Packaging as a Puissant Marketing Tool within the Breweries; the Case of Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited (GGBL)

Abstract

This research surveyed the opinions of management and non-management staff of GGBL, retailers, and consumers of GGBL’s products on the company’s packaging. Packaging is heavily integrated into our daily lives as we see packages around every item we buy, such as chocolate bars, soaps and drinks. As a matter of fact, consumers’ first exposure or encounter to a product may be its package and the physical attributes of the package can influence the consumer to accept or reject the product. Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited (GGBL), a major manufacturer of alcoholic and non-alcoholic products in Ghana, is noted for designing good quality packages for drinks.  However, there are environmental concerns with the use of glass as a material for packaging the company’s products. Consumers are also not comfortable with the fact that they are required to either deposit cash or submit an empty bottle of same kind before they are allowed to buy any of GGBL’s bottled drinks from retail outlets to their homes.  The study reveals interesting facts upon which recommendations are made to guide manufacturers within the brewing industry.

Key Words: Product Package, Packaging, Packaging Materials, Labeling, Branding