How Google’s opaque packaging resulted in 3.1 million fewer calories consumed over 7 weeks

Abstract

In 2012, Google noticed that its employees ate too much of the free candy offered in its offices, and the company feared that this would hinder efforts to keep employees healthy and happy.1 It developed Project M&M to address these concerns, hoping to improve employee well-being by moving unhealthy snacks out of plain sight and instead displaying healthy snacks. 

By implementing physical design changes, Google was able to nudge its employees to consume fewer calories.1 Specifically, 3.1 million fewer calories were consumed over the course of seven weeks in its New York office. This calorie decrease was hoped to be associated with happier and healthier employees.

WANT TO WORK TOGETHER ON A RELATED PROBLEM?

Effective interventions start with a nuanced understanding of how decisions are made. Our mission is to help large organizations be better and do better, using behavioral science.

Learn about what we do

Sources

  1. Kang, C. (2013, September 1). Google crunches data on munching in the office. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/google-crunches-data-on-munching-in-office/2013/09/01/3902b444-0e83-11e3-85b6-d27422650fd5_story.html
  2. Hendy, H. M. (2012). Which comes first in food-mood relationships, foods or moods? Appetite, 58(2), 771-775.
  3. White, B. A., Horwatch, C. C., & Conner, T. S. (2013). Many apples a day keep the blues away – Daily experiences of negative and positive affect and food consumption in young adults. British Journal of Health Psychology, 18(4), 782-798.
  4. Atkins, L., & Michie, S. (2013). Changing eating behaviour: What can we learn from behavioural science? Nutrition Bulletin, 38(1), 30-35.
  5. Flanagan, A. E., & Tanner, J. C. (2016). A framework for evaluating behavior change in international development operations (IEG Working Paper 2016/No. 2). Independent Evaluation Group. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/25872/110890-WP-PUBLIC.pdf?sequence=1
  6. Castelo, N., Hardy, E., House, J., Mazar, N., Tsai, C., & Zhao, M. (2015). Moving citizens online: Using salience & message framing to motivate behavior change. Behavioral Science & Policy, 1(2), 57–68. https://doi.org/10.1353/bsp.2015.0018

About us

We are the leading applied research & innovation consultancy

Our insights are leveraged by the most ambitious organizations

Image

I was blown away with their application and translation of behavioral science into practice. They took a very complex ecosystem and created a series of interventions using an innovative mix of the latest research and creative client co-creation. I was so impressed at the final product they created, which was hugely comprehensive despite the large scope of the client being of the world's most far-reaching and best known consumer brands. I'm excited to see what we can create together in the future.

Heather McKee

BEHAVIORAL SCIENTIST

GLOBAL COFFEEHOUSE CHAIN PROJECT

OUR CLIENT SUCCESS

$0M

Annual Revenue Increase

By launching a behavioral science practice at the core of the organization, we helped one of the largest insurers in North America realize $30M increase in annual revenue.

0%

Increase in Monthly Users

By redesigning North America's first national digital platform for mental health, we achieved a 52% lift in monthly users and an 83% improvement on clinical assessment.

0%

Reduction In Design Time

By designing a new process and getting buy-in from the C-Suite team, we helped one of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world reduce software design time by 75%.

0%

Reduction in Client Drop-Off

By implementing targeted nudges based on proactive interventions, we reduced drop-off rates for 450,000 clients belonging to USA's oldest debt consolidation organizations by 46%

Notes illustration

Eager to learn about how behavioral science can help your organization?