How Sustainable Food Brands Can Appeal To Today’s Most Influential Consumers

 

Jeff Fromm , CONTRIBUTORI speak and consult on Millennials, Generation Z and innovation.  Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

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The modern consumer demand for more sustainable food is evident: In a 2017 proprietary quantitative study conducted by Barkley, new products with sustainability and traceability claims exceeded all other new product platform territories including portion control, taste or flavor, easy preparation and functional nutrition. As a result, food manufacturers made a notable increase in their commitment and promotion of sustainability policies and practices.

But to what effect? Per the study, only 39% of consumers understand what “sustainable” means. With such a significant movement in the market, how can this be?

For consumers, there has been a gap in education on the topic. Sustainability is a complex construct when looking at all it encompasses, such as sustainable farming practices, low environmental impact, upholdance of animal welfare, protection of public health, and good employment practices and community support.

Additionally, food manufacturers have been jumping in with lofty goals that many times are 20-plus years out, leaving a lackluster impression on today’s consumer, such as:

• • Reducing environmental impact by 50%
  • 51% of agricultural raw materials sustainably sourced

• 40% reduction in water use
• 45% reduction in greenhouse gas
• Antibiotic-free, GMO-free, hormone-free

So what is the best strategy for food manufacturers hoping to maximize performance and growth in a sustainable food model? It comes down to the Modern Consumer Mindsets™, which look inside the attitudes, behaviors and decisions of the consumers who are driving the sustainable food movement: Millennials and Gen Z. There are three key paths to consider.

1. Understand How the Modern Consumer Mindsets™ Drive Brand Performance

Millennials and members of Generation Z are the most influential cohorts in our market today, and their behaviors are influencing consumers up and down the generational line. This influence is what I am referring to when discussing these Mindsets.

However, quantifying this influence and relating it to sales growth and brand preference to get the greatest ROI has been a challenge for many brands—specifically those in the CPG category.

The Mindset mapping tool takes this into consideration. By taking what is known about modern consumers and extending it to the general population between the ages of 18 and 65, Barkley’s study discovered that six dimensions (Trusted, Social Circle, Self, Innovative, Purposeful, Accessible) emerged among consumers.

Trusted

For brands aiming to connect with modern consumers, building trust is a critical first step. This requires authenticity and transparency. Today’s consumers have more access to brands than any generation before them thanks to the internet—meaning they will find out about and get to the bottom of anything that pops up about a brand. Thus, brands cannot hide behind empty excuses or vague responses.

Social Circle

When brand marketers hear the word “social” they tend to think solely of social media. This is not always the case. While social media is a powerful tool for brands in today’s digital age, the real value of a social circle is much more. Social Circle refers to the team of advisors modern consumers have built for themselves, stemming from their social networks to their personal relationships. Consumers tap these advisors to gain insights, inform opinions and get recommendations on anything and everything, from where to grab dinner to which doctor to choose.

Self

Brands that reflect customer lifestyles have a greater likelihood to earn a better overall Mindset score because the consumer sees himself or herself in the brand. When a consumer feels that a brand understands them, recognizes them for who they are and provides outlets for further self-exploration, he or she will reward that brand.

Innovative

Modern consumers crave the novelty, efficiency and quality that come with product innovation and advances. They seek out the brands they identify as innovative based on their constant effort to improve and reinvent themselves in addition to making consumers’ lives easier and, therefore, better.

Purposeful

Modern consumers across the board are looking for brands that add goodness to the world and commit to making our planet a better place for all. Because of this, brands are required to acknowledge the new triple-threat bottom line that exists: place, planet and profit. The modern market has no place for businesses that seek only to make a profit.

Accessible

Consumers are not interested in brands that are hard to find and don’t easily fit into their lives. Modern consumers want access to brands across both physical and digital channels with a seamless transition between the two.

The study of more than 17 categories and 50+ brands showed a consistent but unfortunate pattern, however. Sustainable brands tend to perform better on the Mindsets that matter least. While sustainable brands perform well on Purposeful (significantly better than non-sustainable brands), they underperform on what matters most in driving performance (as defined by share, preference and loyalty), which is Social Circle. It’s important for sustainable brands to prioritize increasing their score in the Social Circle Mindset to win with modern consumers.

2. Know the Brand Demand Landscape

In conjunction with being aware of the Mindset drivers, brands must also grasp the entirety of the demand landscape of their category. Brands must discover the full context of consumers’ occasions and need states to compete effectively.

Within each need and occasion, brands must come to understand:

• Emotional drivers
• Functional drivers
• Claims
• Product considered
• Size of prize

With this understanding, a brand can look for new growth opportunities and understand which claims drive the highest appeal as all claims are not created equal.

3. Prioritize Claims That Drive the Highest Penetration

The Barkley study also found that while many claims might be important, consumers are not willing to pay more for them. Consumers are confused about many claims, and the claims that tend to drive higher food costs have limited household appeal and thus limited overall sales potential. In fact, the claims that drove the highest consumer interest and highest household penetration were the ones easier for brands to implement at a lower cost threshold.

Overall, the biggest barrier to the success of sustainable food in today’s market is the cost of its delivery. Per a Food Demand Study conducted by Oklahoma State University, “ensuring everyone has access to plentiful, affordable, healthy foods” was the second most important factor in determining food sustainability. Modern consumers expect access to better foods just like they have been given access to better technology, automobiles, fashion, electronics, home goods and more. The difference is these categories have delivered whereas food is still behind the curve. For sustainable food brands to get up to speed with the market’s most influential and powerful consumers, they must understand the Modern Consumer Mindsets, their demand landscape and what claims can (and will) drive penetration and purchase without driving up food costs.