Graphic Media Management

Writing Pieces

Introduction

The final project for my Graphic Media Management class was to write a paper and design a magazine layout for the paper. I chose to combine two of my favorite things, candy and art, to create this informative and interesting piece of work.

CANDY & ART

United States and Asia // A study done by Medical News Today confirms “East Asians are more likely to pay attention to the context and relationships in a picture than are Westerners, who more often notice physical features or groupings of similar subjects. Westerners were more attentive to central, or dominant, objects, while East Asians paid more attention to the background or scene”.

In Figure 2, you can see a selection of Japanese candy. Overall, their graphics, logo, and color are much more elaborate. Japanese candy wrappers are meant to tell a story and express their own culture. On the other hand, Americans take a much simpler approach with wrapper design.

Figure 2 | Assortment of Japanese candy

United States and Europe // The packaging of candy bars between United States and Europe are similar but have slight differences.

The main difference between candy wrappers between United States and Europe is the use of ingredient-illustrations. Europeans value ingredient-transparency; the thought of knowing what exactly is in the package since candy bar names typically have little to no associations to the ingredients inside the bar. They prefer to know the ingredients before opening the package. On the contrary, Americans value the element of surprise.

For example in Figure 3, we see the difference in design between the candy bars. The European Reese’s Nutrageous and Snickers emphasize the contents inside the package by revealing a picture of the bar. On the other hand, the American candy bars take the simpler design, dedicating it solely to the logo.

Figure 3 | Top: American Reese’s NutRageous and Snickers
Bottom: European Reese’s NutRageous and Snickers

Currently however, there is a steadily growing trend towards incorporating ingredients on the front of wrappers. The wave of health-conscious consumers has driven the movement towards making ingredients more salient. Manufacturers have taken this into consideration and have started to make changes to candy wrapper designs to accommodate this phenomenon. Figure 4 depicts M&M’s change in design since its beginnings.

Figure 3 | M&M’s through the years

Conclusion

Nostalgic thoughts always come to mind when eating candy bars. They are a staple of our childhood and continue to impact our society. Consumers often feel a personal connection with particular candy bars because of the brand and personality that they convey. Due to marketing initiatives and design strategies of their packages, candy companies have cultivated strong followers and have built great brand equity with their products. The most important aspect of a brand is trustworthiness. Consumers will consider the quality and consistency of the brand in order to trust their products. Candy powerhouses like Hershey’s, Nestlè, and Mars have dominated and capitalized on these tactics.

After analyzing the design aspects of candy wrappers, one can see that the perception of a candy’s quality and other characteristics are built into the wrapper itself. Similar to the way people use first impressions and outer appearances to judge others, candy wrappers present people with the “personalities” of candies. Upon initial view of the wrapper, consumers judge the candy inside and make purchasing decisions based on their impressions.

Candy bars are ubiquitous - they’re everywhere! Everyday millions of candy bars are purchased, 70% of which are impulse purchases. People go into grocery stores looking to buy toiletry and come out with a candy bar in their hand.

Why? Consumer behavior towards candy bars plays with the psyche, design, and marketing of the treat. People regard this indulgence as a precious surprise, a gift for everyday achievements.

History and Cultural Impacts on the Candy Bar

The packaging is a main feature of the candy bar. When it comes to designing the package of the candy bar, material is usually first considered. Each property of the substrate is measured: functionality, cost, durability, and printability.

In the early 1800s, candies were individually mixed and rolled. In 1854, the first packaged box of Whitman’s chocolate debuted, starting the advent of boxed chocolates. In 1868, Richard Cadbury pioneered the first Valentine’s Day box of chocolates, spurring the idea of giving chocolates as gifts. Wrappers for chocolate bars started in 1840 when tinfoil was used for preserving the candy bar. A century later, Cadbury started the practice of layering which created a whole new realm of design for candy bars. He wrapped the bar in tin foil then covered it with a paper sleeve. This allowed the company to have more flexibility in creating a personality for their candy. In the 1890s, Milton Hershey made the first nickel bar, which revolutionized the way Americans ate chocolate. He made the first mass-produced, affordable chocolate! Hershey advertised on billboards, newspapers, and even tackled door-to-door sales efforts to make this phenomenon impact every American. His hard work laid the groundwork for the future of candy bar sales and started the boom of the packaged consumables revolution.

Early in the 1900s was the start of the Industrial Revolution. Henry Ford pioneered the automation and was the first to mass-produce a product using machinery and an assembly line. Process automation was a big contributor to the mass production of candy bars. This segment not only reduced the length of time needed to make candy bars but also lowered the cost of production.

Later in 1927, DuPont, an American chemical company, introduced moisture-proof cellophane to candy manufacturers. It was popular because it kept the candy fresh with a barrier for odors. The cellophane was also transparent, which gave consumers a more salient view of the product, adding to the brand of the candy itself.

During the 40s, America entered turmoil with World War II. However, Hershey took advantage of this situation and sold more chocolate than ever before. He marketed his chocolate as a non- perishable tasty bar, which was high in calories. The calories provided energy and alertness for the soldiers and thus the chocolate was a great hit. Additionally, the chocolate bars were cheap and compact in size which made them ideal for traveling.

Through the years, automation became more streamlined. The popularity of candy bars skyrocketed and now there is a plethora of flavors to choose from. Tinfoil layering was the dominant means of packaging for candy bars from 1920-2000. We may still see this tin foil layering technique today since it is effective in protecting the candy bar as well as providing a flexible face for wrapper designers. However, due to the current constant push for lower packaging costs, many new substrates have been developed and tested. Candy manufacturers want durable, design- flexible, low cost, and standard substrates that can be used to package their other products as well. Therefore, plastic film packaging came at top. Most candy wrappers today use this form of wrapper substrate.

Design

Most candy bars have features that are similar across brands: a distinct logo, relative size, and bright colors.

Distinct Logo // All candy bars have their own unique logo. Logos symbolize the candy and provide the brand personality for the candy bar. It conveys the qualities and trademark that the company has built through the years. Many manufacturers have kept the same logo since its first design. For example (See Figure 1), Hershey’s has kept its logo consistent through the years.

A candy logo should also be recognizable and legible in a sea of logos. Hershey’s is a representative of a distinctive logo. It is bold, stark, plain, and to-the-point. Its square writing also suggests that the product is straightforward. It is, in fact, a plain solid chocolate bar.

Another great example is Cadbury’s Crème Eggs logo. This novelty confection is very popular with children especially during Easter. The crème egg logo is written in rounded lower-case letters, which appeals to children. It adds a pleasant contrast to Cadbury’s script logo. Additionally, the way that crème is spelled pays homage to the British origins of the candy. The logo speaks well to its target market and gives it a fun personality.

Relative Size // The physical size of the candy bar is also a significant part of the candy bar. Most candy bars are rectangular in shape and around five to six inches long. The size suits the whole idea of a candy “bar” and it’s “grab and go” nature. The size of the bar should cater to its audience. In Snickers’ case, their five inch chocolate bars are the perfect size for hungry, busy people. On the other hand, Cadbury’s Crème Eggs caters to the smaller appetites of children.

Bright Colors // People often underestimate the power of color and the role it plays on our decision-making. It has profound effects on how we feel mentally and physically. Analyzing the colors of the most popular candy bars, brown, orange, red, yellow are among the top for color choices.

Brown evokes a sense of warmth, reliability and support. People often associate brown with nature. Brown is also the color of chocolate. Many chocolate bars use these colors to make the contents of the candy salient to the consumer. Popular bars, such as Twix, Snickers, Milky Way and Hershey’s, use brown as their main color pallet for candy design.

Red is used in candy bars as a means of highlighting important attributes. Since it is the color the human eye pays most attention to, candy bars use this color to emphasize their name. For example, Twix uses red to emphasize their name against a brown and white background. Furthermore, Snickers uses red to box-out their name to stress their brand.

Yellow represents happiness, joy and idealism. It symbolizes friendship and, it gives off a less threatening tone than the color red. Mr. Goodbar and Butterfingers use yellow as their main color scheme. Mr. Goodbar primarily chose the color yellow to emphasize the peanuts as one of their main ingredients. Butterfinger uses yellow to symbolize the joy that their candy bar exudes. Their slogan of “Nobody better lay a finger on my Butterfinger” further emphasizes the hedonic nature that Butterfinger represents.

Orange is a combination of yellow and red, and thus is considered to express energy like red. It is luminous and is great for attention grabbing. It also symbolizes balance, warmth, and vibrancy. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups use orange as their dominant color for packaging. The color choice also markets Reese’s as an energetic and warm candy.

Blue is also a prominent color used in designing candy wrappers. Almond Joy and Nestlè’s Crunch use blue on their candy wrappers. Blue is peaceful and calming. Many times it causes the opposite reaction as red. Almond Joy has the association with the beach and tropical islands, so blue is a fitting color to highlight the peaceful image.

Color is a low-effort source of information. From our peripheral cues, about 60-90% of judgments can be made about something based on its colors. The effects of the psychology of color are significant. The contrasting concepts underlying each color can serve as a powerful designing tool. Not only do colors contrast brands from competitors, but they also influence moods and feelings and moreover, attitude towards purchase.

Graphic Flavor

Most candy bars use the same ingredients but in different combinations. It can be assumed that the most successful brands in each flavor category have an imitation in their candy wrapper design. Consumers are significantly influenced by color psychologically and will associate certain flavors with certain colors.

In 1937, Nestlè came out with Crunch, using blue for its wrapper color palette. Since then, this blue has become a signature of the candy bar and is associated with its crisped rice ingredient. Now, other crisped rice candies have some sort of blue on their packaging, mimicking that of Nestlè’s Crunch. M&M’s crisped rice branch uses a bright bluepackaging to be analogous to that of Nestlè’s Crunch, making it prominent to consumers that the M&M’s have a crisped rice ingredient. Similarly, since Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups invention in the 1920s, its use of orange has become conventional. M&M’s peanut butter M&M’s use an orange packaging to highlight their peanut butter ingredient.

Differences Across Cultures

Globalization has taken over many industries, including candy bars. They are being distributed to a multicultural audience, but simple adjustments to the design of the packaging will serve as great tools to cater to different cultures. People process visual information in different ways.

Bibliography

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“Five Cent War.” The Candy Wrapper Museum. Web. 05 May 2010. <http://www.candywrappermuseum.com/fivecentwar.html>.

"The Food Timeline: History Notes-candy." Food Timeline: Food History & Historic Recipes. Web. 01 May 2010. <http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodcandy.html>.

"How Does Culture Affect What We Focus On?" Affective Design. Web. 04 May 2010. <http://www.affectivedesign.org/archives/133>.

"The Importance of Logo." Marketing Business Strategies | Marketing Deviant. Web. 03 May 2010. <http://marketingdeviant.com/the-importance-of-logo/>.

Kimmerle, Beth. Candy: the Sweet History. Portland, OR: Collectors, 2003. Print.

"Milton S. Hershey: The Man & His Legacy." The Hershey Company. Web. 3 May 2010. <http://www.hersheys.com/discover/milton/milton.asp>.

"Top 10 Candy Bar Logos | Logo Design Blog." Logo Design by Logo Design Works. Web. 01 May 2010. <http://www.logodesignworks.com/blog/top-10-candy-bar-logos>.

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