We all know that the candy aisles have been pushed to the front of the stores for weeks now. While I can appreciate how good some of it tastes (Almond Joy hater), it crossed my mind that these little candy wrappers are undoubtedly mini branding moments.
I still eat Skittles despite the fact that more than 15 of those little guys make me sick. I taste the rainbow alight. I’m convinced they figured out how to double how much sugar those things fill.
Color & Texture → Appeal - You’ll see a lot of chocolate candies with brown wrappers, so we’re setting expectation there.
Font Size / Hierarchy → Comprehension - This is very important. Big, prominent typography that’s stylized is important, but it’s even more important for newer candies to allow space for exploration (looking at Trolli here).
Typeface Personality → Emotion - So much emotion! It’s part of what makes this so fun.
Brand Consistency → Trust - I love me a Mr Goodbar.
I love the thought experiment of what draws you towards a particular candy/brand. I feel like it’s all nostalgia for me. Candy as an adult is 90% doing the job of bringing back memories of being a kid.
We recently did some work with a granola client testing their package designs, and of course the most brightly colored packages saw highest engagement and interest from grocery shoppers, but did spike some impressions of concern about the product’s ingredients/healthiness.
I would assume that candy would be the same, especially when trying to grab the attention of a younger audience demographic, but with perhaps less concern about ingredients (almost all candy is assumed to be bad for you).
Always been a huge Sour Patch Kids fan myself, but I’ve had a hankering for Mike and Ikes lately
Marketing is probably what makes the most sense- and in turn, trust has the biggest impact.
Imagine hearing that M&Ms made everyone sick?
This is relevant:
Nestle magic ball
Safety concerns & withdrawal: In 1997, due to choking hazards, the product was withdrawn from the market due to the small toys inside the chocolate shell.
Butterfinger BB’s
Dirty fingers: They were discontinued because of their low melting point. It caused the chocolate coating to melt quickly and created a messy eating experience.
I’ve spent some time observing candy purchase behavior in-store. For one particular project we were looking particularly at how people purchased chocolate bars.
What we were told up front by the chocolate brand was that these were impulse purchases, where people would just pick them up on impulse as they were heading for the till.
But this is not what we saw .. people would spend minutes deliberating in front of the aisle. Our assumption was because if they were rewarding themselves with an unhealthy treat once that day they wanted to make sure it was a good one / the right one…
When it comes to Halloween candy I would assume it’s different (because the situation is different). They are not buying for their own consumption, but to give away to someone else who is going to eat it. So what would make it practical, maybe safe, and add to the experience the kids want?
Observing candy purchase behavior sounds like the coolest undercover gig ever! haha. Totally agree with you on the aspect of “buying it to give to someone else” - a consideration that totally tweaks the intention of the purchase.
Even outside of holidays, especially here in the US.. those chocolate bar aisles are riddled with everything imaginable. It really would be an interesting “experiment,” if you will, to see the thought process of folks. What a cool opportunity.
@nathaliesmith I was working (at the time) with insights and strategy for a brand design agency. the project was to redesign the packaging for a type of chocolate brand.
Other times (working for the same agency) I spent time with people stocking beer cans (do you know they have sore muscles on their thumbs from turning all the cans in the aisles so that their logo / brand faces out).
And once I went to study how people purchase nuts. Where I coincidentally stopped a customer to ask her questions just as she showed (stole) a handful of nuts in her mouth …
Getting out in the real world observing people is really fun.
Haha, out in the LinkedIn world, you get someone trying to explain how dreaming about carmels in the chocolate factory is like the best way to sell your next product pitch.
Not with @Helge …here you get real stories that turn into mini-MBA case studies that feel effortless, and you get bonus reading material. Lol.
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups for LIFE 
