Chocolates are the best and most gifted item throughout the year. The consumption of chocolates increases substantially during the holiday season, such as Christmas or Valentine’s. Though it might be hard to imagine, some of the chocolates taste terrible for the way they are marketed. Each one of us has had an experience at least once in our lifetime when the taste of the chocolate just didn’t live up to the hype created in its name.
Big brand manufacturers of chocolates put in a lot of effort to make their customers believe that their chocolate is premium and high quality. It is sad that sometimes it is not true, and we feel cheated and deceived. Here are some of the ways which the big brands use to trick us into buying crappy chocolates.
Things to Look for while Buying Chocolates
● Country of Origin
It is a common practice in the industry for the big brands to mention the country of origin on the packaging of the chocolate. When only a couple of craft chocolates had their origin country on the package, almost every single chocolate product has the country of origin mentioned on the packet.
What is sad and deceiving is that it might not be true. Peru, Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador are printed on all the chocolates nowadays. Even the most commercial chocolate companies adopt this strategy of deceiving us into believing that the chocolate was made in the origin country and hence must be of high quality.
While the packaging might say that it is a Belgian Chocolate, the country of origin may not always be an indication of the quality of the chocolate, and most of the times exist to trick you into believing that they are of extremely high quality.
● Pictures of Cacao Tree and Farmers
Showing pictures of the cacao trees or farmers while marketing chocolates is a fairly common marketing technique used by many big brands. This is done to trick you into believing that their chocolate bars are authentic and premium.
Companies try to trick the consumers into believing that the entire process is transparent and the seeds were extracted straight from the farm, and the chocolate does not contain any artificial flavors in it.
Images like these have an instant positive impact on the brain of the customer, making them feel more attracted towards the product and provide them with yet another reason to purchase it. These images have nothing to do with the quality of the chocolate that is inside the package.
● “Handmade”, “Artisanal”, “Handcrafted”
These are just some of the hot words used by big brands to make their product seem unique and attractive. They want to create a false image in the minds of their customers that the product is unique and not mass manufactured in a factory.
These are the easiest to see through lies that are told by the company to market the chocolates. It is nearly impossible for any company that has their distribution channels in more than 100 countries to actually handcraft chocolates.
Tricking the customer into believing that the chocolate bar in front of them at the supermarket is special is the go-to strategy in the current world when it comes to the marketing of chocolate products.
● Simple Ingredients
Many big brands have adopted this technique of mentioning minimum ingredients on the packaging of the chocolate. Consumers have become more vigilant about what they put into their bodies, and companies have reacted by reducing the list of ingredients mentioned on the chocolate.
Claims like “no preservatives”, “less sugar” and “palm-oil free” are just tricks to convince the consumers into believing the chocolate to be healthy. Even if the ingredients only contain cacao and sugar, it is still not clear that the ingredients used are of high quality or not.
These claims on simpler ingredients and being preservative free are mostly just tricks to make the customer feel safer while buying these chocolates and do not always stay true.
● Certifications
Consumers are tricked into believing that their product has added values. By mentioning certifications like Organic, Vegan or Fair-Trade, these big brands aim at making the customers believe that their product is high quality.
The biggest mistake here is that certifications are not associated with the quality of the product. Even if the Organic sticker is mentioned on the packaging, it does not certify that the variety of cacao used is premium and will taste nice.
It never hurts to check the list of ingredients to make sure that certifications like Vegan are actually true and not just a sticker.
● Packaging
Packaging plays a substantial role in making the product attractive to consumers. It is the deciding factor that can make a chocolate bar either fly off the shelves at the retail store or rot there with no one batting an eye towards it.
With the number of chocolate manufacturers that exist in the industry, customer acquisition plays a key role. Making your packaging look attractive is a must so that the customer selects your product over any other.
It is already a well-known fact that whatever shines is not always gold. Big Brand Chocolate companies use various tricks to make you buy their chocolates, and though that shining wrapper with the “Organic” sticker might seem appealing before you buy it, THINK TWICE!
Be A Thoughtful Consumer
These were the ways how the major brands of chocolates dupe the customers. Now it becomes your duty to be more aware, notice carefully and get the best chocolates for yourself!