See, Taste, Smell, Touch and Hear: Blending the food package design into a five sense experience

Food consumption is a multisensory experience, meaning that people judge food with all five senses, as studies increasingly show. A 2011 study called "Influence of Package Design on the Dynamics of Multisensory and Emotional Experience" by N.J. Schifferstein, Anna Fenko, Pieter M.A. Desmet, David Labbe and Nathalie Martin confirmed that people's emotions change throughout the four major stages of consumption (buying, opening, cooking and eating).

Here are results of the study, which reveal how the senses of sight, taste, smell, touch and hearing determine people's perception of the products. 

Seeing the Package and Contents

The first contact that the consumer has with the package is seeing it in the store, although they may have also seen it in advertising. From viewing the package, people form an initial expectation of the taste based on the what they read as the ingredients and see as the image of the food on the package. Sight is also a factor in determining how to open the package and seeing what's in it. During the cooking stage the consumer considers the degree to which the food is appetizing by analyzing color, ingredients and thickness. When the food is ready to eat, people expect the food to be appetizing based on its appearance, which they expect to match the image on the package.

Taste: From Imagination to Eating

At the buying stage consumers imagine what the food tastes like. Their expectation of taste starts to become a factor when they open the package. As they cook the food, they imagine the taste based on the smell. At this point they may taste the food to make sure they like it. Taste becomes a major determination of future purchasing once they eat the meal. 

How Smell Affects Taste

As with taste, people imagine the smell of the food at the purchasing stage. Once they open the package their first impression of taste and quality is based on smell. They further evaluate the smell during the cooking stage. If they still like the smell by the eating stage, they will probably enjoy the taste as well.

Touching the Package and Eating the Food

Consumers like to feel a package before they buy it. They may try to feel the ingredients as well. They continue to feel the package as they open it. During the cooking stage attention shifts to the feel of the food, as the consumer judges it based on product thickness. After stirring the food, they decide how it feels in their mouth. At this point, temperature can affect their impressions. 

Hearing the Package, Ingredients and Product Name

The sound of the package and its contents both play a role in people's perceptions at the buying stage, as does the the sound of the product name. Sound continues to affect their impressions when they tear the package open. Hearing air released from the package is a signal that the food is fresh. At the cooking stage people listen to hear when the water or product is boiling. When they eat the food, part of the audio effect is what the food sounds like when it falls back into the bowl. 

Conclusion

Tests show that people often give high ratings for taste while they are in the store, based on mental imagery from viewing the package. While pre-existing attitudes and beliefs play a role in initial perception of the food, ratings tend to rise once they interact with the food. The limited study of 87 consumers provides more evidence that people's perception and emotions about food evolve throughout the consumption process. Taste and smell seem to have the most impact in determining whether or not the consumer will purchase the food again, while the senses of sight, touch and hearing play more subtle roles.