Many recent researches focused on packaging elements as two separate groups: visual and informative elements. This study goes deeper into the group of visual elements on food packaging (i.e. strawberry chocolate packaging) in order to investigate their ability to attract attention. The elements tested in the study were: typeface, graphics, pattern and colour. The study included 90 people who participated by filling out an online questionnaire. The participants’ task was to choose, among packaging designs with the manipulated visual elements, the one they preferred. According to the results, typeface did not affect participants’ preferences. On the contrary, graphics, patterns and colours had a significant impact on the choices. Participants preferred photography over illustration, concrete pattern over abstract and vivid colours over dull. These results can be used as guidelines in marketing and design.

Packaging appearance is important in evoking consumer impressions. No study has yet explored how two prominent packaging attributes, shape and material, affect the consumers’ impressions and their expectations in the case of coffee products. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate whether the packaging shape has an impact on the taste intensity expected by the consumer, and whether packaging materials influence the expected coffee quality. In an online experiment, 115 participants evaluated different packaging samples. They rated the expected taste intensity for packaging samples that varied in shape complexity (i.e., cylindrical, rounded-angular, hexagonal and multifaceted). They also rated the expected coffee quality for packaging samples that varied in material (i.e., plastic, aluminium, glass and metal). The results showed that the packaging with a higher degree of shape complexity was associated with a higher taste intensity. Furthermore, we found a negative effect of glass on the expectation of product quality. The findings could be applied in product packaging design which aims to match the expected and actual characteristics of the product.

Packaging can play a significant role in a purchasing decision. Packaging material is one of the most important components of packaging design. It can create an initial impression that may generate an opinion regarding the product's...

This study investigated the effectiveness of new point-of-interest (POI) pictograms on tourist maps within the Croatian and Slovenian contexts, focusing on enhancing the tourist experience in urban settings for individuals with specific needs. Despite the widespread use of tourist maps, there is a lack of research evaluating POI pictograms tailored to the needs of tourists with specific dietary, health-related, and sustainable clothing purchases. To fill this gap, we designed six new pictograms in three domains: healthcare, food, and apparel. The pictograms were evaluated using an online questionnaire involving 138 participants with a diverse range of ages and educational backgrounds. The results on comprehension and subjective assessments of the pictograms’ qualities revealed insights into the subtle cultural and lifestyle influences on pictogram perception. The findings provide a basis for considering the potential of new pictogram designs in improving navigational experiences with geospatial information and encouraging sustainable tourist behaviors.

Past research suggests that images can be a useful tool in attracting people’s attention and improving public health communication. This is especially important for the effective transmission of health-related messages to the youth, who should be warned about risks of alcohol and tobacco use. This study explores the application of eye-tracking methodology to investigate the influence of monochromatic illustrations on youths’ visual attention to digital ads, with a particular emphasis on those presenting harmful effects of alcohol and tobacco consumption. Four digital ads were designed for the purpose of the experiment. Two ad topics (alcohol versus tobacco) and two ad contents (text-only versus text with a monochromatic illustration) were used as variables in the digital ad design. Analyses of eye fixations and viewing time revealed that more students noticed the digital ads with the illustration than the text-only ads. Furthermore, we found that the ads with illustrations had a longer viewing time and a higher number of fixations, regardless of the ad topic. The findings highlight the effectiveness of eye-tracking technology in examining the role of illustrations in digital ads, focusing on a better perception of addiction prevention campaigns whose message is targeted primarily toward young people.