In the modern day and age, we are bombarded by advertising and influenced by marketing in everything we do. From watching a YouTube video, to visiting your local corner store, brands are constantly trying to sell you their products, and outcompete other potential businesses for your attention, through the positioning of items, their packaging, and the ways those are promoted in the media. Overwhelming, right?
So, let’s talk placement. Suppose you’ve arrived at your local grocery store. Did you know that your choices are already being influenced before you even fully walk in? The blast of warm air in the doorway isn’t simply there to welcome you, in fact, it is there to make you relaxed and to slow you down, in hopes of convincing you, subconsciously, to take a better, more thorough look around. Once you do finally make it inside you will of course see all the products arranged in aisles (common knowledge – nothing suspicious here). However, what’s often left unnoticed is the hierarchy within these shelves; more specifically, the part that eye level plays. The more expensive options, that are guaranteed to bring the store the most income, are put on the middle shelf – where you are most likely to buy them, especially in a rush. However, this doesn’t cater to all demographics, which is why the bottom shelf is usually reserved for child-themed items – encouraging them to desire specifically that one strawberry and banana smoothie with Princess Peach on the cover. This therefore persuades their parents to buy it better than any advertisement ever would.
Speaking of the cover, the way a product is packaged is another element that is heavily researched and designed with the aim of maximising sales. A well-known fact is that beef comes from cows; it is cows’ meat, and it works well as steak, mince or burgers. Cows are cute, and beef tastes good, so of course it is these aspects that the packaging design will focus on portraying: happy, grass-fed, free-range cattle and/or the delicious, aromatic outcome (as illustrated by Waitrose’s ink rendition of the former):
Now, it would be silly to expect companies to showcase photos from the slaughterhouse, but what this perpetuates, is the general unawareness of the consumer as to where their food really comes from. Of course, we have a hunch that at some point between the cow being on the field and being on a plate, it had become a little less than alive. However, since all we visually see is the cows drawn and photographed all content and respected, we never really acknowledge that it won’t be long before they’re killed.
On the other (and slightly more optimistic) hand, one benefit of the ever-changing consumer demographic is that businesses’ responses are forced to evolve with pop culture. Due to more and more attention being brought towards sustainability, those who are fortunate enough to have choice in the brands they buy regularly, may give their preferences to eco-conscious packaging and branding. This includes the materials used, and the colours, such as green and brown tones, as well as the raw appeal of cardboard. This can be a driving force for change, encouraging companies to invest in alternative solutions that may even end up costing them less due to the simpler designs and more natural colours.
Finally, the advertising. It’s everywhere, and therefore it’s very difficult to come up with a campaign that will seriously catch the eye of the consumer and make us choose their brand over someone else’s. That’s why many companies have resorted to what I’d like to term: “blatantly bending the truth instead of actually improving the product”. Catchy, don’t you think? A disclaimer – they’re not necessarily lying to you, but they sure are exploiting your innate trust in the professionalism of using profound terminology.
Let me use an example to illustrate my point – the concept of “micellar shampoo”. The term “micellar” has been used in the advertisements of the cosmetics industry for a while now, and although the concept sounds all fancy and extravagant, once you break it down it’s really not that special. To put it simply, any soap contains molecules that are, at one end hydrophobic (water-hating) and on the other hydrophilic (water-loving). Thus, when introduced into a mixture of oil and water (your gorgeous hair), the hydrophobic ends of the molecules congregate around a globule of fat, and thus form a little sphere. That, folks, is a micelle. Assuming your shampoo has soap, it automatically has micelles. Therefore, ALL shampoo is micellar shampoo. It’s not that special, Pantene.
As we evolve our understanding of the tricks used by the marketing industry, they too come up with new ways to influence and persuade us to give them our hard-earned pocket-money. It’s their job. However, with ample research and an ounce of determination, we can learn to navigate through the branding, and see the products for what they really, truly are.
