3 reasons why you need to do a virtual shelf test

Have you ever wondered why certain products catch your eye on store shelves while others fade into the background? 

With over 70% of purchase decisions being made at the point of sale, product placement can make or break a customer’s split second decision to buy. 

In this article, I'll give you three reasons to conduct a shelf test — plus practical tips to apply your findings across your advertising (and even your merchandising) teams.

In advertising, a shelf test is a market research method used to evaluate how products are perceived by consumers when displayed on shelves in a simulated or actual retail environment. It involves studying factors like product visibility, positioning, packaging, and consumer behavior to optimize sales and marketing strategies.

Essentially, shelf tests are like having a crystal ball for your products. It’s a powerful method to gather insights from consumers before committing to full-scale production.

Let’s get into some of the benefits of conducting shelf tests. 

3 reasons to do shelf testing

There are a number of benefits to conducting shelf tests, but here’s some of the most prominent benefits: 

1. Optimize product placement

When it comes to retail, the placement of products can make all the difference. Have you ever noticed how some items seem to fly off the shelves while others are left unnoticed? Shelf tests are the key to understanding and improving this dynamic. 

By setting up mock retail displays and observing shopper behavior, you can gain valuable insights into what catches their eye and influences their purchasing decisions. 

These insights empower you to be able to strategically position products where they are most likely to be seen and considered for purchase. This can be anything from adjusting shelf height, aisle location or proximity to complementary items.

2. Improve packaging design

Packaging is like the first impression of a product—it matters. With shelf tests, you can test different packaging designs to see which ones really catch consumers' eyes and influence their buying decisions. 

And by presenting variations of packaging in simulated retail environments, you can gauge which designs stand out, how to communicate brand identity effectively and enhance its perceived value. All of this can help you tailor the packaging to resonate more with your target audience, making your products more appealing and memorable on the crowded shelves.

3. Gain real-time customer feedback

Shelf tests aren't just about products; they're about understanding what makes consumers tick. By analyzing data from these tests, you can gain valuable insight into consumer preferences, competitor positioning and overall market trends. 

This information allows you to fine-tune your marketing strategies, tailor promotions and craft messages that resonate with your brand’s target audience. From optimizing pricing strategies to developing targeted campaigns, shelf tests provide actionable data to drive better marketing decisions and ultimately boost sales and brand engagement.

Here are five key metrics typically measured during a shelf test:

1. Visual attention: Tracks where consumers look and which products attract the most attention on the shelf, providing insights into effective product placement and visibility.

2. Purchase intent: Assesses participants' likelihood of purchasing specific products based on their presentation and positioning on the shelf, helping optimize product assortment and placement.

3. Packaging impact: Evaluates the effectiveness of packaging designs, colors, and messaging in capturing consumer interest and influencing purchase decisions.

4. Product interaction: Observes how consumers physically interact with products on the shelf, such as picking up items or examining packaging, to understand engagement levels.

5. Competitive analysis: Compares the performance of products against competitors' offerings on the same shelf, identifying strengths and opportunities for improving market positioning and competitiveness.

These key metrics provide actionable insights into consumer behavior, product performance and competitive landscape within retail environments. By focusing on these critical aspects during a shelf test, businesses can make informed decisions to enhance product visibility, optimize packaging strategies, and drive sales in competitive retail settings.

There are several types of shelf tests used for consumer market research. Here are the four most common: 

1. Shelf heatmaps 

Also known as eye tracking shelf tests, this type of shelf test involves using heat map technology to monitor and analyze where shoppers look and how their gaze moves across product displays. By understanding visual attention patterns, businesses can optimize product placement and packaging to capture consumers' interest effectively.

2. Mock store shelf tests 

In a mock store setting, researchers create a simulated retail environment where participants interact with product displays similar to those in real stores. This allows businesses to gather feedback on product visibility, placement, and overall appeal in a controlled setting before launching into actual retail spaces.

3. Virtual shelf tests 

With advancements in technology, virtual shelf tests simulate retail environments digitally. Participants view virtual shelves through computer screens or VR headsets and interact with products as they would in a physical store. Virtual shelf tests offer cost-effective and flexible alternatives for conducting retail research while providing realistic insights into consumer behavior and preferences.

4. Real-world store tests 

Conducted in actual retail locations, real-world store tests involve monitoring and analyzing consumer behavior in live environments. Researchers observe how shoppers interact with products on shelves, capturing valuable data on purchasing decisions, product visibility, and competitive positioning. Real-world store tests offer direct insights into consumer behavior and provide actionable feedback for improving retail strategies.

These types of shelf tests offer different approaches to studying consumer behavior and optimizing product placement strategies in retail settings, ultimately guiding businesses toward more effective marketing and sales tactics.

Now let’s walk through how to perform a shelf test. 

1. Define your objectives 

Start by clearly defining the objectives of the shelf test, referring to the metrics section above. Determine what specific insights you want to gather—whether it's optimizing product placement, testing packaging designs, or understanding consumer preferences.

2. Select your test environment

Choose whether to conduct the test in a physical store, a simulated mock store, or a virtual environment. Consider factors like accessibility, cost, and the ability to control variables.

💡 Zappi tip: Virtual shelf tests provide an easier way to get direct consumer feedback, from wherever you are, so you don’t need to physically go to a store to set up your test.

3. Design your shelf layout (physically or virtually)

Create a realistic shelf layout that mimics a typical retail setting. Decide on the number of shelves, shelf height, spacing between products, and overall arrangement based on your research objectives.

4. Choose the products 

Select the products you want to test and prepare them for display. Ensure that packaging variations or product placements align with your research goals.

5. Recruit participants

Identify your target audience and recruit participants who represent your typical consumers. Ensure the sample size is sufficient for meaningful analysis.

6. Execute the shelf test

Introduce participants to the test environment and provide instructions. Allow participants to freely browse the shelves and interact with the products. Then use observational tools such as cameras, eye-tracking devices or surveys to capture data on consumer behavior, attention and preferences.

7. Gather the test data 

Collect quantitative and qualitative data during the test. Capture metrics like time spent viewing each product, gaze patterns, product selections, and feedback from participants.

8. Analyze the results

Analyze the collected data to derive meaningful insights. Identify trends, patterns, and correlations related to product visibility, consumer engagement, and purchasing decisions.

9. Draw conclusions

Based on the analysis, draw conclusions regarding the effectiveness of product placement, packaging design, and overall shelf strategy. Determine actionable recommendations for optimizing product visibility and appeal.

10. Implement findings 

Translate the insights into actionable strategies for improving product placement, packaging, and marketing tactics. Implement changes based on the test results to enhance the performance of products in retail settings.

11. Iterate and refine 

Continuously refine and iterate your shelf testing approach based on learnings from previous tests. Regularly assess and adapt shelf strategies to meet evolving consumer preferences and market trends.

By following this process, brands can discover a valuable tool for optimizing retail strategies, improving consumer engagement and driving product sales in competitive markets. 

Shelf test alternatives

If you’re looking to run consumer research on your products in more ways than how consumers will react to them solely on the shelf — perhaps you’d like to focus more on flavor options or product names — there are other consumer market research tools out there that can help, such as Zappi’s concept testing and idea screening solutions.  

Both of these are virtual, platform-based solutions that will help you identify the ideas or concepts with the highest potential and shape them to maximize commercial success. 

You can learn more about how brands like PepsiCo’s Wotsits Giants snack benefitted from concept testing with Zappi to create their hit snack.

There are several criteria to keep top-of-mind when starting your search. Here, we’ll share recommendations for the three main types of shelf testing: virtual shelf tests, real-world shelf tests and standalone shelf heatmaps. 

1. Zappi Pack Research

If you’re looking to run platform-based research to find out how to create packaging that stands out on shelf, works for your brand and makes shoppers choose your product in a split second, Zappi offers a great solution in its Pack Research tool.  

Zappi’s agile web-based platform allows you to run and store all of your consumer insights research in one place and can get you results in less than 24 hours. The most popular features include the ability to: 

• Quickly identify winning designs: Identify the best designs early on, with a holistic assessment of all aspects that drive in-market success of your packaging.

• Optimize for success with rich diagnostics: Get rich consumer feedback and clear guidance on what to improve and why with a 360 assessment of the package and comprehensive diagnostics.

• Get a real read on shelf performance: Evaluate your packaging against other competitive packages and get an on-shelf read on spontaneous and aided brand recall and purchase likelihood of yours and competitive products. 

On top of that, Zappi is the only agile market research platform that lets you easily access and assess all your research efforts. This means you can quickly figure out what's working well for you and what isn't, allowing you to grow smarter with each project you tackle.

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2. Decision Insight by Telus

Telus’ Decision Insight specializes in monitoring and analyzing retail data to help brands optimize their pricing, promotions and product strategies — including real world shelf tests.

Their in-store testing services offer a hands-on approach to understanding shopper behavior and optimizing retail strategies. By simulating real-world shopping experiences and gathering actionable data, they help brands make informed decisions that drive product success and enhance consumer engagement in competitive retail environments. 

3. iMotions

iMotions is a software platform that integrates eye tracking technology into shelf tests and other research methodologies to provide insights into consumer behavior and decision-making in retail environments. 

With iMotions, researchers use advanced eye tracking technology to understand how consumers interact with products on shelves in real-time. By equipping participants with eye tracking devices, iMotions captures data on what catches people's attention and where their gaze lingers while browsing products. Researchers can customize experiments to test different product setups and packaging designs, analyzing how long participants look at specific items and where their eyes go.

This comprehensive approach helps businesses make informed decisions about product placement, packaging and marketing strategies based on detailed insights from eye tracking analysis. 

Picture a snack company gearing up to introduce a new line of products in grocery stores. To nail down the best product placement and packaging, they decide to run a virtual shelf test using cutting-edge simulation tech.

What happens: 

In this virtual test, participants—representing the target audience—explore a digital grocery aisle displaying various snack options. Using their computer or VR headset, they check out different products, inspect packaging designs, and make simulated purchase decisions.

Throughout the test, researchers track participants' eye movements and behavior to see which snacks catch their eye the most. They're analyzing everything from shelf positioning to packaging colors and messaging effectiveness.

Why it works: 

Armed with insights from the virtual shelf test, the snack company can fine-tune their product designs, optimize shelf layouts and plan effective marketing strategies for the real-world launch. This approach harnesses consumer behavior data to drive smart decisions and ensure a successful rollout in actual retail settings.

This is a great general example of how a virtual shelf test can provide actionable insights into consumer preferences, guiding businesses toward optimal product presentation and in-market performance.

Shelf testing is key to understanding how consumers interact with products in stores, from what grabs shoppers' attention, to where products should be placed, to which design elements work best and more. 

By conducting shelf tests, you can empower your businesses to boost engagement, enhance brand perception and drive sales, helping you stay ahead in the retail landscape.