TY - JOUR
T1 - Smiling faces on food packages can increase adults' purchase likelihood for children
AU - Williamson, Sara
AU - Szocs, Courtney
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors gratefully acknowledge funding provided by The Piccadilly Inc. Business Partnership Professorship.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021/10/1
Y1 - 2021/10/1
N2 - Manufacturers often include smiling faces on food packages, especially those targeted towards children. Prior research suggests that anthropomorphized images in general, and smiling faces in particular, are an effective marketing tool that encourage food choice and consumption among children. However, it is not clear how adult consumers, who often make food purchases for children, respond to smiling faces on packaging when making decisions for a child recipient. The results of four experiments show that food packages with (vs. without) smiling faces activate child-related thoughts which leads to expectations of making a child happy with the food and ultimately greater purchase likelihood for the child recipient. The serial effects of smiling faces on purchase likelihood through child-related thoughts and the expectations of a child's emotional reaction are robust to an array of products with more and less appealing flavors. Further, a smile line in the absence of eyes does not catalyze the same serial mechanism. Overall, our findings suggest that marketers should exercise caution when utilizing smiling faces on food packages, especially when packages contain unhealthy foods; and, consumers should be aware of the effects that this seemingly innocent packaging feature can have on their product responses.
AB - Manufacturers often include smiling faces on food packages, especially those targeted towards children. Prior research suggests that anthropomorphized images in general, and smiling faces in particular, are an effective marketing tool that encourage food choice and consumption among children. However, it is not clear how adult consumers, who often make food purchases for children, respond to smiling faces on packaging when making decisions for a child recipient. The results of four experiments show that food packages with (vs. without) smiling faces activate child-related thoughts which leads to expectations of making a child happy with the food and ultimately greater purchase likelihood for the child recipient. The serial effects of smiling faces on purchase likelihood through child-related thoughts and the expectations of a child's emotional reaction are robust to an array of products with more and less appealing flavors. Further, a smile line in the absence of eyes does not catalyze the same serial mechanism. Overall, our findings suggest that marketers should exercise caution when utilizing smiling faces on food packages, especially when packages contain unhealthy foods; and, consumers should be aware of the effects that this seemingly innocent packaging feature can have on their product responses.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.appet.2021.105301
DO - 10.1016/j.appet.2021.105301
M3 - Article
C2 - 33984403
AN - SCOPUS:85106279345
SN - 0195-6663
VL - 165
JO - Appetite
JF - Appetite
M1 - 105301
ER -