Wine labels: an eye-tracking and pupillometry study

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to investigate how attention to wine labels related to preference by using quantitative measures of gaze and of the diameter of the eye pupil. We assessed whether eye fixations could predict choices and willingness to pay and whether pupil size could index the aesthetic value of wine labels. More specific goals were to identify which elements of a wine label captured attention the most and to assess whether an authentic label would be preferred by naïve consumers over other alternative labels, also designed by the same studio but excluded from the market. Design/methodology/approach Infrared eye-tracking was used to measure the amount of time spent on a specific label among four that were simultaneously shown on the computer screen. Participants also made explicit decisions about preferred labels and provided price estimates. Pupillometry was used for labels shown in isolation to obtain a physiological index of their arousing effect and aesthetic appeal. Eye fixations provided an index of what was selected by attention, whereas changes in the pupillary diameter indexed how intensively attention was focused on an item. Findings A strong positive relationship was found between the dwelling of gaze over a specific label and the degree in which a wine bottle was preferred and (virtually) chosen. The pictorial elements of the labels were fixated the most, whereas verbal information was looked at the least. Attractiveness scores of each bottle collected with one independent group of observers were able to predict the willingness to pay in another group. Moreover, pupil size changed non-linearly in relation to the hedonic values of the wine labels, indicating greater responses to the most as well as least attractive labels (i.e. for the most arousing labels). Research limitations/implications A limitation of the present experiments was that only choices and behavior of wine “novices” were probed; hence, the present findings might not be generalized to other segments (e.g. wine connoisseurs). Moreover, the present study could not specify which visual properties of a label affect preference, aesthetic value and estimates of price, as the study of these effects would require a large number and variety of label stimuli. Practical implications Eye monitoring methods could assist marketing studies of preferences and decision-making. Both wine label designers and wine producers could benefit from eye-tracking methods to improve label selection and optimize the design process of a wine label. Originality/value Although both eye-tracking and pupillometry have been used to the investigate aesthetic preferences for at least the past 50 years, the measurement of pupil diameter and eye movements to study attributes of (authentic) wine labels and their effectiveness is entirely novel. The present study confirms that measures based on eye-tracking combined to explicit choices or ratings provide complementary types of market-relevant information. Both methods provide objective, quantitative, information of the effect of the labels on consumers that is independent but predictive of actual choices and verbally reported preferences. Moreover, they appear to index different processes, pupillometry being a proxy of aesthetic value and gaze a reliable index of choice. Thus, the present findings can be of value to the academic researcher as well as industry and design practitioners.

Filtered beauty in Oslo and Tokyo: A spatial frequency analysis of facial attractiveness

“…Hence, we monitored eye fixations during a "beauty contest" task. In each trial, we showed side by side a pair of faces and requested participants to decide which of the two individuals looked more attractive, by pressing one of two keys, since previous eye-tracking studies of aesthetic decisions or consumers' preferences have shown a tight relation between gaze onto a particular item and preference [59][60][61]. Comparing oculomotor behavior could reveal sex differences in attending to female versus male faces [62], which again might turn out to be different for different SF bands.…”

Understanding the role of visual attention on wines’ purchase intention: an eye-tracking study

“…On the contrary, even when having awards in the labelwhich serve as a proxy of product quality -producers must draw attention to the label. Here pictorial elements are crucial to increase attractiveness (Laeng, Suegami & Aminihajibashi, 2016). Such effectiveness is also relevant for retailers, who may add increased benefits to the brand by showing the wine in a specific environment rather than alone, with little or no context involving it.…”

“…These conclusions add fresh insights and different perspectives to the existing literature, in which there is evidence that products with higher saliency, in this case, wine labels with awards, attract more rapidly consumers' attention but do not retain it for long periods and the opposite is true for bottles without awards (Jaeger et al, 2018;Vuori et al, 2004), confirming the existence of negative relationship between perceived quality and attention. Regardless, the role of visual attention on purchase intention cannot be disregarded, since it plays a major role on influencing consumers' preferences, choices and purchase acts (Laeng et al, 2016;Pieters and Warlop, 1999;Shimojo et al, 2003), which is strengthen in the presence of awards.…”

“…Visual attention -an organismic response to stimuli -plays a major role in the decision-making process, being usually focused on cues that elicit pleasure and arousal (Shimojo et al, 2003;Guerreiro et al, 2015;Bloch, 1995;Lange, Issanchou and Combris, 2000). Likewise, research shows that products' that are looked longer, are more likely of being chosen and purchased (Pieters and Warlop, 1999;Laeng et al, 2016). However, studies on image quality and visual attention have shown that quality perceptions are reflected on saccade duration, which tend to be longer in the presence of lower image quality (Vuori, Olkkonen, Pölönen, Siren and Häkkinen, 2004).…”

From firm’s brand identity to cluster’s brand identity: a web-based analysis of Tuscan wineries

“…The wine sector is overcrowded with brands, and differentiation is increasingly difficult (Bruwer, 2004;Johnson and Bruwer, 2007;Brochado et al, 2015). While the wine literature has examined the relationship between brand and geographical indication (Schamel, 2006;Durrieu, 2008;Teuber, 2011), packaging/label (Rundh, 2005;Boudreaux and Palmer, 2007;Laeng et al, 2016) and wine tourism (Lockshin and Spawton, 2001;Bruwer and Lesschaeve, 2012) in affecting brand perceptions offline, the wineries' online presence has mostly been ignored. Although some authors have highlighted a particular interest of wine literature in consumer behavior research studies (Lockshin and Corsi, 2012), the firm's perspective on this topic has not been sufficiently investigated.…”