11.18.2004
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Click to browseFor more Hartman Group articles on ORGANIC CONSUMERS, click here...
HARTBEAT
April 27, 2004 "The Symbolic Power of 'Organic'"
December 13, 2002 "Hanging On to Your Organic Consumers"
December 6, 2002 "The Gateway to Organics"
December 27, 2002 "The Organic Consumer May Not Be Who You Think It Is"
NATURAL SENSIBILITY
October 15, 2002 "The True Effects of Regulation on Organic Consumers"
July 16, 2002 "Wellness
Myth #2: The Organic Consumer Is Limited to a Specific, Well-Defined
Demographic"
Click here for an archive of past HartBeat articles
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Subscribe »The Branding Of Organics: what Works & What Doesn't
For many years, "organic" was the brand that consumers recognized, not a particular branded name. Early organic manufacturers did a good job branding the organic category as a whole, but not at building individual brands. The original organic brands spent very little on consumer advertising and branding. Additionally, many of the organic categories first adopted by consumers, such as produce, dairy and meat are relatively "unbranded," meaning consumers weren't used to seeing brands when shopping in these categories.
Within the last few years, however, several organic brands have managed to establish not only awareness among consumers, but equity. Let's look at a few:
Amy's Kitchen
Amy's has widespread appeal across the mid-level and core segments of the world of organics. One of the most significant elements of Amy's success can be attributed to emotional and relevant narrative-based marketing. Remarkably, most consumers who purchase Amy's products easily recall that the company was named after the owner's daughter and created in response to frustrations with available "convenience" foods (both vegetarian and organic or natural). Consumers appreciate and emotionally respond to Amy's expressed values of home-cooked foods, attention to family, and healthier convenience options.
Amy's has dominated in the frozen category, boasting over 60 frozen meals, most of which are centered on traditional recipes with a vegetarian, organic or natural twist. Consumers appreciate the recipes and claim they are more "family friendly" than most frozen meals, particularly with younger children who tend to be "picky" eaters.
Horizon Organic Dairy
Horizon is the most widely recalled organic dairy brand. Its products are available in both natural and conventional grocery stores nationwide.
Its fame may outreach the consciously "organic" consuming public due to its innovative packaging, which is fun and kid-oriented (i.e., flying cow mascot). They were the first organic dairy brand to use Tetrapak packaging that allows non-refrigerated storage (a solution for parents who want to put Horizon milk into un-refrigerated lunchboxes and let children bypass school cafeteria drinks).
The primary consumers of Horizon products are children of health-conscious parents. However, we also find an adult following of organic consumers who are using Horizon milk but have also gravitated to the yogurt and butter lines. In general, this brand serves as a gateway into the world of organics for health-conscious families concerned about hormones and antibiotics found in mainstream dairy products.
Stonyfield Farm
Stonyfield Farm produces a variety of natural and organic dairy products for babies, children and adults. All of these products are made without the use of preservatives, artificial flavors, antibiotics, synthetic hormones or pesticides. The story of its founding, rooted in social and environmental values, such as supporting family farms, is disseminated throughout Stonyfield's marketing materials and among its consumer base through social networks. The company calls its yogurt lids "mini billboards" that help educate consumers about environmental issues as well as advertise the fact that Stonyfield donates 10% of their profits to environmental groups each year. Importantly, these "billboards" focus specifically on environmental issues that are particularly relevant to their consumers; for example, the reduction of pesticide use which translates into a consumer perception that the product is better for their health. Similarly, the narrative of Stonyfield Farm also focuses on keeping small farmers in business in the Northeast, a social value that has community appeal and gives consumers the ability to participate in something that is larger than them, yet is still relevant to their life.
Stonyfield Farm has been very successful in what The Hartman Group terms infrastructure sensibility; the social construction of the brand and the corporation in the consumer's mind. An example of how consumers respond to Stonyfield Farm was the first Strong Women Summit. This Stonyfield-sponsored event, a weekend of workshops and seminars geared to "developing personal action plans for positive activism within women's lives and the lives of their families and their communities" had over 19,000 applications for 400 spots. To these consumers, Stonyfield represents not just a good-tasting, healthy product, but a company that represents their most personal and emotional values.
Why Organic Brands Fail
- Often the categories organic brands enter are not gateway categories, such as pasta sauces and snacks, and therefore, only resonate with consumers relatively far along in their organic adoption.
- Many failed organic brands did not position the products as "special" or gourmet in any way that would help them stand out from the crowd.
- Taste is also a detriment to consumer acceptance. If taste is not comparable to (or better than) conventional alternates, consumers will return to the conventional
- The serious brand image and environmental mission of early organic brands appeal to a small percentage of core organic consumers whose primary food purchasing is more likely to include desires to support environmentally sustainable agriculture and to avoid the toxic qualities associated in their minds with non-organic CPG foods. This proposition, however, does not resonate with mainstream consumers' approach to grocery shopping or organic food consumption in general.
- Many organic brands sometimes put little effort into creating a community, story or experience around the brand.
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