The color of a medicine sends a message. In this way, it has a placebo effect on the patient. “The use of warm and saturated colors increases the power perceived by the patient, while pastel-colored medications are perceived as less active,” Bernard Roullet, neuromarketing researcher, explained to the newspaper 20 Minutes in 2015.
Warm color or cold color
Color and medication have also been the subject of some studies. Blue and its calming properties are thus found in a work from 1978. This shade would promote falling asleep and longer sleep, compared to patients who would use orange capsules.
But there is an evocative counter-example with an emblematic drug intended for the treatment of erectile dysfunction… For Viagra, this time it is a purely marketing choice. Objective: to stand out.
Today, the fashion seems to be for sobriety and therefore for white. On the other hand, color adorns the boxes more.
“An influence on consumer attitudes”
Because “the color and brightness of the packaging can have an influence on consumer attitudes. Packaging in warm tones, i.e. red and brown, is perceived as containing a medicine with a more powerful active ingredient than packaging in cold tones, blue and green,” argues Coline Lermercier in a pharmacy thesis produced. on the subject. Which also highlights “the lack of studies on colors and their influence on consumer choices”.
A feeling of security for patients
According to capsule manufacturer LGA, “the choice of color is not just an aesthetic question. It is crucial for security reasons above all. The objective is to make it easier for the patient to recognize the capsule and to reinforce compliance with the doctor’s prescriptions. The splitting of colors therefore makes it possible to provide more information on the dosage of an active ingredient. Ultimately, it will be easier for the patient to avoid confusion when taking medications.”
Source : Lemercier Coline, The use of colors in the marketing of OTC medicines: differentiating role and creation of a brand image, exercise thesis, Limoges, University of Limoges, 2019, LGA.fr
2023-09-30 09:59:04
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