Food and beverage brand managers often dream of the idea that consumers are having wonderful conversations about their brand. That people everywhere are sharing the good news of the glory of their brand. Telling all their friends. Sharing on social media. Talking to strangers in the supermarket.
A beautiful fantasy, indeed, but let’s get back to reality.
Is your brand worth talking about? If so, what are the conversations about and where are they happening?
Word of mouth (WOM) has been the holy grail of marketing for the past decade, mostly amplified by social media. But let’s be real, it’s simply people having conversations.
First things first-in order for conversations to be taking place, you have to have someone who is willing to TALK about your brand, and someone who is willing to LISTEN. Pretty basic, right?
Here are some thought-starters:
Do you have a brand story that is interesting and worth sharing?
Does your food or beverage brand offer value that consumers would want to share with their friends? Like; health benefits, diet, fitness, nutritional, ease, convenience, etc.
Are you offering something that is new? Such as; flavor profile, functional aspects, and new types of packaging. People love sharing something new with their friends.
Have you developed a personality for your brand that is engaging and conversational to people? As an example, we developed a voice for the legacy brand, Steak-umm-which just exploded on Twitter. One of the reasons it took off was because it broke through to consumers, relating to them in an authentic, genuine manner, coming across as someone you’d like to have a beer with, not a food brand.
There are many tactical ways to ignite conversations about your brand, which I will save for another article.
People talking about your brand, ultimately results in more sales. It’s that simple. Let’s give them something to talk about.
