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Exploring consumers product-specic colour meanings


Hannele Kauppinen-Raisanen
Hanken School of Economics, Helsinki, Finland, and

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Harri T. Luomala
University of Vaasa/EPANET, Foodwest Ltd, Seinajoki, Finland
Abstract
Purpose The impact of colour is acknowledged, yet empirical studies on colours with marketing implications are rare. The paper seeks to advance our understanding of the role of package colours in consumers product experiences by studying the relationship between colour meanings and product. It also 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 the preference-consumption difference interview technique. The data were analysed applying means-end chain. Accordingly, it was possible to detect, not only the multifunction played by package colours, but also meanings that colours conveyed at different abstraction level. As colour research within marketing was fragmented and no such colour theory exists, the paper developed a theoretical framework for the paper. Findings Based on the evidence, the proposed framework is further elaborated so that it could better capture the connections between colour and consumers product experiences. Hence, the paper supports the signicance of the functions emphasised by past research and uncovers the qualitative connections between packages colour meanings and product type. Research limitations/implications Future research should extend the size of the sample, types of products, geographical area, and colours. Practical implications The evidence shows that colours should be carefully considered when launching new brands or, indeed, when brand packages are redesigned, the multifunction of colours should be taken into consideration. Originality/value The paper covers an area neglected by past research, which has implications for understanding consumers brand preferences. Keywords Colour, Marketing communications, Packaging Paper type Research paper

Introduction The selection of colour is an inevitable package design issue. Past research acknowledges that the effort put on designing packages is worthwhile as consumers notice package design and the aesthetic impression evoked by it (Kreuzbauer and Malter, 2005). Further, it is documented that consumers brand choices may be based on aesthetic value that design creates (Bloch et al., 2003); nevertheless, package design and colours do not serve aesthetic purposes only. A review of extant marketing research reveals that package colours have two additional functions: colours attract attention (Grimes and Doole, 1998), and consumers use colours as stimulus-based information (Garber et al., 2000a). Past research acknowledges the inuential aspect of packaging appearance and the single 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;

Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal Vol. 13 No. 3, 2010 pp. 287-308 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 1352-2752 DOI 10.1108/13522751011053644

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Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Hence, these studies suggest among other things that the elements may infer product quality as well as convey product meanings (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Garber et al., 2000a, b). Although past research recognizes that colour is an inuential design element, empirical studies on colours with marketing implications are rare. Accordingly, surprisingly little research has examined package colours, not to mention the relationship between package colour and consumers product experiences (Garber et al., 2000a; Gordon et al., 1994; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). For instance, in the case of food it is commonplace that food colour can inuence product expectations and perceptions, such as its taste (Garber et al., 2000b; Koch and Koch, 2003). Our study focused on the qualitative connections between colour meanings and product, 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 role of 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 by examining them in context. This paper has three objectives. To begin with, as colour research within marketing is very fragmented, and no colour theory in marketing has yet developed (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Grossman and Wisenblit, 1999), the rst objective is to review extant colour research in order to be able to develop a theoretical framework for the study. The second objective is to use ndings of an exploratory study to demonstrate the extent to which colour meanings vary across two different but related product types: painkillers and sore throat medicines. The third objective is to rene the original theoretical framework on the basis of the qualitative ndings. To meet these objectives, the theoretical base of the study is described rst. Second, the method, data collection, and sample are introduced. Third, analyses of the two sets of qualitative data are reported and the revised framework model is presented. The paper concludes with a discussion concerning theoretical and managerial implications, limitations, and future research suggestions. Theoretical framework The proposed framework is shown in Figure 1. It is based on the literature review and incorporates the functions of involuntary and voluntary attention due to colour

Color and product type interaction Deviation + Deviation

Involuntary attention

Voluntary attention

Figure 1. The theoretical framework

Aesthetic experience based on attractiveness

Communication of quality and brand identity

deviation, aesthetic experience based on colour attractiveness and communication of quality and brand identity, and their interrelationships. Package colours as means of attracting attention, creating aesthetic experiences, and delivering communication In order to inuence consumers in the shop, some stimulus must attract consumers attention; this is a precondition for any further product evaluation, regardless if it relates to aesthetics or information processing. Hence, attention precedes the two other functions of colours in our framework. Past packaging research has documented that shape (Bloch, 1995; Schoormans and Robben, 1997), pictures (Underwood et al., 2001), and colours attract consumers attention (Grimes and Doole, 1998; Gorn et al., 1997). The attention-getting device of colour, in particular, is stressed, implying that it is the most essential visual cue (Danger, 1987b) as it is found to be the rst package cue noticed by consumers (Danger, 1987a). It is also pointed out that colour has an ability to maintain the attention of consumers in some cases (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Previous studies support the idea that package colour attracts attention, especially when consumers seek variety in their brand choices (Garber et al., 2000a; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). In particular, bright, novel, and warm colours are emphasised (Garber et al., 2000a; Schoormans and Robben, 1997). Moreover, attention appears to increase with the degree of colour deviation (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). We suggest that involuntary and voluntary attention presented by Kahneman (1973) can explain those ndings. Involuntary attention refers to novel and surprising cues; it may even be a physiological response. Above all, these cues attract attention as means of colour deviation from what would be typical of a product class. Voluntary attention means that package colours attract attention because they are relevant for the task at hand. This idea is supported by ndings documenting that consumers use colours to search for and to identify brands (Garber et al., 2000a). These cases of visual search and recognition refer broadly to habitual choices where the consumer is inuenced by attitudes based on information 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 brand information 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 marketing element (Bloch et al., 2003; Creusen and Schoormans, 2005). Recently, products should not be designed in order to meet functional needs only; they should give an aesthetic appeal as consumers are concerned with design issues and aesthetics. The strength of aesthetic appeal is supported by ndings according to which consumers brand choices may be based on aesthetics, when considering between two products, for example (Bloch et al., 2003; Kotler and Rath, 1984). This means that consumers responses to appearance are converted into brand preferences (Stoll et al., 2008). Moreover, research reveals that the design elements that constitute products appearance, such as colours derive arousal aspects of emotions, i.e. attractiveness (Abbott et al., 2009; Bloch, 1995). Colours as means to create aesthetic experience is particularly essential as attractive packages are found to attract more attention than unattractive packages (Stoll et al., 2008). Moreover, Stoll et al. (2008) emphasise that attractiveness may in fact maintain attention, which enables information processing. Thus, the aesthetic experience based on attractiveness is included in the framework. Colour preferences and colours as means to 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 few studies have focused on colour preferences as a function of product type, although the inuence of colour preferences on product evaluation is supported as the most popular colours for clothing are blue, red, and black, whereas blue, gray, red, white, and black cars are preferred (Mundell, 1993). It has also been shown that children favour certain colours when choosing sweets (Walsh et al., 1990). Accordingly, studies on colour attractiveness have focused on detecting universal colour preferences, on culturally related preferences and on preferences arising from gender, race, age, and personality. For example, the universal preferential order blue, red, green, purple, orange, and yellow has been proposed (Eysneck, 1941). Support for colour liking being culturally bounded is found 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, and green in Malaysia (Funk and Ndubisi, 2006; Madden et al., 2000; Wiegersma and van der Elst, 1988). When it comes to gender, race, age, and personality, the results of such studies imply, for example, that men prefer blue, African-Americans like the range of red-purple-black, Caucasian Americans prefer blues and greens (Silver and Ferrante, 1988), adults favour the range of blue, red, green (Terwogt and Hoeksma, 1995), and introverts like cooler and calmer colour in contrasts to extroverts (Robinson, 1975). The third function of colours in our framework relates to colours as conveyors of communication. Earlier packaging research supports that single design elements may infer product quality. For instance, McDaniel and Baker (1977) found that package material inuenced expectations and evaluations of the product, whereas Underwood and Klein (2002) suggest that pictures serve as cues of product-related information having an impact on product evaluation. Colour research support that also colours infer product 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). The relationship between package colours and brands has also attracted scholarly interest. Accordingly, colours are used to create brand identity (Underwood, 2003), evaluate brands (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 colours as conveyors of brand identity and product quality. The role of product type in colour meanings Several studies acknowledge that colours have an impact on various consumer issues. The majority of prior colour studies with marketing implications have focused on advertisements (Chamblee and Sandler, 1992; Gorn et al., 1997; Greer and Lohtia, 1994; Huang, 1993; Kaufman-Scarborough, 2001; Kimle and Fiore, 1992; Kirmani, 1997; Lee and Barnes, 1990; Meyers-Levy and Peracchio, 1995). Other colour studies have centred on colours and international branding (Grimes and Doole, 1998), colour associations and preferences across cultures (Jacobs et al., 1991; Madden et al., 2000), the impact of colours in 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 avour (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 and Johnson, 2002; Nitse et al., 2004). Although the number of published empirical colour studies within the eld of marketing is limited, colours have been studied extensively

and reported in the eld of psychology (Belizzi and Hite, 1992). Those studies have focused especially on colour preferences and the associations of colours (Taft, 1997). The focus of attention in our study is the connections between package colour and product experience. It is claimed that many previous studies carried out in the eld of psychology 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 is simultaneously 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 dissimilarity among 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 idea of sportiness when associated with cars. Thus, the base for our theoretical framework is the interaction between colour and the context, which is the product type in our study. This means that the colour functions emphasised in our framework is related to this interaction. As stated above, to our knowledge the qualitative connections between package colour meanings and product type has not been studied explicitly before, although colour association studies stress that colours convey meanings ( Jacobs et al., 1991). However, it has been noted implicitly that the interaction exists, in particular, in studies on colour attention and colour as means of aesthetic experience. For example, Schoormans and Robben (1997) found that a high 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 aesthetic response package colours considered acceptable for certain product types are limited. These ndings may be explained by earlier research stressing that product class is closely linked to the concepts of similarity and typicality (Abbott et al., 2009; Veryzer and Hutchinson, 1998). In others words, here the similarity aspect relates to package appearance, such as its colour or colour scheme. Further, these studies reported that consumers prefer typicality, with the exception of variety-seekers. This means that dissimilar or novel colours in a product class may attract attention, and these dissimilar colours 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 means of brand or product class identication. These colours may also be preferred as they may relate positively to products quality expectations. Exploratory study A qualitative approach was used in order to elicit insights and in-depth understanding of the role of package colours as a source of product meanings. Interviews were performed applying the preference-consumption difference interviewing technique. This technique has been suggested as one way to gain an understanding of why a brand or a product is preferred over others (Reynolds and Gutman, 1988). The technique has its origin in clinical psychology, were it served as means of assessing individuals behaviour by gaining in-depth understanding of internal processes. As it was introduced to marketing and to assessing the behaviour of consumers, it is used to gain in-depth understanding of meanings products represent (Veludo-de-Oliveira et al., 2006). It entails eliciting stated brand and product preferences; the respondent is then asked the motivations for the preference expressed. Reynolds and Gutman (1988) have suggested that the revelation of 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 brand A the least preferred. For example, assuming that a consumer mentions a specic brand or a package attribute, the answer is followed by questions aimed at getting deeper insights into the consumption consequences of specic attributes. Hence, this technique was considered appropriate given the focus of investigating package colour meanings. The preference-consumption difference interviewing technique was applied by asking the informants to state their preferences for 16 hypothetical packages in two product classes. The studied products were painkillers (Product class 1) and sore throat medicines (Product class 2). The study focused on pharmaceuticals because the core products represented by many of the authentic brands of these two product classes are substitutes for each other, i.e. the differences between the actual core products are insignicant in the eyes of the consumer. Further, the informants were familiar with the product types. The hypothetical packages were designed systematically on the basis of features found on packages of authentic brands in the two product classes. Orthoplan (SPSS version 14) was used to ensure systematic design. The experimental packages varied in colour (yellow, red, blue, green), shape (square, landscape, portrait), font (three different fonts were pretested and analysed as conveying meanings of being conservative, modern, or a follower), and producer (unknown domestic producer, known domestic producer, unknown foreign producer, known foreign producer). Product class 2 (sore throat medicine) included the four above features in addition to four tastes (honey and lemon, sweetener, menthol, mint). Accordingly, informants were asked to rank the 16 hypothetical packages while interviewed in order to determine the reasons for their preferences. The theoretical background for the preference-consumption difference technique lies in the means-end theory approach (Reynolds and Gutman, 1988). The approach suggests that consumers preferences and choices concerning brand and product are not based on the product per se but on the expected consequences that the brand or the product will have for the consumers, i.e. because they mean something to the consumer (Grunert and Valli, 2001). In fact, preferences and choices are based on chains of attributes, consequences, and values (Reynolds and Whitlark, 1995), and as the means-end chain distinguishes between these terms, it provides an approach for understanding consumers perceptions of brands and products. For example, a three-level abstraction could be red colour (attribute) good taste (consequence) fun and enjoyment (value) (Grunert and Valli, 2001). In other words, concrete knowledge about product attributes is linked to abstract ideas about the attributes psychological and social consequences, and with even more abstract values. In short, product attributes are related to benets and further to full personal values. The base for our study was the assumption that consumers evaluations and expectations about the brand and product are based on available cues, such as package colours. Hence, as we focused on the colour-product type interaction we did not aim at nding complete chains, but primarily at detecting two levels of abstraction, i.e. the attribute-consequence chains. For example, a question like Why is brand A the most desirable could be answered with because of the red colour (attribute). The following question could be answered with the comment conveying benet, such as It really has an effect (red) (consequence). The latter answer means in this case that the colour communicates, and the consequence of that communication is the benecial quality of the product or quality that is related to consuming the product.

Hence, we assumed that by applying the preference-consumption difference technique, it would be possible to detect the interaction between the package cue of colour and the product type formed as attributes and consequences. Although our study also revealed interaction between the other features of our hypothetical packages and product type, only data related to colours are reported in this study. Data collection and sample The qualitative research was conducted through 18 individual in-depth interviews. Although we originally planned to perform more interviews, we detected that already after 15 interviews a pattern started to emerge. Therefore, we decided that 18 interviews resulted in such data that no additional interviews were necessary for our exploratory study. In other words, as no new information was discovered, we assumed that we had reached a saturation point in terms of ndings 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 ndings of our exploratory study were valid within the chosen sample. The informants were undergraduate students in a business school (nine men and nine women) and they were within the age range of 19-30 (mean 24). They participated in the 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 two product classes and was interviewed while performing both tasks. The packages in Figure 2 were produced by a packaging company. They were designed systematically in 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 three different fonts. The origin of producer (domestic or foreign, unknown, or known) and taste variant (honey and lemon, sweetener, menthol, mint) were presented verbally on the packages (e.g. a known domestic producer, mint). The material and size were identical for all packages, as was the product information. Data collection started by placing the packages on a table. The informants were asked to choose the package of the most preferred brand in a hypothetical purchase situation.

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Notes: Va rkmedicin, painkiller; halsmedicin, sore throat medicine

Figure 2. Sample of the systematically designed packages

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Then they were asked to choose the second most preferred brand, and so on. Finally, the informants had ranked the 16 packages in both product classes separately, in order from the most preferred brand to the least preferred one, while they at the same time expressed their motivations for the rankings. A session lasted 60-75 minutes. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed. Nvivo software, version 2.0 was used for processing and coding the data. Analysis and ndings Data were analysed in two phases. First, data were coded with descriptive codes that functioned as summarising labels with hardly any interpretive efforts. Second, data analysis was construed using the conceptual framework and the literature review as a lens. Descriptive phase Coding started by categorising the data according to colour. The initial codes were labelled 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 in general; it represented data about colours without any connection to a specic colour. This code included comments such as: The colours have been considered and The colours and the tastes dont match. It should be noted that both product classes were coded with the same labels. Table I illustrates simplied and descriptive data related to the particular colours. It reveals information from two perspectives. Horizontally it shows how functions and meanings related to a particular colour vary across the two products, i.e. it reveals the role played by the product class. Vertically, the table shows the functions and product meanings evoked by the different package colours for the same product, i.e. it reveals the inuence of the specic colour. When looking at the general pattern, it becomes evident that the same colour evoked different meanings for the two products and that the meanings evoked by the different colours varied for the same product. Altogether, already this phase showed that package colours meanings varied across two different but related product types. Interpretive phase The second part of the analysis was guided by the three conceptual themes highlighted by the theoretical framework: involuntary and voluntary attention, aesthetic experience based on attractiveness and communication of quality and brand identity. Since we also wished to reveal the interactive connections between the colour and product type, we determined the motivations given by the informants by applying attributes and consequences dened by the means-end chain approach. We illustrate these qualitative connections by the chains in which (A) stand for the attribute and (C) for the consequence. Theme of involuntary and voluntary attention. Consistent with the functions of colours discussed in the conceptual section, the theme of colours as attention attractor emerged 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 to physiological reality, i.e. actual eye movements. In addition, it is important to point out that it is by no means claimed that the ranking of the packages was directly based on the

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Painkillers Product class 1 Strepsils (competing, authentic brand) Vicks (competing, authentic brand) Deviating colour Shouting colour Honey and lemon Cure Pain Blood Positive and negative feelings Strong feelings Attracts attention Attractive colour Does not t sore throat medicine Does not t the throat Fits u Fits sore throat medicine A radical colour Extreme cases Peppermint rock Effective Vicks (competing, authentic brand) Menthol Mint Is not mint Trustworthy Fits menthol Fruits Mint Is not mint Honey and lemon Cure Strong medicine Medicine Aggressive Does not cure Pain Terric pain Means pain in the throat Burning Irritating Cure Good for the throat Calming colour Effective Pastille Calming colour Colorant Lime Fits medicine against stomach A colour of joy Calming Cures

Sore throat medicine Product class 2

Yellow Price tags Attracts attention Does not t painkillers Does not t headache A colour of joy

Red Codexan (competing, authentic brand) Attracts attention Deviating colour Attractive colour Does not t medicine Too strong colour Fits painkillers Cures Effective Cool and fresh Neutral Strong colour Calming colour

Blue Attractive colour Fits painkillers Effective Cures Relieves Cure Green Burana (competing authentic brand) Attractive colour Herbs Unreliable Neutral Calming colour No painkiller Health product Positive colour Trustworthy

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Table I. Colour functions and meanings across two product types

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function of attention. Put another way, the informants did not state that they prefer a brand package because a specic colour attracts attention. Preliminary, comments were related to a general function of attention. Gradually, it appeared that a distinction could be made between the voluntary and involuntary attention (Table II). Involuntary attention was noted in comments referring especially to the colours yellow and red, and particularly in Product class 1. For example, the following type of comment was made: Yellow is like yellow price tags. Informants stated that they recognized these colours, and that they would probably recognize these colours in a real choice situation as well. An interesting notion was that in contrast to the comments pertaining to voluntary attention, comments related to involuntary attention were not often positive. On the contrary, they had a manipulative aspect, and it was claimed that the selection of colours was based on conscious attempts to push the brand ahead of others. For example, It seems that the marketing staff wants people to buy the brand because its yellow, and therefore visible on the shelf. Positive comments were red is a radical colour and a good colour in extreme cases. Although, these comments were few, they imply that the colours attracted attention because they deviated from the colours of the authentic brands. Further, they were perceived attractive and communicated product effectiveness. Hence, the following chains appeared: colour of package (A) ) attention through vividness (C) and colour of package (A) ) attention through deviation ) aesthetic experience ) quality (effectiveness) (C). One of the basic ndings related to voluntary attention was that the investigated product classes were linked to colours. It appeared that brands in these product classes were expected to appear in particular colours. It also appeared that this expectation was linked to the appearance of strong and leading brands. Hence, resemblances to authentic brands appeared, e.g. Burana is green. Resemblances to authentic brands were often stressed in Product class 1, particularly with regard to the portrait-shaped package of green colour. Thus, spontaneous linking occurred to the brand name of Burana, which is the market leader of one type of painkillers. Colour was related to an authentic brand in Product class 2 as well. In this product class, the colours of yellow and blue were mentioned as resembling an authentic brand for sore throat called Strepsils and candy-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 is yellow, 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 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 not know, colorant, which means they are not effective

Voluntary/ typicality Table II. Theme of involuntary and voluntary

and Vicks represents a strong brand. An interesting nding was that the comments on these resemblances were usually positive. When informants were asked for additional motivations, 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 perceived as typical for some product classes. However, comments of the following type were also noted: Strepsils have yellow packages, however, it seems that they contain [. . .] I dont know, colorant, which means they arent effective. Colour of package (A) ) attention through resemblance ) ingredient (A) ) quality (effectiveness) (C). An interesting nding concerns the notion of deviation of colours and typicality, which are highlighted in our enriched framework. Deviation was commented on as being an issue of manipulation, although, deviating colours were perceived in a positive manner as well. This supports our framework according to which deviation not only attracts involuntary attention, but is also sought for in some purchases. Typicality was emphasised, 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 would attract attention through resemblance, which further reinforced the meaning of quality (effectiveness) in accordance with our theoretical framework. We also detected that resemblance through package colour reinforced the perception of trustworthiness of the product. Theme of aesthetic experience based on attractiveness. The second theme that both emerged from data and was elaborated in the literature review was the aesthetic attraction of package colours. The function of aesthetics relates to visual attractiveness and personal preferences for specic colours. In contrast to the previous theme, the aesthetic value of colours appeared to have an impact on preferences (Table III). This conceptual theme of aesthetics emerged, rst and foremost, when informants stated that their preference for a specic package was based on its attractiveness, i.e. they had a personal preference for a specic colour. Often the informants commented on the visual appearance of colours without being able to give any further motivations, which would expose the meanings conveyed by colours. The comments that appeared were 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 s [. . .] 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 the appearance is affecting Red is a too strong colour for medicine Fit The neutral taste ts the colour of red Green ts menthol Blue ts better medicine against headache Yellow does not t medicine against headache and painkillers The red rst, it ts best medicine for pain The colour ts me because I am a woman

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Table III. Theme of aesthetic experience

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being related to cognitive aspect of emotion. It is essential to point out that attractiveness relates to arousal aspects of emotions (Abbott et al., 2009; Bloch, 1995), which our method did not cover. Still, we emphasise the interaction between colour aesthetics and product type, 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 such verb as t. This means a sort of congruence or suitability with the colour. This aesthetic function of colours appeared, rst of all, when informants stated that a specic colour ts or does not t another feature dened for the study, e.g. taste. This connection was detected particularly for Product class 2. Among the comments noted were: The neutral taste ts the colour of red and Green ts menthol. Second, the aesthetic function was noted in comments linking colour to the product class in question. Thus, the suitability of a colour in a product class elicited comments: Blue is better suited for a medicine against headache. In accordance with our framework the aesthetic experience related to tness of colour and product interaction enabled further motivations, such as product quality and trustworthiness. The following chain appeared: colour of package (A) ) t (A) ) trustworthiness (C). Hereby, we detected a clear link between aesthetic experience and colour communication. Theme of communication of quality and brand identity. The third theme from the conceptual framework that also emerged from data was colours as a means of communication. The product meanings conveyed by colours had an impact on the ranking of the packages. Basically, the communicative function appeared in statements such as: This colour means [. . .] and I associate this colour with [. . .]. This theme appeared on both attribute and consequence levels (Table IV). The theme of communication emerged, rst and foremost, when informants stated that their preference for a specic 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 to associate 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 efcient When I have a headache; I want to have medicines that cure it immediately Red 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 and cures 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 feel good in your throat

Table IV. Theme of communication

by colours. This function was apparent in such statements as: Blue means menthol. These comments concerned Product class 2. Interestingly, package colours of both authentic and hypothetical brands inuenced 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 with herbs. These comments were mainly for Product class 2, although some were made for Product 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, these consequences were related to the product, not the informant. Several consumption-related consequences of package colours were detected in both product classes. We have further interpreted that these consequences appeared to be of two types; namely, direct and indirect. Direct consequences are explained as functional benets of consuming the core product, namely, the quality (including effectiveness) and trustworthiness of the product. These are examined rst, followed by the consequences that are indirectly related to consuming the product. The latter are related to the product indirectly 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 is linked 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 also expressed as Blue is perhaps more efcient. The comments imply that colours convey meanings about the efciency of the product. As it appeared, some colours were perceived as more effective than others. A second consequence is linked to the trustworthiness of the product. Trustworthiness was based on such comments as: Blue seems somehow trustworthy. The comments suggest that colours convey meanings about whether or not one can rely on and trust the product, e.g. whether there is a fear of side effects. These consequences were in particular linked to the product class in question. 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 meanings related to informants associations with physiological sensations. In other words, colours conveyed meanings regarding the pain and the cure that were linked either to the product in question or to another product. Colours were found to be associated with pain and cure, for instance, by the following comments: If you have a headache and want to have something that relieves the pain and cures it, then you do not want to have something 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 nding is that for Product class 1, red was expressed to convey meanings of pain both in a negative and a positive sense. In Product class 2, colours associated with pain were not perceived positively at all. On the contrary, only colours that conveyed meanings about curing the illness 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).

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The previous discussion suggests that colours conveyed meanings about the product at different levels. First, colours communicated meanings on the attribute level, indicating something about the core product itself, such as the taste and ingredients of the product. Second, colours were found to communicate consumption-related consequences, i.e. consequences linked to benets of using the product. Dened as direct consequences we detected meanings of quality and trustworthiness and dened as indirect consequences the data revealed meanings related to bodily imagery, such as cure and pain. Conclusions and discussion The evidence of our exploratory study is in line with past research pointing out three functions of package colours, i.e. attention, aesthetic experience, and communication. The focus here was to examine consumers product-specic colour meanings, and the evidence offers particularly insights into the meanings associated with the package colour-product type interface. Table V summarises the ndings and shows the multitude of functions played by colours. The rst colour function is that of attracting consumers attention, particularly at the point of purchase (Schoormans and Robben, 1997). The qualitative data of our study supported the signicance of this function. Hence, the informants stressed that particularly vivid colours, such as the warm colours red and yellow attract attention in accordance 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 essential for this function. This nding was consistent in both product types. This indicates foremost involuntary colour attention, i.e. attention, which is primarily a physiological response (Kahneman, 1973). Kahneman (1973) denes also voluntary attention, which means 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 studied colours to authentic brand colours, which means that the colours of those brands have been stored in memories. However, colours were also related to product type. This means that the informants linked the colours of the authentic brands to the expected colours of the product class. Therefore, instead of deviation, particularly colour typicality is related to 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 is related to product type, such as candy (Mundell, 1993; Walsh et al., 1990) previous studies 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 received preferential responses for both product types. Our study involved two different, but related product types, and hence, an issue for further studies would be linking colour preferences 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 of communication. To our knowledge, product-specic colour meanings in marketing research have received attention mainly in food studies, where food colours have been found to communicate product taste and avour, for example (Garber et al., 2000b; Koch

Painkillers product class 1 Involuntary Yellow Red

Sore throat medicine product class 2 Involuntary Yellow Red

Attention

Voluntary Green

Aesthetics

Voluntary Yellow Blue Yellow Red Blue

Communication

Yellow Red Blue Green Attribute-level meanings Green: ingredients

Consequence-level meanings Red: quality, quality (effectiveness), bodily imagery (pain, cure) Blue: quality, quality (effectiveness), bodily imagery (cure) Green: trustworthiness, bodily imagery (cure)

Attribute-level meanings Yellow: taste Red: taste Blue: taste Green: ingredients, taste Consequence-level meanings Yellow: quality, cure Red: quality, quality (effectiveness), bodily imagery (pain) Blue: quality, trustworthiness, quality (effectiveness), bodily imagery (cure) Green: quality, bodily imagery (cure)

Consumers product-specic colour meanings

Table V. Colour meanings across two product types

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and Koch, 2003). Our study suggests that also package colours evoke expectations about the product, i.e. colours serve as cues of the product experience. The evidence shows the role of colours as a means of communication since dissimilar meanings were conveyed by different colours across the two different, but related product types. We also identied different meanings by applying the means-end chain approach, i.e. meanings on attribute and consequence levels. Based on the evidence we present, we suggest that colour communication is a multilevel function that should receive attention in scholarly studies. Hence, in addition to brand and product quality our empirical study detected that 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 interaction serve as a multifunction from attracting involuntary and voluntary attention to creating aesthetic experience to delivering communication. It also suggests that package colour serve as a function of aesthetic experience related not only to attractiveness, but also to colour t. Moreover, the framework shows that colour communication is related to the context, and a relationship exists between package colour meanings and the product type. Accordingly, the framework is enriched with product- and consumption-related meanings evoked by colours. Implications and limitations The ndings of the study have several implications. First of all, colour is a design element that must be carefully considered when launching a new brand. In the case of involuntary attention, the use of dissimilar colours attracts attention to the brand. This may be preferred by companies when the product is being launched, as particularly variety-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 colour deviation as means of voluntary attention, i.e. for brand search. However, similar colours that are found within a product class generally may enhance the acceptance of the brand
Interaction between Yellow Red Blue Green Deviation +/typicality Involuntary attention Painkillers sore throat medicines

Deviation /typicality + Voluntary attention

Figure 3. The enriched framework

Aesthetic experience based on attractiveness and color fit

Communication of taste, ingredients, quality, trustworthiness, and bodily imagery

as a member of that particular product class. Practitioners may consider a resemblance to the colours of the leading brand as our evidence suggests that in some purchases typicality or similarity is found to mean trustworthiness. However, typicality may also result in the consumer ignoring the product package in question, as the consumer may have difculties in distinguishing between various brands (Heath, 1999). For example, Miller and Kahn (2005) demonstrated that such deviating colour names as moody blue and Florida red created more positive product experiences than typical, descriptive colour 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 of colours may create confusion for a while, as the preferred brand is not paid attention to and hence, recognized. However, radical redesign may also be made as a strategic decision, if the 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 for practitioners. In essence, the study shows that colours have an impact on consumers regardless if the choice is a rst purchase, a re-buy or habitual situation. The functions of brand 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 by other design elements. There is some empirical evidence from past research pertaining to 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 attracting more attention are also perceived to contain a greater volume of a product than same-sized packages that attract less attention. The second example concerns the material feature of package design. Krishna and Morrin (2008) demonstrated that the rmness of a cup (rm vs imsy) affected consumers taste evaluations of the water that was drunk from the cup. It was clear that our informants had colour-brand information stored in memory. Hence, an interesting nding concerning the impact of brand colour was that it seems to be related not only to product- and/or consumption-related meanings, but also to sensory information as well. In other words, spontaneous comments not only concerned the impact of other design elements, but also authentic brands, which were connected to colour and further to taste. Although the issue is out of scope of our study, the chain of colour-brand-taste could be detected. This suggests that the symbolic environment that the consumers store in memory includes various cues in which the brand name is nested. An essential nding and a conclusion to be drawn from our study is that product packages were evaluated positively (i.e. quality, trustworthiness) when their various package design elements consistently communicated coherent meanings. This is in line with the study by Orth and Makewitz (2008) who make a strong case for a holistic perspective on package design. Thus, no single element alone creates desired consumer responses (Miyazaki et al., 2005). Instead, the design elements together create desired impressions and inuence consumers behaviour, including the functions of attracting their attention, evoking aesthetic responses and creating meanings. Hence, starting from understanding the meanings conveyed by single design elements, an understanding of the meanings conveyed by the appearance could increase the understanding of the holistic package communication.

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Overall, the qualitative research design including the applied method seemed to be applicable for generating insights into the nature of package colours and capture the range of colour meanings. Still, the study involves limitations. When it concerns attention and aesthetic appeal, it must be emphasised that the research method used in our study in fact only imply that package colours have the physiological ability to attract involuntary attention and evoke aesthetic experiences. Hence, package colours as means of visual involuntary attention at the point of purchase deserve further investigation using more proper methods, such as eye tracking methods, for example. Eye tracking in addition to qualitative techniques could be used to evaluate the use and function of colours in various types of purchase scenarios, such as rst purchase, re-buy and habitual choices. A rst purchase situation does not exclude the existence of brand knowledge due to the fact that consumers 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 additional interesting avenue for future research could be to examine the link between advertisements and brand colour knowledge or brand colour knowledge through brand use at parental home, for example. Future research could also look at package colours by extending the sample, types of products, geographical area, and colours. The data in our study represent viewpoints from a small group of individuals only, i.e. 18 informants were involved in the study. This approach is acceptable, given that the study is exploratory (McKechnie and Tynan, 2006; Reppel et al., 2006). However, in order to be able to make generalisations future studies should involve larger samples. In our study, the informants were undergraduate students that varied in sex (nine men and nine women) and to some extent also in age (19-30). However, the informants were not contrasted, and therefore future studies could also involve a heterogeneous sample that would be diverse regarding psychographic variables. In terms of product type, examining colour meanings in other sets of products, such as daily consumer goods could be an area of interest. Although past research contends that colour is a universal issue, it is also equated as a culturally bound phenomenon. Hence, an additional suggestion for future studies is devoting effort to the understanding of the product-specic colour meanings related to different cultural backgrounds. Focusing on colour combinations may also provide essential understanding of the product-specic colour-meanings.
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About the authors Hannele Kauppinen-Raisanen has a PhD from Department of Marketing, Hanken School of Economics. Her main research interest pertains particularly to areas of non-verbal marketing communication and consumer behaviour. She is also involved with research addressing cross-cultural issues, self-care consumers, and food experiences. She has published in journals such as Journal of Customer Behavior, Journal of Macromarketing, and Management Research News. She also regularly presents papers at various conferences, for example, organized by European Marketing Academy (EMAC) and other associations. Hannele Kauppinen-Raisanen is the corresponding author and can be contacted at: hannele.kauppinen-raisanen@pp.inet. Harri T. Luomala is a Research Professor investigating consumer behavior at the Department of Marketing, University of Vaasa, Finland. His main research interest focuses on the interrelationships between values, emotions, motives, and taste perceptions in food consumption and on consumer-oriented food product development. He is also involved with research addressing cross-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 Consumer Behavior, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, Qualitative Market Research, Appetite, British Food Journal, Journal of Food Products Marketing, and Journal of Customer Behavior. He also regularly presents papers at conferences organized by Association for Consumer Research, EMAC, Academy of Marketing Science, and other associations.

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