio, 1995). Other colour studies have centredon colours and international branding (Grimes and Doole, 1998), colour associations andpreferences across cultures ( Jacobs et al., 1991; Madden et al., 2000), the impact of coloursin retail shops (Babin et al., 2003; Belizzi and Hite, 1992), product colours and gender(Funk and Ndubisi, 2006), the role of food colours on the perception of flavour(Garber et al., 2000b), the effect of background colour on product attitudes (Middlestadt,1990), and lately, the impact of the colours of web sites (Gorn et al., 2004; Mandel andJohnson, 2002; Nitse et al., 2004). Although the number of published empirical colourstudies within the field of marketing is limited, colours have been studied extensively

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and reported in the field of psychology (Belizzi and Hite, 1992). Those studies havefocused especially on colour preferences and the associations of colours (Taft, 1997).

The focus of attention in our study is the connections between package colour andproduct experience. It is claimed that many previous studies carried out in the field ofpsychology have failed to investigate the notion of where the colours are represented,i.e. they lack the context of colour presentation (Saito, 1983; Taft, 1997). Still, it issimultaneously postulated that the impact of colours does indeed depend on the context( Jacobs et al., 1991). For example, yellow may attract attention due to its dissimilarityamong brands of coffee, but may be used for brand search in another product class.A consumer may prefer blue clothes but may dislike that colour in home furnishing.Red may communicate pain in the connection of painkillers, but it may convey the ideaof sportiness when associated with cars.

Thus, the base for our theoretical framework is the interaction between colour and thecontext, which is the product type in our study. This means that the colour functionsemphasised in our framework is related to this interaction. As stated above, to ourknowledge the qualitative connections between package colour meanings and producttype has not been studied explicitly before, although colour association studies stressthat colours convey meanings ( Jacobs et al., 1991). However, it has been noted implicitlythat the interaction exists, in particular, in studies on colour attention and colour asmeans of aesthetic experience. For example, Schoormans and Robben (1997) found that ahigh degree of deviation from what is typical for a product class may attract attention,i.e. involuntary attention. Further, Kojina et al. (1986) argue that due to aestheticresponse package colours considered acceptable for certain product types are limited.These findings may be explained by earlier research stressing that product class isclosely linked to the concepts of similarity and typicality (Abbott et al., 2009; Veryzerand Hutchinson, 1998). In others words, here the similarity aspect relates to packageappearance, such as its colour or colour scheme. Further, these studies reported thatconsumers prefer typicality, with the exception of variety-seekers. This means thatdissimilar or novel colours in a product class may attract attention, and these dissimilarcolours may also be preferred by those consumers’ who seek for novelty, for example.For some purchases, product packages in similar colours may attract attention as meansof brand or product class identification. These colours may also be preferred as they mayrelate positively to products’ quality expectations.

Exploratory studyA qualitative approach was used in order to elicit insights and in-depth understanding ofthe role of package colours as a source of product meanings. Interviews were performedapplying the preference-consumption difference interviewing technique. This techniquehas been suggested as one way to gain an understanding of why a brand or a product ispreferred over others (Reynolds and Gutman, 1988). The technique has its origin in clinicalpsychology, were it served as means of assessing individuals’ behaviour by gainingin-depth understanding of internal processes. As it was introduced to marketing and toassessing the behaviour of consumers’, it is used to gain in-depth understanding ofmeanings products represent (Veludo-de-Oliveira et al., 2006). It entails eliciting statedbrand and product preferences; the respondent is then asked the motivations for thepreference expressed. Reynolds and Gutman (1988) have suggested that the revelationof the order of preference, or ranking of brands or products, should be followed

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by questions such as “Why is brand A the most desirable” or “What is it that makes brandA the least preferred”. For example, assuming that a consumer mentions a specific brandor a package attribute, the answer is followed by questions aimed at getting deeperinsights into the consumption consequences of specific attributes. Hence, this techniquewas considered appropriate given the focus of investigating package colour meanings.

The preference-consumption difference interviewing technique was applied byasking the informants to state their preferences for 16 hypothetical packages in twoproduct classes. The studied products were painkillers (Product class 1) and sore throatmedicines (Product class 2). The study focused on pharmaceuticals because the coreproducts represented by many of the authentic brands of these two product classesare substitutes for each other, i.e. the differences between the actual core products areinsignificant in the eyes of the consumer. Further, the informants were familiar with theproduct types. The hypothetical packages were designed systematically on the basisof features found on packages of authentic brands in the two product classes. Orthoplan(SPSS version 14) was used to ensure systematic design. The experimental packagesvaried in colour (yellow, red, blue, green), shape (square, landscape, portrait), font(three different fonts were pretested and analysed as conveying meanings of beingconservative, modern, or a follower), and producer (unknown domestic producer, knowndomestic producer, unknown foreign producer, known foreign producer). Product class2 (sore throat medicine) included the four above features in addition to four tastes (honeyand lemon, sweetener, menthol, mint). Accordingly, informants were asked to rank the16 hypothetical packages while interviewed in order to determine the reasons for theirpreferences.

The theoretical background for the preference-consumption difference technique liesin the means-end theory approach (Reynolds and Gutman, 1988). The approach suggeststhat consumers’ preferences and choices concerning brand and product are not basedon the product per se but on the expected consequences that the brand or the product willhave for the consumers’, i.e. because they mean something to the consumer (Grunert andValli, 2001). In fact, preferences and choices are based on chains of attributes,consequences, and values (Reynolds and Whitlark, 1995), and as the means-end chaindistinguishes between these terms, it provides an approach for understandingconsumers’ perceptions of brands and products. For example, a three-level abstractioncould be “red colour (attribute) – good taste (consequence) – fun and enjoyment (value)”(Grunert and Valli, 2001). In other words, concrete knowledge about product attributesis linked to abstract ideas about the attributes’ psychological and social consequences,and with even more abstract values. In short, product attributes are related to benefitsand further to fulfil personal values.

The base for our study was the assumption that consumers’ evaluations andexpectations about the brand and product are based on available cues, such as packagecolours. Hence, as we focused on the colour-product type interaction we did not aimat finding complete chains, but primarily at detecting two levels of abstraction, i.e. theattribute-consequence chains. For example, a question like “Why is brand A the mostdesirable” could be answered with “because of the red colour” (attribute). The followingquestion could be answered with the comment conveying benefit, such as “It really hasan effect (red)” (consequence). The latter answer means in this case that the colourcommunicates, and the consequence of that communication is the beneficial quality ofthe product or quality that is related to consuming the product.

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Hence, we assumed that by applying the preference-consumption differencetechnique, it would be possible to detect the interaction between the package cue ofcolour and the product type formed as attributes and consequences. Although ourstudy also revealed interaction between the other features of our hypothetical packagesand product type, only data related to colours are reported in this study.

Data collection and sampleThe qualitative research was conducted through 18 individual in-depth interviews.Although we originally planned to perform more interviews, we detected that alreadyafter 15 interviews a pattern started to emerge. Therefore, we decided that 18 interviewsresulted in such data that no additional interviews were necessary for our exploratorystudy. In other words, as no new information was discovered, we assumed that we hadreached a saturation point in terms of findings within the chosen sample (Kumar, 2005).The use of purposive sampling method is by no means aimed to be representative.However, it was systematic and we had a control over the selection of the informants.Hence, we judged that the findings of our exploratory study were valid within the chosensample. The informants were undergraduate students in a business school (nine men andnine women) and they were within the age range of 19-30 (mean 24). They participated inthe study voluntarily without a fee, and they were not aware of the aims of the study.

Every informant participated in both tasks: each one ranked 16 packages in twoproduct classes and was interviewed while performing both tasks. The packages inFigure 2 were produced by a packaging company. They were designed systematicallyin four colours (yellow, red, blue, green) and three shapes (square, landscape, portrait),and they described the product type (painkiller or sore throat medicine) visually in threedifferent fonts. The origin of producer (domestic or foreign, unknown, or known) andtaste variant (honey and lemon, sweetener, menthol, mint) were presented verbally onthe packages (e.g. a known domestic producer, mint). The material and size wereidentical for all packages, as was the product information.

Data collection started by placing the packages on a table. The informants were askedto choose the package of the most preferred brand in a hypothetical purchase situation.

Figure 2.Sample of thesystematically

designed packagesNotes: Varkmedicin, painkiller; halsmedicin, sore throat medicine

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Then they were asked to choose the second most preferred brand, and so on. Finally, theinformants had ranked the 16 packages in both product classes separately, in order fromthe most preferred brand to the least preferred one, while they at the same time expressedtheir motivations for the rankings. A session lasted 60-75 minutes. The interviews weretape-recorded and transcribed. Nvivo software, version 2.0 was used for processing andcoding the data.

Analysis and findingsData were analysed in two phases. First, data were coded with descriptive codes thatfunctioned as summarising labels with hardly any interpretive efforts. Second,data analysis was construed using the conceptual framework and the literature reviewas a lens.

Descriptive phaseCoding started by categorising the data according to colour. The initial codes werelabelled red, yellow, blue, and green. For example, code red involves comments like“Red is effective” and “Red looks good”. In addition, one code was labelled as colours ingeneral; it represented data about colours without any connection to a specific colour.This code included comments such as: “The colours have been considered” and “Thecolours and the tastes don’t match”. It should be noted that both product classes werecoded with the same labels.

Table I illustrates simplified and descriptive data related to the particular colours. Itreveals information from two perspectives. Horizontally it shows how functions andmeanings related to a particular colour vary across the two products, i.e. it reveals therole played by the product class. Vertically, the table shows the functions and productmeanings evoked by the different package colours for the same product, i.e. it reveals theinfluence of the specific colour. When looking at the general pattern, it becomes evidentthat the same colour evoked different meanings for the two products and that themeanings evoked by the different colours varied for the same product. Altogether,already this phase showed that package colours meanings varied across two differentbut related product types.

Interpretive phaseThe second part of the analysis was guided by the three conceptual themes highlightedby the theoretical framework: involuntary and voluntary attention, aesthetic experiencebased on attractiveness and communication of quality and brand identity. Since we alsowished to reveal the interactive connections between the colour and product type,we determined the motivations given by the informants by applying attributesand consequences defined by the means-end chain approach. We illustrate thesequalitative connections by the chains in which (A) stand for the attribute and (C) forthe consequence.

Theme of involuntary and voluntary attention. Consistent with the functions ofcolours discussed in the conceptual section, the theme of colours as attention attractoremerged from data. It is notable that this function is based on qualitative data only.Hence, the study provides no support as to how this mental interpretation is linked tophysiological reality, i.e. actual eye movements. In addition, it is important to point outthat it is by no means claimed that the ranking of the packages was directly based on the

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function of attention. Put another way, the informants did not state that they prefer abrand package because a specific colour attracts attention.

Preliminary, comments were related to a general function of attention. Gradually, itappeared that a distinction could be made between the voluntary and involuntaryattention (Table II).

Involuntary attention was noted in comments referring especially to the coloursyellow and red, and particularly in Product class 1. For example, the following type ofcomment was made: “Yellow is like yellow price tags”. Informants stated that theyrecognized these colours, and that they would probably recognize these colours in a realchoice situation as well. An interesting notion was that in contrast to the commentspertaining to voluntary attention, comments related to involuntary attention were notoften positive. On the contrary, they had a manipulative aspect, and it was claimed thatthe selection of colours was based on conscious attempts to push the brand ahead ofothers. For example, “It seems that the marketing staff wants people to buy the brandbecause it’s yellow, and therefore visible on the shelf”. Positive comments were “red is aradical colour” and “a good colour in extreme cases”. Although, these comments werefew, they imply that the colours attracted attention because they deviated from thecolours of the authentic brands. Further, they were perceived attractive andcommunicated product effectiveness. Hence, the following chains appeared: colour ofpackage (A) ) attention through vividness (C) and colour of package (A) ) attentionthrough deviation ) aesthetic experience ) quality (effectiveness) (C).

One of the basic findings related to voluntary attention was that the investigatedproduct classes were linked to colours. It appeared that brands in these product classeswere expected to appear in particular colours. It also appeared that this expectation waslinked to the appearance of strong and leading brands. Hence, resemblances to authenticbrands appeared, e.g. “Burana is green”. Resemblances to authentic brands were oftenstressed in Product class 1, particularly with regard to the portrait-shaped packageof green colour. Thus, spontaneous linking occurred to the brand name of Burana, whichis the market leader of one type of painkillers. Colour was related to an authentic brandin Product class 2 as well. In this product class, the colours of yellow and blue werementioned as resembling an authentic brand for sore throat called Strepsils andcandy-like pastilles sold for the same purpose, i.e. Vicks. Strepsils is also a market leader

Theme of attention

Involuntary/deviation

“Yellow is like yellow price tags”“Red colour attracts attention”“It seems that the marketing people want people to buy the brand because it isyellow, and therefore appears on the shelf”“Yellow is selected because they try to make people to buy the product as they(consumers) do not see anything else”“Red is a radical colour”“Red is a good colour in extreme cases”

Voluntary/typicality

“Burana is green”“This is like Strepsils with the yellow colour”“Blue and yellow symbolizes the Vicks-tablets”“Strepsils have yellow packages, however, it seems that they contain [. . .] I do notknow, colorant, which means they are not effective”

Table II.Theme of involuntaryand voluntary

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and Vicks represents a strong brand. An interesting finding was that the comments onthese resemblances were usually positive. When informants were asked for additionalmotivations, it appeared that colour typicality indicates trustworthiness, for example.The following chain appeared: colour of package (A) ) attention through resemblance(C) ) trustworthiness (C). Typicality here means that some colours were perceivedas typical for some product classes. However, comments of the following type were alsonoted: “Strepsils have yellow packages, however, it seems that they contain [. . .] I don’tknow, colorant, which means they aren’t effective”. Colour of package (A) ) attentionthrough resemblance ) ingredient (A) ) quality (effectiveness) (C).

An interesting finding concerns the notion of deviation of colours and typicality,which are highlighted in our enriched framework. Deviation was commented on as beingan issue of manipulation, although, deviating colours were perceived in a positivemanner as well. This supports our framework according to which deviation not onlyattracts involuntary attention, but is also sought for in some purchases. Typicality wasemphasised, which for voluntary attention appeared to be noted in a positive sense only,i.e. colours of leading or strong brands. Hence, informants stressed that colours wouldattract attention through resemblance, which further reinforced the meaning of quality(effectiveness) in accordance with our theoretical framework. We also detected thatresemblance through package colour reinforced the perception of trustworthiness ofthe product.

Theme of aesthetic experience based on attractiveness. The second theme that bothemerged from data and was elaborated in the literature review was the aestheticattraction of package colours. The function of aesthetics relates to visual attractivenessand personal preferences for specific colours. In contrast to the previous theme, theaesthetic value of colours appeared to have an impact on preferences (Table III).

This conceptual theme of aesthetics emerged, first and foremost, when informantsstated that their preference for a specific package was based on its attractiveness,i.e. they had a personal preference for a specific colour. Often the informants commentedon the visual appearance of colours without being able to give any further motivations,which would expose the meanings conveyed by colours. The comments that appearedwere like “I like this colour” and “Because of the colour”. These could be explained as

Theme of aesthetics

Attractiveness “I like this colour”“Because of the colour”“The red package look good”“The red ıs [. . .] I do not know. It does not attract me so to say”“The blue colour is somehow very nice”“Green. I do not know, if there is anything else that motivates this, but somehow theappearance is affecting”“Red is a too strong colour for medicine”

Fit “The neutral taste fits the colour of red”“Green fits menthol”“Blue fits better medicine against headache”“Yellow does not fit medicine against headache and painkillers”“The red first, it fits best medicine for pain”“The colour fits me because I am a woman”

Table III.Theme of aesthetic

experience

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being related to cognitive aspect of emotion. It is essential to point out that attractivenessrelates to arousal aspects of emotions (Abbott et al., 2009; Bloch, 1995), which our methoddid not cover. Still, we emphasise the interaction between colour aesthetics and producttype, for example, based on comments like “Red is too strong a colour for the medicine”.To conclude, the following types of chains appeared: colour of package(A) ) attractiveness (A).

The conceptual theme of aesthetics also emerged from comments consisting of suchverb as fit. This means a sort of congruence or suitability with the colour. This aestheticfunction of colours appeared, first of all, when informants stated that a specific colourfits or does not fit another feature defined for the study, e.g. taste. This connection wasdetected particularly for Product class 2. Among the comments noted were: “The neutraltaste fits the colour of red” and “Green fits menthol”. Second, the aesthetic function wasnoted in comments linking colour to the product class in question. Thus, the suitabilityof a colour in a product class elicited comments: “Blue is better suited for a medicineagainst headache”. In accordance with our framework the aesthetic experience related tofitness of colour and product interaction enabled further motivations, such as productquality and trustworthiness. The following chain appeared: colour of package (A) ) fit(A) ) trustworthiness (C). Hereby, we detected a clear link between aesthetic experienceand colour communication.

Theme of communication of quality and brand identity. The third theme from theconceptual framework that also emerged from data was colours as a means ofcommunication. The product meanings conveyed by colours had an impact on theranking of the packages. Basically, the communicative function appeared in statementssuch as: “This colour means [. . .]” and “I associate this colour with [. . .]”. This themeappeared on both attribute and consequence levels (Table IV).

The theme of communication emerged, first and foremost, when informants statedthat their preference for a specific package is due to the taste meanings conveyed

Theme of communication

Taste “Blue means menthol”“I associate honey and lemon with yellow”“Honey and lemon are both yellow, and honey yellowish, so you have to be able toassociate it with yellow and not with the blue”

Ingredient “I associate green with herbs”“It seems that they contain [. . .], I do not know, colorant”

Quality “It really has an effect (red)”“If you are really sick you go for the red”“Blue is perhaps more efficient”“When I have a headache; I want to have medicines that cure it immediatelyRed helps faster than yellow”

Trustworthiness “Blue seems somehow trustworthy”“In comparison to red and blue the green becomes a little unreliable”“Green conveys an unreliable impression”

Bodily imagery “If you have a headache and want to have something that relieves the pain andcures it, then you do not want to have something that reminds you of blood”“Pain in the head is probably more a red colour”“If you have to put something in your throat, then red is too burning. It does not feelgood in your throat”

Table IV.Theme of communication

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by colours. This function was apparent in such statements as: “Blue means menthol”.These comments concerned Product class 2. Interestingly, package colours of bothauthentic and hypothetical brands influenced the expectations of taste.

Colours created associations about the ingredients of the products, such as lime,herbs, and colorants. Thus, the following comment was made: “I associate green withherbs”. These comments were mainly for Product class 2, although some were made forProduct class 1 as well. The following chains can be drawn: colour of package(A) ) taste (A) and colour of package (A) ) ingredient (A).

Colours conveyed meanings on the consequence level as well. As pointed out, theseconsequences were related to the product, not the informant. Severalconsumption-related consequences of package colours were detected in both productclasses. We have further interpreted that these consequences appeared to be of twotypes; namely, direct and indirect. Direct consequences are explained as functionalbenefits of consuming the core product, namely, the quality (including effectiveness) andtrustworthiness of the product. These are examined first, followed by the consequencesthat are indirectly related to consuming the product. The latter are related to the productindirectly because they are actually connected with meanings related to informants’associations with physiological sensations, i.e. bodily imagery.

First, colours conveyed meanings about the quality of the product. Here, quality islinked to the effectiveness of the product, i.e. weather it will cure the illness or not. Hence,such comments appeared as “It really has an effect (red)”. This consequence was alsoexpressed as “Blue is perhaps more efficient”. The comments imply that colours conveymeanings about the efficiency of the product. As it appeared, some colours wereperceived as more effective than others. A second consequence is linked to thetrustworthiness of the product. Trustworthiness was based on such comments as: “Blueseems somehow trustworthy”. The comments suggest that colours convey meaningsabout whether or not one can rely on and trust the product, e.g. whether there is a fear ofside effects. These consequences were in particular linked to the product class inquestion. For example, colour of package (A) ) ingredient (A) ) quality (effectiveness)(C) and colour of package (A) ) bodily imagery (C) ) trustworthiness (C).

Second, colours conveyed meanings related to the bodily imagery, i.e. to meaningsrelated to informants’ associations with physiological sensations. In other words,colours conveyed meanings regarding the pain and the cure that were linked either to theproduct in question or to another product. Colours were found to be associated with painand cure, for instance, by the following comments: “If you have a headache and want tohave something that relieves the pain and cures it, then you do not want to havesomething that reminds you of blood” and “If you have to put something in your throat,then red is too burning. It does not feel good in your throat”. An interesting finding is thatfor Product class 1, red was expressed to convey meanings of pain both in a negative anda positive sense. In Product class 2, colours associated with pain were not perceivedpositively at all. On the contrary, only colours that conveyed meanings about curing theillness were expressed in a positive sense, for example, blue is calming and fresh.In conclusion, colours may convey meanings about pain when it comes to painkillers,but not when it comes to sore throat medicines. The following chains was detected:colour of package (A) ) taste (A) ) bodily imagery (cure) (C) and colour of package(A) ) bodily imagery (pain) (C).

Consumers’product-specific

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The previous discussion suggests that colours conveyed meanings about the productat different levels. First, colours communicated meanings on the attribute level,indicating something about the core product itself, such as the taste and ingredients ofthe product. Second, colours were found to communicate consumption-relatedconsequences, i.e. consequences linked to benefits of using the product. Defined asdirect consequences we detected meanings of quality and trustworthiness and definedas indirect consequences the data revealed meanings related to bodily imagery, such ascure and pain.

Conclusions and discussionThe evidence of our exploratory study is in line with past research pointing out threefunctions of package colours, i.e. attention, aesthetic experience, and communication.The focus here was to examine consumers’ product-specific colour meanings, andthe evidence offers particularly insights into the meanings associated with the packagecolour-product type interface. Table V summarises the findings and shows themultitude of functions played by colours.

The first colour function is that of attracting consumers’ attention, particularly at thepoint of purchase (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). The qualitative data of our studysupported the significance of this function. Hence, the informants stressed thatparticularly vivid colours, such as the warm colours red and yellow attract attention inaccordance with past research (Garber et al., 2000a; Schoormans and Robben, 1997).Colour deviation from what would be typical of a product class seems also to be essentialfor this function. This finding was consistent in both product types. This indicatesforemost involuntary colour attention, i.e. attention, which is primarily a physiologicalresponse (Kahneman, 1973). Kahneman (1973) defines also voluntary attention, whichmeans that consumers’ use colours intentionally, for instance for brand search,recognition, and recall. Our study supports past research (Garber et al., 2000a)concerning this colour function as well. Accordingly, informants related the studiedcolours to authentic brand colours, which means that the colours of those brands havebeen stored in memories. However, colours were also related to product type. This meansthat the informants linked the colours of the authentic brands to the expected colours ofthe product class. Therefore, instead of deviation, particularly colour typicality is relatedto this function.

Colour preferences have been claimed to be a subjective issue of colour aesthetics(Veryzer and Hutchinson, 1998). Although, few past studies suggest that colour liking isrelated to product type, such as candy (Mundell, 1993; Walsh et al., 1990) previousstudies have still mainly aimed at linking colour preferences to culture, gender, age, race,and personality (Lange and Rentfrow, 2008). In our study, all tested colours receivedpreferential responses for both product types. Our study involved two different, butrelated product types, and hence, an issue for further studies would be linking colourpreferences to related product types and psychographic variables. For example,individual differences in how essential product aesthetics are for a consumer (Bloch et al.,2003) may play a role in how particular products are perceived in different colours.

Finally, our study suggests that a very important function played by colours is that ofcommunication. To our knowledge, product-specific colour meanings in marketingresearch have received attention mainly in food studies, where food colours have beenfound to communicate product taste and flavour, for example (Garber et al., 2000b; Koch

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300

Pai

nk

ille

rs–

pro

du

ctcl

ass

1S

ore

thro

atm

edic

ine

–p

rod

uct

clas

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Att

enti

onVoluntary

Involuntary

Voluntary

Involuntary

Gre

enY

ello

wY

ello

wY

ello

wR

edB

lue

Red

Aes

thet

ics

Yel

low

Yel

low

Red

Red

Blu

eB

lue

Gre

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omm

un

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ion

Attribute-levelmeanings

Attribute-levelmeanings

Gre

en:

ing

red

ien

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ello

w:

tast

eR

ed:

tast

eB

lue:

tast

eG

reen

:in

gre

die

nts

,ta

ste

Consequence-levelmeanings

Consequence-levelmeanings

Red

:q

ual

ity

,q

ual

ity

(eff

ecti

ven

ess)

,b

odil

yim

ager

y(p

ain

,cu

re)

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e:q

ual

ity

,q

ual

ity

(eff

ecti

ven

ess)

,b

odil

yim

ager

y(c

ure

)G

reen

:tr

ust

wor

thin

ess,

bod

ily

imag

ery

(cu

re)

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,cu

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ed:

qu

alit

y,

qu

alit

y(e

ffec

tiv

enes

s),

bod

ily

imag

ery

(pai

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ual

ity

,tr

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wor

thin

ess,

qu

alit

y(e

ffec

tiv

enes

s),

bod

ily

imag

ery

(cu

re)

Gre

en:

qu

alit

y,

bod

ily

imag

ery

(cu

re)

Table V.Colour meanings across

two product types

Consumers’product-specific

colour meanings

301

and Koch, 2003). Our study suggests that also package colours evoke expectations aboutthe product, i.e. colours serve as cues of the product experience. The evidence shows therole of colours as a means of communication since dissimilar meanings were conveyedby different colours across the two different, but related product types. We alsoidentified different meanings by applying the means-end chain approach, i.e. meaningson attribute and consequence levels. Based on the evidence we present, we suggest thatcolour communication is a multilevel function that should receive attention in scholarlystudies. Hence, in addition to brand and product quality our empirical study detectedthat package colours served as cues of product-related information, i.e. attributes(i.e. taste, ingredients) and consumption-related information, i.e. consequences(i.e. quality, trustworthiness, bodily imagery).

The enriched framework in Figure 3 proposes that colour-product type interactionserve as a multifunction from attracting involuntary and voluntary attention to creatingaesthetic experience to delivering communication. It also suggests that package colourserve as a function of aesthetic experience related not only to attractiveness, but also tocolour fit. Moreover, the framework shows that colour communication is related to thecontext, and a relationship exists between package colour meanings and the producttype. Accordingly, the framework is enriched with product- and consumption-relatedmeanings evoked by colours.

Implications and limitationsThe findings of the study have several implications. First of all, colour is a designelement that must be carefully considered when launching a new brand. In the case ofinvoluntary attention, the use of dissimilar colours attracts attention to the brand. Thismay be preferred by companies when the product is being launched, as particularlyvariety-seekers, who prefer novelty, are willing to accept dissimilar colours (Garber et al.,2000a; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Hence, variety-seekers may in fact use colourdeviation as means of voluntary attention, i.e. for brand search. However, similar coloursthat are found within a product class generally may enhance the acceptance of the brand

Figure 3.The enriched framework

Interaction between

YellowRedBlueGreen

Painkillerssore throat medicines

Deviation +/typicality– Deviation –/typicality +

Involuntaryattention

Voluntaryattention

Aesthetic experiencebased on attractiveness

and color fit

Communication of taste,ingredients, quality,trustworthiness, and

bodily imagery

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as a member of that particular product class. Practitioners may consider a resemblanceto the colours of the leading brand as our evidence suggests that in some purchasestypicality or similarity is found to mean trustworthiness. However, typicality may alsoresult in the consumer ignoring the product package in question, as the consumer mayhave difficulties in distinguishing between various brands (Heath, 1999). For example,Miller and Kahn (2005) demonstrated that such deviating colour names as moody blueand Florida red created more positive product experiences than typical, descriptivecolour names (e.g. blueberry blue, cherry red).

Second, the redesign of existing product packages prompts several aspects to consider.Consumers use colours to search for and to recognize brands, and a radical change ofcolours may create confusion for a while, as the preferred brand is not paid attention to andhence, recognized. However, radical redesign may also be made as a strategic decision, ifthe aim is to relocate the brand to another product class, for example.

As it appears, an understanding of the functions of package colours is essential forpractitioners’. In essence, the study shows that colours have an impact on consumers’regardless if the choice is a first purchase, a re-buy or habitual situation. The functions ofbrand colours change accordingly. However, also other design elements of packages,such as shape, material, letter font, picture, and size warrant research. In fact,spontaneous comments given by the informants concerned also meanings conveyed byother design elements. There is some empirical evidence from past research pertainingto the role of other package design elements. For example, as far as shape is concerned,Folkes and Matta (2004) showed that packages in shapes that are perceived as attractingmore attention are also perceived to contain a greater volume of a product thansame-sized packages that attract less attention. The second example concerns thematerial feature of package design. Krishna and Morrin (2008) demonstrated that thefirmness of a cup (firm vs flimsy) affected consumers’ taste evaluations of the water thatwas drunk from the cup. It was clear that our informants had colour-brand informationstored in memory. Hence, an interesting finding concerning the impact of brand colourwas that it seems to be related not only to product- and/or consumption-relatedmeanings, but also to sensory information as well. In other words, spontaneouscomments not only concerned the impact of other design elements, but also authenticbrands, which were connected to colour and further to taste. Although the issue is out ofscope of our study, the chain of colour-brand-taste could be detected. This suggests thatthe symbolic environment that the consumers store in memory includes various cues inwhich the brand name is nested.

An essential finding and a conclusion to be drawn from our study is that productpackages were evaluated positively (i.e. quality, trustworthiness) when their variouspackage design elements consistently communicated coherent meanings. This is in linewith the study by Orth and Makewitz (2008) who make a strong case for a holisticperspective on package design. Thus, no single element alone creates desired consumerresponses (Miyazaki et al., 2005). Instead, the design elements together create desiredimpressions and influence consumers’ behaviour, including the functions of attractingtheir attention, evoking aesthetic responses and creating meanings. Hence, starting fromunderstanding the meanings’ conveyed by single design elements, an understanding ofthe meanings conveyed by the appearance could increase the understanding of theholistic package communication.

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Overall, the qualitative research design including the applied method seemed to beapplicable for generating insights into the nature of package colours and capture therange of colour meanings. Still, the study involves limitations. When it concerns attentionand aesthetic appeal, it must be emphasised that the research method used in our study infact only imply that package colours have the physiological ability to attract involuntaryattention and evoke aesthetic experiences. Hence, package colours as means of visualinvoluntary attention at the point of purchase deserve further investigation using moreproper methods, such as eye tracking methods, for example. Eye tracking in addition toqualitative techniques could be used to evaluate the use and function of colours in varioustypes of purchase scenarios, such as first purchase, re-buy and habitual choices. A firstpurchase situation does not exclude the existence of brand knowledge due to the fact thatconsumers are exposed to brands through advertisements and other media, for example.It is out of the scope of this paper to address this issue further. Thus, an additionalinteresting avenue for future research could be to examine the link betweenadvertisements and brand colour knowledge or brand colour knowledge throughbrand use at parental home, for example. Future research could also look at packagecolours by extending the sample, types of products, geographical area, and colours. Thedata in our study represent viewpoints from a small group of individuals only, i.e. 18informants were involved in the study. This approach is acceptable, given that the studyis exploratory (McKechnie and Tynan, 2006; Reppel et al., 2006). However, in order to beable to make generalisations future studies should involve larger samples. In our study,the informants were undergraduate students that varied in sex (nine men and ninewomen) and to some extent also in age (19-30). However, the informants were notcontrasted, and therefore future studies could also involve a heterogeneous sample thatwould be diverse regarding psychographic variables. In terms of product type,examining colour meanings in other sets of products, such as daily consumer goods couldbe an area of interest. Although past research contends that colour is a universal issue, itis also equated as a culturally bound phenomenon. Hence, an additional suggestion forfuture studies is devoting effort to the understanding of the product-specific colourmeanings related to different cultural backgrounds. Focusing on colour combinationsmay also provide essential understanding of the product-specific colour-meanings’.

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About the authorsHannele Kauppinen-Raisanen has a PhD from Department of Marketing, Hanken School ofEconomics. Her main research interest pertains particularly to areas of non-verbal marketingcommunication and consumer behaviour. She is also involved with research addressingcross-cultural issues, self-care consumers, and food experiences. She has published in journalssuch as Journal of Customer Behavior, Journal of Macromarketing, and Management ResearchNews. She also regularly presents papers at various conferences, for example, organized byEuropean Marketing Academy (EMAC) and other associations. Hannele Kauppinen-Raisanen isthe corresponding author and can be contacted at: hannele.kauppinen-raisanen@pp.inet.fi

Harri T. Luomala is a Research Professor investigating consumer behavior at the Departmentof Marketing, University of Vaasa, Finland. His main research interest focuses on theinterrelationships between values, emotions, motives, and taste perceptions in food consumptionand on consumer-oriented food product development. He is also involved with research addressingcross-cultural issues and consumer perception of products, brands, and commercial environments.He has published in journals such as Psychology & Marketing, Journal of Business Research,Journal of Marketing Management, Journal of Economic Psychology, Journal of ConsumerBehavior, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, International Review of Retail,Distribution and Consumer Research, Qualitative Market Research, Appetite, British FoodJournal, Journal of Food Products Marketing, and Journal of Customer Behavior. He also regularlypresents papers at conferences organized by Association for Consumer Research, EMAC,Academy of Marketing Science, and other associations.

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