This document summarizes consumer insights and trends in the food, retail, health and sustainability industries. Organic sales are outpacing conventional sales as consumers demand transparency and simple ingredients. Healthy lifestyles are driving specialty grocery purchases. Consumers are willing to pay more for values-aligned companies. Rising trends include clean eating, plant-based proteins, and specialty diets. Cultural influences like social media are also shaping food choices, with over half of millennials using sites like Pinterest for food content. Generational differences exist as well, with millennials setting trends and boomers seeking global flavors and health benefits.
4. Rise of the Label Reader
• Simple = unprocessed
• The hottest food claim? No claim – “free
from”
• Real food ingredients
• Nutrient-rich, whole foods
• 1 in 4 people look for:
the shortest ingredient list
minimally processed
ingredients they recognize
5. IngredientTrends in the Media
• “Clean” eating
• Fresh, unprocessed
• Watch out! for Sugar
• Butter is good for you!
• Flexitarianism
• Plant-based protein
• GF, Paleo, specialty diets – not diets
• Ethnic flavors
• Pasture-raised dairy
6. Cultural Influence
• Friends + family
• 84% prefer recommendations from people
they know
• Social consumption
• 1/3 of America use social to find their next
recipe
• Blogs trump cookbooks
• 57 percent of Pinterest is made of food
related content – nearly half of millennial
• Foodstagrammers, camera cuisine
• Food ranks 4th on Pinterest
• Awards + certifications
• Celebrities!
7. ConsumersWantValue +Values
•Nearly 1 out of 2 say they are
willing to pay more when a
company is committed to positive
social and environmental impact
•Consumers are actually now
already doing so with recession
waning, a reverse trend over the
past years
•More than 60% of Millennials
want brands with ethical practices
and social causes
10. Baby Boomers: Aging Adventurously
Insight
• A generation raised on processed food is finding flavor
• They act younger, eat younger, want to live forever
• Well-traveled and bringing those experiences back home
• Spend most on food - eat out more than Millenials
• 1/3 eat organic some or most days
• Fastest growing community on Facebook
Impact
• Global flavors
• Like less heat and spice but still adventurous and like variety
• Health conscious: want foods that help with anti-aging, vitality
and weight control
• Want smaller package sizes
11. Gen X:The Sandwich Generation
Insight
• The divorce, latch-key generation, now focused on family,
friends and neighbors
• They are the most time and money strapped now and haven’t
embraced foodieism as much as these other two demos
• Caught between kids and parents – looking for convenience
• About half prefer organic at least some of the time, 10% said
committed to buying when it's available
• Unlike previous generation, GenX men shop and cook and
unlike next generation still loyal to the supermarket
• Bigtime snackers – six or more times a day
Impact
• Seek family friendly items
• Most likely to be attracted by “meal assembly”
• Seeking easy snacks
12. Millenials:TheYoung &The Hungry
Insight
• Setting food culture trends
• Global
• Health
• Food as entertainment and self-expression
• Not all cook, but those who do consider themselves
experts
• Willing to pay more for ethical practices
• Shopping is social
• 1/3 have purchased food or cooking items after seeing on
Pinterest
• Use mobile to make grocery purchases, check prices, get
coupons, order ahead and gather product info
• Nearly half use social networking sites to find their next
recipe or learn about food trends
• Influenced most by word of mouth recommendations
13. Millenials: DrivingWhat’s Next
• YEMMies:Young Educated Millennial Mothers
• Powerful emerging group; older and higher income
• Even more highly focused on natural and organic than peers
• Want foods that are natural/convenient
• Not as brand loyal
• Demand for flavor and quality
• Packaging as innovation
• Customization, giving them ownership
16. The Driving Force
A great story is true. Not
necessarily because it’s
factual, but because it’s
consistent and authentic.
Consumers are too good at
sniffing out inconsistencies
for a marketer to get away
with a story that’s just
slapped on. –Seth Godin
19. Brand ExperienceAcross Channels
Core idea: Super PlantsTip Sheet
Print and digital ads
Microsite
Materials for media outreach
and events
Facebook content and promotion
21. No “Dead-Ends”
Creating On-Ramps and Bridges inYour Marketing Program
Consumer clicks
on link in
brand’s tweet
Lands on recipe
on brand’s
website
Clicks “share”
button to post
recipe on
Facebook page
Brand comment
directs her to an
online coupon
Consumer
downloads
coupon, follows
link to Pinterest
for more
recipes
Pins favorite
recipes to her
boards
Discovers
background
about
ingredients
And so on…
23. Content Marketing Basics
across multiple channels.
Meet them where they want to connect Make sure there are no “dead-ends”
in an engaging way
Give them something to tell their friends about Create “sharable objects”
to the right people
Understand where our customers spend time online Understand their motivations and mindset
Deliver quality content
Address wants and needs
concerns and barriers
Provide something
of value
Offer a fresh POV
Match or exceed real-life
experiences with the brand
24. Considerations in Planning
Objectives and
Measurement
• Purpose/role
• Personality
• Integration points with other
channels
• Metrics and KPIs
Audience(s)
• Which of our target audiences
are present on this channel?
• Do you need to adjust tone,
frequency, or CTAs to appeal to
them?
Context
• When are they using this
channel
• What are they doing/what are
they looking for from you?
Content and
Conversation
• What content do you have
planned?
• What are the most discussed
topics and FAQs?
• What promotions are coming ?
• What content might perform
well as advertising?
25. The Roles of Each Channel
Purpose Role
Website Content hub Information about products,
usage, and company
E-newsletter Building loyalty, early adoption,
news and information
Broadcast (one-way)
communications, promotions
Advertising Name recognition Brand values, product attributes
Media/ blogger
relations
Brand and product awareness
Credibility
Values storytelling
Brand values, product attributes
Facebook Community building
Customer service
Conversational; ego-driven; it’s
about them, not you
Twitter Connect with influencers
Express values
Support in-market events
Quick, current, breaking news
Pinterest Visual branding Inspiration, brand
Instagram Behind-the-scenes
Engagement
Visual branding
Images that show what’s
happening now; event- and action-
oriented
YouTube Demonstrate usage
Tell brand story
Show and tell; videos that are
entertaining and provide value get
shares and comments
Consider the
unique
purpose,
audience and
role
of each
channel
when
developing
integrated
content.
Owned
Media
Shared Media
Paid
Media
Earned
Media
26. Use Metrics toTell a Story
Channel Example KPIS and Metrics
PR Circulation, Message Penetration, Tone
Podcast Reach, New Listeners/Subscribers, Downloads, Comments, Reviews
Facebook New Fans, Content Virality, Reach, Shares, Unlikes
Twitter RTs, Mentions, New Followers, CTR, Unfollows
E-newsletter New Subscribers, Shares, CTR, Open Rate, Unsubscribes
Pinterest Repins, New Followers, Pins from website, Likes, Individual board
follows/repins
Instagram New Followers, Comments, Likes
YouTube Subscribes, Shares, Views, Likes
27. Signs of Good Integration
How well you’re integrating our content across channels can be measured by analyzing the
following metrics (where applicable) on each channel:
Metric What it tells you How to put it into action
Referral traffic Tracking social referrals to the website will help us understand which
CTAs are most compelling and which users are interested in
deepening their experience with the brand.
Post/pin a link to an online coupon (w/similar CTA and image) on
Facebook,Twitter and Pinterest. Measure referral traffic, time on site
and coupon prints for each social referral source.
Conversions Conversion is a tangible indication of brand loyalty; beyond referrals
and increasing traffic on a secondary channel, are users interested in
what they find on that page/channel?
Drive users to a channel where they can complete an action, e.g.
newsletter subscribers coming from Facebook, coupon downloads
fromTwitter link, recipe downloads or prints from Pinterest, etc.
Newsletter Open
Rate
Newsletter subscriptions indicate an opt-in to the brand. But beyond
this initial action, what subject line (tease or CTA) encourages the
most opens?
Use this to test CTAs and glean consumer insights about the
newsletter audience .What are they clicking on and what actions do
they take after clicking – coupons, recipes, how-to tips, etc.
Unsubscribes,
Unlikes &
Unfollows
Do consumers who sign up, fan and follow the brand and get what
they want or expect from our content/community?
Use this to test content, format and delivery.Watch for times of the
year or pieces of content that lead to an increase or decrease of these
kinds of opt-outs.
Pins from Website Are your web visitors Pinterest users? Do consumers find inspiration
on-site? If so, is it food-related?CSR-related? Etc.
Encourage this activity (consider incentivizing it) and/or create/curate
new web content based on what is being shared most.
#Hashtags The use of hashtags across channels can tell us how different pieces
of the same content package resonate differently on each channel.
Test an #eatlocal content meme once a week, posting images on
Instagram,Twitter and Pinterest. Encourage users to share their own
photos using the hashtag and track engagement by channel.
Companies focused on organic and natural are poised for growth – natural food is growing at rates 8x mainstream
Organic food sales are outpacing conventional, growing more than 10% annually1
Specialty food grew at more than 3x the pace of mainstream foods between 2010-20122
Millennials & Boomers – half the population -- seek health + convenience3
Health & wellness consumers are spending more and drive growth in food & beverage4
Nearly 1 in 2 shoppers agree health and wellness products are “worth spending more on”5
Consumers are looking at:
What’s in it
How it’s made
Who made it
How was it packaged
How are they giving back
Because of the likes of Michale Pollan and Mark Bittman, consumes have become avid label readers and are scrutinizing ingredients and claims.
Consumer attitudes are shifting dramatically. This isn’t about premium it’s about a reflection of their values. They are looking for fresh, simple ingredients.
Big players in the packaged industry from brands like Kraft and Philadelphia Cream Cheese are pushing to develop new products with simple ingredients, no artificial colors, flavors and preservatives.
Meatless Monday – driven by eco, budget, political, health
The ConAgra Foods survey found that 62 percent of consumers appreciate and want to support companies that donate to important social causes.
Millenials & Boomers combined make up half the population
Spend most
Most active in food cultures
Online:
Millennials (86 million Facebook users strong and the largest segment online)
Boomers (56 million, fastest growing segment online)
Experimentation keeps them youthful
- According to Information Resources, Inc. baby boomers spent more than $160 billion on consumer packaged goods this past year.
- Not as health focused as you’d think
product claims, including brain/cognitive health, bone health, skin health, joint health and eye health.”
The 50-64 age group saw the greatest growth in social networking use last year; these Facebook users have an average network of 75 friends
Social boomers are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook
Restaurants, well travelled.
Boomers are more likely to associate food with experiences when it comes to shopping, dining out and eating and make careful choices
They are redefining their lives so that food experiences are meaningful and worthwhile
Being willing to trying new foods and cooking methods is associated with staying young and open-minded
When grocery shopping, they are most likely to stick to one store per trip and still have their favorite brands
50+ year-old users are 28% more likely to click through on social ads than younger demographics
Xers were born between 1964 and 1981. 500 million strong. Many have established careers, families.
April 27, 2012, Prepared Foods’ Daily Update
80% of adults aged 35-44. 41% shop for specialty foods at a supermarket
Generation X is the only group where microwavable meals and simple breakfast foods like cold cereal are reportedly growing
Fast food
6 out of 10 say they eat healthier than their parents.
personal connection is important when it comes to recommendations. According to the survey, Millennials said in-person, word-of-mouth recommendations influenced decisions ranging from food and beverage decisions (68%), vacations (67%) and household products (63%).
Less swaid by claims
1% of adults aged 18-24 shop at natural food stores such as Whole Foods and Trader Joes while 43% food shop at mass merchandisers like Walmart.
Tech-savvy millennials are the first generation to embrace shopping for foods online. 42% said they use their smart phone for grocery shopping (including purchasing, gathering product info, collecting coupons and comparing prices), while 73% of baby boomers do not.
Millennials are driving food culture today and are highly connected online.
It is a legitimate hobby and measuring stick of cool
Their central motivation is to hunt down and enjoy the next most delicious meal before anyone else has heard of it
They are starting supper clubs and food clubs and food blogs
They are more likely to opt for small-batch handcrafted beers and artisanal cheeses than big brands
52% eat out less often than before the recession
Still eat out more often than eat at home
47% cook from scratch to save money
Nearly half shop in supercenters, 8.7% in clubs, 7.3% in mass
86.3% seek the retailer with the lowest prices
15% use apps for this (vs. 4% genpop)
61% use their smartphones to compare prices at the grocery store
Will still splurge though, on a new experience
87% splurge on a nice meal even when money is tight
Spend slightly more on dining out than other generations and eat out more often (3.4 times/week)
40% order something different every time they visit a restaurant
Adventurous eaters: 50% eat global foods and 46% like to layer flavors and customize recipes
Confident cooks: 35% consider themselves to be connoisseurs of gourmet foods
They are more likely than other age groups to love cooking and consider themselves experts in the kitchen (64% vs. 52%)
Look for convenience in dining and shopping. Specifically speed, ease and efficiency.
Want the best deal (saving money is their biggest priority), but spend more on ethically sourced meats and farm-to-table experiences
Are adventurous when it comes to what they eat (“ethnic” and “global” foods are everyday options) and consider themselves to be connoisseurs of gourmet foods (will splurge on a new culinary experience)
Make up 49% of the food-sharing crowd seeking recipes online
Most closely aligned with food movements
30% eat organic foods (compared to 21% of GenXers, 15% of boomers)
Prefer whole foods over processed foods 80% want to know more about how the food is grown
Will spend more on ethically sourced meats and farm-to-table experiences
68% ask friends before selecting a restaurant
Use tablets and smart phones to make grocery purchases, check prices, get coupons, order ahead to save time, and gather product info
Are 3x more likely than other shoppers to rely on info from blogs and social networks
Ask friends what to eat and where to eat out; seek validation for decisions
Influenced to shop online stat - according to a survey by PriceGrabber
Next up are the YEMMies: Young Educated Millennial Mothers
New powerful emerging group predicted to set the trends and tone for spending among all consumers in coming years; older and higher income than rest of peer group
Even more highly focused on natural and organic than Millennials overall
Not brand loyal; wants foods that are natural and convenient
- See more at: http://www.nwsbm.com/newswp/2012/12/food-shopping-habits-of-millennials/#sthash.GpMIpPez.dpuf
Clicks and Cravings: The Impact of Social Technology on the Food Culture, a joint study conducted by MSLGROUP Americas and The Hartman Group, showed nearly one-third of Americans use social networking sites to find their next recipe or learn about food trends. Among millennials (18-32 years old), the number jumps up to 47 percent.
Those opinions are part of a broader Millennial belief that nutritional variety (which includes the freedom to eat even unhealthy food sometimes) is important to health—an idea that is beginning to appear in the general population as well. Many Millennials have days when they let themselves eat anything without guilt—something they call “cheat days,” “total body crash” and in one case “the epic breakfast.”
Millennials also lead the way in paying attention to socially relevant callouts, such as product narratives and product origin stories—something that interests them more than most generations but which is becoming more interesting to the population at large.
Young adults enjoy cooking more than older generations, too, putting them in a vanguard of consumers interested in making meals at home. Home cooks and aspiring cooks are pivotal in a broader movement toward fresh, less processed foods. That interest tends to accompany concerns about GMOs and allergens and affinities for organically and locally grown and manufactured food—all of which interest Millennials more than other generations, but which are catching on everywhere.
Global
62% of u.s. adults who have eaten ethnic foods are confident in their ability to make it, Mintel
66% of parents who eat ethnic say their kids enjoy it
Asian, Russian, fusion
Snacking isn’t just for kids and it’s not a treat – anything can be a snack.
Most snack 2.3 times a day
Most at home
Snacking is an impulse – indulgent – yet more than half say they want a healthy snack – but what do they eat most often? Chips and soda!
Making sure our content is integrated across channels not only increases awareness and reach, it’s also an indicator of loyalty when we see fans visiting multiple channels and going deeper into the brand.
Strong CTAs and “no dead ends” are both critical to ensuring successful content integration.
But first, let’s talk about this idea of chunking your content and creating story packages. These are not easy and take some time to put together but it’s the difference between running an integrated advertising campaign and running an integrated “engagement” campaign. We have a detailed process for creating these but I’ll give you the abbreviated version using this example on the screen:
Choose your main theme or topic. In this case our client Traditional Medicinals was running an ad campaign around the power of plants and we knew we needed to do some work to really explain to media and consumers what this meant. So we created the Super Plants; 8 plants for good health. Each plant had its own personality and powers and associated tea. That was the core idea and the format we chose was a tip sheet, which you can see in the center.
After that content was written we repurposed it into media materials for press mailings and events and blogger outreach. We also used the SuperPlants content on Facebook, a dedicated microsite and digital ad campaign.
The core idea worked across paid, owned and earned media because it was adaptable and provided many on-ramps for the consumer.
The key to telling your brand story across multiple channels is integration. This means thinking through how to tell your story in the best way on each channel, taking your different audiences into consideration and developing your messaging carefully. We’ll talk about how to do that in a few minutes but first here’s an example of an integrated campaign Chobani did recently. They started with their Just Add Good tagline and created a really nice infographic in the upper left, showing how to substitute their yogurt for other common ingredients. They also created recipes demonstrating the substitutions. This content lived on their website and was promoted or syndicated on twitter and Pinterest using the #justaddgood hashtag. Consumers caught on and you can see one Instgrammed their yogurt lid using the hashtag. I don’t know all the details of how they promoted this campaign via paid and earned media but it was hard to miss if you’re a Chobani fan.
So how can you do great stuff like this?
It’s a multi-channel world and the more on ramps you provide, the more opportunities you have to connect.
At Maxwell, we believe in the theory of “no dead ends” where all media channels work together so we can reach consumers no matter what platform, medium or device they’re using. In a perfect scenario your marketing program creates many ways for target audiences to interact with your brand, what we call “on ramps,” and the deeper they go (or the more they click) the higher your chances of gaining a new loyal brand advocate. Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. This consumer saw a tweet form a brand, either because she follows them already, or she saw a promoted tweet, or she saw a friend RT. She clicks over to the recipe on the website and likes it so much she decides to share it on her Facebook page. The brand sees the post and replies with a link to an online coupon for the product featured in the recipe. The consumer clicks over the coupon and downloads it. When the final screen pops up it tells here there are more recipes and tips on the brand’s pinterest page. She clicks over and peruses the recipe boards, pinning a few to her own boards. And so on. The point is, get beyond the transactional and make sure you’re always compelling your customer to go deeper. In this case, the consumer was already active on three different social media channels so it was no big deal to click around. That might not always be the case, not every single consumer is on Twitter.
Let’s start with the end in mind. How do you know if you’re pulling off a successful integrated program? Our mantra is to create quality content and deliver it to the right people across multiple channels in an engaging way.
So how do we go about choosing the “right” platforms for our content? As you know not all social media platforms are created equal. Each one has it’s own reason for existing, a typical crowd that hangs out there, and subculture that dictates appropriate behavior. Being on social media yourself you might instinctively know what the right fit is but I would encourage you to step back and take a critical look at your channels. They are changing and growing all the time so it’s important to keep up with the current audience data and make sure your brand is still a fit. It’s equally important to look at how well they are performing for your brand and think about the purpose they serve in your overall marketing program. Some things to think about when you are considering the right channel mix for your integrated program:
What are the integration points? Do you want your consumer to click over to your Pinterest page from Facebook? How could you encourage that?
What is your target audience doing when they engage with you on this channel? Taking a break from work to check twitter? Looking up a recipe on Pinterest at the grocery store?
What questions are they asking you on Facebook and are they different from what they ask on Twitter?
Is this appropriate for this channel and audience (and in some cases, device)?
Will this content help you meet the objectives for those channels?
All of these can give you clues as to what content might be best received.
Social media has changed the measurement game, offering up more metrics than we’ve ever had before. While we’re drowning a sea of data we still can’t tell you the ROI. But we can tell if your customer is consuming content and we do that by measuring engagement. Once you’ve developed an integrated program, pick 1-3 metrics per channel to set goals against. That’s it. And only choose metrics that show action and conversion – these are indicators of engagement. The ultimate indicator that our content resonated with fans is when they share it with their friends, so our most important metrics are Shares, RTs, etc. We’re not saying to not track these other metrics – we’re saying that they shouldn't necessarily be your KPIs (key performance indicators).