Two of the first things that happened when the pandemic broke out : TikTok exploded and everyone baked bread. In other words, during our darkest hour, we survived daily on entertainment and food content teaching us how to DIY bread—and any other food or beverage we dared try and could find ingredients for. No matter what happens around us, people will always need to eat. Foodie culture may continue to evolve but it is not going away any time soon.
In the white paper I wrote for Maison Made in, How Influencers Are Driving Success For The Food And Beverage Industry, I look at content and social media trends, explore what is happening in the food and beverage industry and conclude what will resonate with consumers going forward. A hint: it has a lot to do with influencers.
Here's an excerpt from the white paper and if you are interested in more, you can download the full paper for free.
When it comes to food and beverage content that sells, we can talk about 3 key consumer motivations that sum it all up: personalization, harmless consumption, and experiencing food as an event.
A need for personalization
Consumers are seeking "better for me" solutions. In other words, food and beverage that responds to personal motivations and needs around wellbeing, culture, discovery, eating approaches that align with lifestyle choices, and also taste. That is a lot to consider! Add to this the nearly endless food possibilities that exist today and you've got a lot to consider before opening your mouth! Consumers need information and guidance as well as inspiration from reliable sources to make their own informed choices. Choices about what to feed themselves, their loved ones and their guests. Choices that are becoming increasingly complex.
A need to do no harm
Consumers today search for products that will do no harm to themselves, others, or the environment. Transparency has thus emerged as an important part of the food industry with regards to what we put inside our bodies and what our purchases cost the world. Consumers seek transparency about processes and methods, carbon footprint, traceability, and ingredients lists. QR codes that lead to content are an increasingly popular way of fulfilling this consumer need.
Food as an event
Food as an experience or event is nothing new, but it is now levelling up. Think robot arms flipping burgers in restaurants (and attracting clientele), dinner parties at private homes, limited edition foods and snacks, subscriptions that deliver different food and bev products every time, surprising collabs and everywhere in between.
Almost three-quarters of global consumers like food and drink products with new and unusual or exotic flavours, so ingredient novelty or limited edition flavours are winning big. But that's not all. Society has always judged books by their covers and now, we also judge foods by their boxes. Packaging and labelling has become an event in and of itself. From limited edition labels to packaging you want to keep forever, brands are betting on design to get consumers picking their products off the shelves. Collabs, like @babyatoutprix x Tapilou however, are making product fly off the shelves! Brands and influencers are working together for limited edition flavours, packs, packaging, merch, you name it! McDonald's X Moschino, Crocs X KFC, Nike X Ben and Jerry, and Tim Biebs! A quick social media search for #timbiebs reveals fans getting up early and walking into retail stores as well as a whole new demographic sporting Tim Hortons merch.
Images from Instagram by @TimHortons, @edsanchez2012, @thenewleafclothing
What's in the rest of the white paper?
The future of content: Two big shifts are taking place. Content is being created as part of conversations—more so than as announcements or as part of a predetermined schedule—and creators are collaborating with AI. I cover this as well as how influencers can drive sales by providing their unique perspectives, producing colabs and helping brands stay top of mind as trends move so fast and options multiply.
Sources for information on this article include, FMCG Gurus’ 2021 Flavor, Color & Texture Trends report, 2023 Global Consumer Trends Driving Market Growth report by ADM.
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