The gap between package size and the product inside

We’ve been reading this disclaimer on cereal boxes since we were kids: “Some settling of contents may have occurred during shipping.” Well now, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is asking the Food and Drug Administration—along with state attorneys general—to investigate the difference between package size and the product inside.

Read this story from Media Post for more details.

Implications: When everything seemed “plentiful” for most folks (circa 2002-2006), we were less likely to pay attention to these kinds of things. But now, CSPI is likely to get a sympathetic ear with consumers and a response from the FDA. Between shrinking packages (see this Elm Street blog posting from February, 2009) and volumes that seem to be dramatically smaller than a package implies, consumers are a bit less likely to tolerate a presentation that sets the wrong expectation of what’s inside.

You don't have to be a CPG company to sour consumers by setting the wrong expectations. Does your company live up to the atmosphere implied by the menu? The values promised by your advertising? The selection implied by your massive storefront? Beware that consumers arrive in your place of business with a set of expectations. Are you positioned to delight, or disappoint? (And should your response be to adjust the experience... or the expectation?)

[My thanks to JoAnne Naganawa for suggesting this story.]

Mike Anderson