Trust, Packaging and Deception
There’s something about coffee at the ranch: It’s simple. Comforting. Reliable.
For years, my go-to has been Community Coffee. Nothing fancy, just good coffee for an old-fashioned pot on the stove. Twelve ounces. About ten bucks.
A bag I can trust.
Recently, though, I’ve been on a “let’s try new stuff” kick. Enter Bulletproof Coffee. The packaging caught my eye — bold claims, bright design. “Enhanced coffee” with Lion’s Mane and B Vitamins. A new-to-me ingredient called coffeberry. A Rainforest Alliance sticker. Even the promise that it was “tested for toxins.” All of it whispered responsible choice.
So I grabbed it. It wasn’t cheap — fourteen bucks — but I was curious. And to be fair, it was good. I liked it.
But here’s where the story turns.
When I opened the bag, it felt lighter than it should. That nagging feeling led me to line it up next to Community’s package. That’s when I noticed: Community is 12 oz. Bulletproof is 10 oz.
The bags look nearly identical in size, but Bulleproof’s was slightly bigger. So maybe I was expecting more. But instead, Bulletproof quietly shaved off two ounces. And those two ounces matter.
Let’s run the numbers:
∙ Community → $10 for 12 oz = $13.33 per pound
∙ Bulletproof → $14 for 10 oz = $22.40 per pound
If Bulletproof sold 12 oz like Community, it would cost nearly $16.80. That’s a 68% markup. (My parents were math professors, so they’d be proud of me for these high tech calculations! lol)
Here’s the rub: I didn’t feel deceived by the taste. I felt deceived by the packaging.
And once trust is cracked, it’s hard to put back together.
Of course, I know about shrinkflation. We’ve all seen it. Bags of ice that were 10 lbs are now 7 lbs. Cereal boxes with more air than flakes. Chip bags puffed up like pillows with half the chips inside. Slightly elevated prices, smaller product.
But this hit me differently. Maybe because coffee is a ritual. Maybe because the packaging felt like a trick.
It left me wondering:
∙ Would I have noticed if I hadn’t bought both bags at the same time?
∙ Is 12 oz really the “standard”… or just my baseline because that’s what I’ve always bought?
∙ And most importantly, does this kind of thing erode brand trust, even if the product itself is good?
We buy on trust. We stay loyal because of trust. And in business — whether you’re selling coffee, consulting or software — once customers feel deceived, it’s tough to win them back.
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