Pharmaceutical Packaging Color and Drug Expectancy

International audiencePharmaceutical markets are expanding considerably due to the aging population, higher development costs and also direct-to-consumer advertising which entails more demands from consumers and prescriptions from physicians. Pharmaceutical packaging as a visual communication tool is promised to a mounting importance, because of growing blister packaging, safety standards upgrading, expansion of OTC drugs and developing television advertising. This study examines the impact of packaging color on consumers' expectancies towards the drug and seeks determining if prototypical color codes exist for drug categories. Results show a significant influence of color and Darkness on perceived drug potency. Gender differences are discussed