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Proving The Importance
of Shelf Placement

Fresh Cravings is an Arizona-based snacking brand with national success in Walmart in the dips and spreads category. With its hummus product hitting the shelves at Kroger grocery stores nationwide, Fresh Cravings wanted to know if their packaging was getting lost amongst the many brands on the shelf. Through a two-phased research approach which included a shelf set survey and in-person shopalongs, we determined that the placement of the Fresh Craving's hummus would be crucial to their success in Kroger grocery stores.

In this research study, my role included:

  • Moderation and facilitation of shop-along studies

  • Analysis and synthesis of survey responses and data

  • Art direction for packaging based off of key study insights

Craving Clarity

Following success in Walmart stores, Fresh Cravings aimed to expand their hummus products into Kroger grocery stores, but faced a critical question: would their packaging get lost in a new, crowded landscape? We initiated this research study to determine if their current design commanded enough attention on the shelf to compete with established brands and Kroger’s own private label, or if a visual overhaul was necessary to ensure they weren't overlooked by shoppers.

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A Two-Stage Study

Our research was split into two phases:

Shelf Set Survey

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Used to capture brand recognition, recall, and distinctiveness among Kroger hummus brands. 

Shopalong Study

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Meant to identify consumer shopping behavior and packaging perceptions.

What Really Matters to Pet Parents

My strategist and I set out to uncover the emotional tension behind the questions that come with raising pets. In leading our primary research I conducted:

10 In-depth interviews within the span of 2 days

With topics covering:

  • What's the weirdest thing your pet does?
    Where do you go first for pet questions?
    What questions do you ask about your pet?
    How do you feel when you can't get a quick answer?

 

Collecting Insights from Hummus Fans

We asked members of the online forum r/Hummus along with hundreds of other hummus fanatics across the world to respond to our survey. This survey first asked participants to identify which brands stand out to them the most while also asking them to rate how difficult it was to identify the Fresh Cravings brand in the provided image.  

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Moderating Grocery Store Shoppers

Since Fresh Cravings hummus had not hit Kroger shelves yet, we took the liberty of creating our own store shelf.

In this phase of research, I took lead in moderating individual shopalongs, carefully guiding participants through the simulated shopping experience while ensuring that I was not asking leading or pointing questions.M

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Three Fresh Findings

1. The black lids created confusion between
Fresh Cravings and
Kroger Private Select

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83% of survey respondents reported it being somewhat difficult or very difficult to identify Fresh Cravings on the shelf

2. Fresh Cravings was more easily identified when placed at eye-level or lower

The [Fresh Cravings] top design is nice—it’s where the brand name is more noticeable.

"

"

- Shopalong participant

If it was on a mid level [shelf] I would probably have picked it up

"

"

- Shopalong participant

3. Fresh Cravings' lively, flavorful, and approachable visuals drove appeal among shopalong participants

The leaf in the logo adds
to the fresh feel.

"

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- Shopalong participant

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The Next Steps Would Depend on Shelf Placement

We devised two potential paths

Path 1: If the top label is visible

Path 2: The top label is not visible

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Path 1

Lean into the fun flavors and easily recognizable images

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Path 2

Enhancing visibility and readability when at eye-level

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Sometimes it's Okay to Not Have A Final Answer

It's okay if the result of your research does not yield a clear answer. In understanding the investment of time and money that goes into making a decision on packaging, it is always important to make sure that you have enough research to confidently make that decision.

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