Synergon Study: Messages on cigarettes’ packs have no impact

Cristina Blanaru Marketing, Studies

Synergon Consulting, Romanian research company specialized in neuromarketing, released the results of a study related to the effects images on cigarettes packs have on smoker and people that gave up smoking. The research was made as a social responsibility initiative by Synergon Consulting and Medix Co, in 2010-2011.

In examining study’s subjects there was used a MRI scanner to detect brain’s reaction on cigarettes packages. The research had 2 stages and was made at Medix Co imagistics center from Victor Babes Hospital

We made this study starting from smokers reactions to avoid the messages on cigarettes packs: 30% of young smokers are covering the image when they buy smokes. In the same time, according to a study made by A.T. Kearney, during the 3 years of economical crisis, Romanians got more vicious, spending almost half of their income on food, smokes and alcohol (…)

Stelian Marian

Managing Director Synergon Consulting

Starting from here, we wanted to see directly how the brain reacts, using neuromarketing techniques. We got, this way, data not only about what the consumer is thinking consciently, but also how he reacts to a product in an inconscient way

Dragos Cirneci

Senior Consultant Synergon Consulting

The 1st part of research analyzed the reaction at verbal messages from smokers or people that quitted smoking for at least a year. None of the 2 categories had any emotional brain reaction, as their brain didn’t processed the warning message. During the 2nd stage, researches analyzed brain’s reaction while exposed at a combination of images and verbal messages, obtaining more powerful emotional response to ex-smokers and a reaction of guilt and conflict at smokers.

The study on smokes packaging leaded to the conclusion that the most powerful answers are generated when the subjects are exposed to very shocking images (lungs and throat tumors), reason why the study makers concluded that, to have impact, used messages must be accompanied by very explicit images.

Synergon Consulting is a management consultancy that uses neuroscience innovative researches in a series of domains and is the 1st Romanian company that made on Romanian market a study using neuromarketing techniques.