In marketing, a blind taste test is often used as a tool for companies to compare their

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

to another brand. For example, the

Pepsi Challenge The Pepsi Challenge is an ongoing marketing promotion run by PepsiCo since 1975. It is also the name of a cross country ski race at Giant's Ridge Ski Area in Biwabik, Minnesota, an event sponsored by Pepsi. Method The challenge originally took th ...

is a famous taste test that has been run by

Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi was ...

since 1975. Additionally, taste tests are sometimes used as a tool by companies to develop their brand or new products. Blind taste tests are ideal for goods such as food or

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

that are consumed directly. Researchers use blind taste tests to obtain information about customers' perceptions and preferences on the goods. Blind taste test can be used to: * Track views on a product over time * assess changes or improvements made to a product * gauge reactions to a new product Slow Food Maple Syrup Tasting (2410527939)

Slow Food Maple Syrup Tasting (2410527939)

Overview

Blind taste tests require a "blind testing" meaning the people taking the blind taste test are unaware of the identity of the brand being tested, or if done at home this can be as simple as a blindfold over the person taking the test. This means that any bias, preconceived ideas about a particular brand or food, is eliminated. The people taking the test will also be unaware of any changes done to the product. In the famous Pepsi Challenge, people took a sip from two different unlabelled glasses, not knowing which was Coke and which was Pepsi.

Types of blind taste tests

There are two types of blind taste tests: *In a

single blind In a blind or blinded experiment, information which may influence the participants of the experiment is withheld until after the experiment is complete. Good blinding can reduce or eliminate experimental biases that arise from a participants' expec ...

taste test, experimenters know information about the participants, but the participants know nothing about the experimenters or the product they are testing. The aforementioned Pepsi Challenge is an example of a single blind test. *In a

double blind In a blind or blinded experiment, information which may influence the participants of the experiment is withheld until after the experiment is complete. Good blinding can reduce or eliminate experimental biases that arise from a participants' expec ...

taste test, the experimenters know nothing about the participants, and the participants know nothing about the experimenters or the product they are testing.

In popular culture

Taste tests are commonly employed by the

public television Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

show ''

America's Test Kitchen ''America's Test Kitchen'' (originally ''America's Test Kitchen from Cook's Illustrated Magazine'') is a half-hour long cooking show broadcast by PBS and Create. Originally hosted by Christopher Kimball, the program currently is co-hosted by Jul ...

'' and its spin-off series ''

Cook's Country ''Cook's Country'' is an American half-hour television cooking show on the PBS public broadcasting channel. The show is based on ''Cook's Country'' magazine (published by the same company as ''Cook's Illustrated''). Cast The structure of ''C ...

'', typically administered by

Jack Bishop Jack Bishop is an American celebrity chef and food author whose specialty is Italian cuisine. He is the chief creative officer of ''America's Test Kitchen'' on PBS. Personal life Bishop studied cooking in Florence, Italy. He graduated from Mou ...

References

Marketing techniques Scientific method {{Marketing-stub