Pack In 3D Online Portrayals of Packages

Shoppers associate package size with value. A bigger box means you’re getting more for your money, so, in general, people are willing to pay a greater amount. Shoppers’ judgments of package sizes seen online depend on the number of dimensions in the image. Researchers at Kanagawa University and Toyo Gakuen University find that a 3D image—where the container is shown at an angle and multiple faces are visible—is perceived as both larger and heavier than is a 2D image—where only the front face is visible.
     It is the portrayal of depth in the 3D image which accounts for the effect. That’s important to understand because the visual image of the package online is rarely the same size as the actual package. When we add the depth dimension to whatever is perceived in the 2D view, the 3D comes across as larger and heavier.
     Researchers at Erasmus University and INSEAD found that shoppers estimate changes in the volume of a product container by roughly adding percentage changes in the height, width, and length. But the accurate way to calculate the change in volume is to multiply the percentage changes in the three dimensions. That’s more complicated to do, so shoppers take the mental shortcut.
     As a result, participants in a study failed to notice a 24% downsizing of the package when one dimension was increased to mask the decrease in overall volume. Astoundingly, this distorted perception held even when the study participants were instructed to closely attend to the package size and weighed the container.
     For circumstances where a marketer is shrinking the package size—such as to maintain per-item profit while keeping the same selling price as raw material costs climb—using a 3D image in ads and other product presentations might ease shopper upset. This tactic could be combined with attention to other factors which influence size perception, such as color, shape, and surroundings.
     The 3D effect also applies when we want to portray a package as smaller and lighter. Containers for milk, coffee, and chocolate products were used in these studies showing that 3D portrayals increase the amount a shopper is willing to pay. But when it comes to consumer electronics, miniaturization is often valued for portability and sometimes as an indicator of a product upgrade. There are also shoppers who prefer smaller, lighter items for ease of transport, storage, and consumption.

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Image at top of post based on photo by Point Normal from Unsplash