I meant to share this with you last year. I found it while I was in Florida in October 2009. But I was on the road and, for one reason or another, this blog post dropped down my list. Until today, when I saw the new results from the HealthFocus Global Shopper Trends Survey… and everything clicked into place.

First watch this video - which in itself is a beautiful thing…

So gorgeous, huh?

And doubtless (at 17,000+ views on YouTube) good PR and associated ‘brand cool’ for Evian.

But these days doesn’t bottled water just leave you feeling a little hollow inside? For sure, in some places, bottled water is a smart

Paul Smith limited edition evian - on display in Whole Foods Market, Florida

choice for health reasons, but when we shop it for vanity, what is the real cost?

What do Consumers want?

Over the past 7 years the HealthFocus Global Shopper Survey has tracked consumers’ intention to increase their use of bottled water. From 2003 to 2008 in the UK about 32-34% of consumers claimed to be increasing their consumption. But the new survey in 2010 suggest this figure has nearly halved with just 19% increasing consumption.

Half Full or Half Empty?

On the other hand, when we look at those looking to reduce or stop their consumption of bottled water, we see the numbers rising from 3% in the heady, hedonistic, ‘pre-greening’ days of 2005 to 14% in 2010.

For all of us design fanatics.

“All Publicity is Good Publicity?”

It’s famously been said that all publicity is good publicity, but my point with this post is to ask Marketers and PR Teams to question the trends and changing consumer opinion behind their campaigns.

As Tom Peters says, “great design tops the list in the I-know-it-when-I-see-it category”. And I’m a huge fan of great design. So this particular product is, frankly, stunning. And, at the end of the day, this was a limited edition. But whenever I look at it something leaves me a little empty. What if the design energy had been directed more towards a more sustainable solution rather than a splashy, surface win?

And Your Next Initiative?

Find out what consumers think about your category and your next initiative with the 24 country HealthFocus International global shopper survey. For more information contact sam@healthymarketingteam.com

Peter delivering the Beijing Masterclass

Regarded as one of the world’s leading experts in food, beverage and ingredient marketing, Peter Wennström explains the key applications of the FourFactors(R) in the latest Natural Products Asia Resource newsletter. This informative newsletter reaches over 50,000 global professionals in the nutraceutical, nutritional, dietary supplement, cosmetic, wellness and food industries.

As Peter works with more food and beverage executives around the world, including at his recent masterclass in Beijing, his guiding messages for Marketers in the rapidly growing emerging markets is becoming ever clearer. To find out more and view the article, please click here.

Super Fruit? New on the "Dirty Dozen List" in 2010, blueberries are treated with as many as 52 pesticides, making them one of the dirtiest berries on the market. How 'Super' is that?

Out of sight out of mind? Or a potential point of brand differentiation?

Most consumers are well aware that they should be eating more fruits and vegetables. But despite being an essential component of a healthy diet, many conventional varieties contain pesticide residues and other toxins.

In 2008, the accumulation of toxins in the body was the Number 1 global concern among shoppers according to expert consumer researchers HealthFocus(R) International. To consumers, these toxins are pesticides, hormones, genetic modifications, artificial preservatives, colours, etc. which are added to food - usually to ensure it reaches our homes ‘looking’ perfect.

But there is a growing concern about what we can’t see…

That’s because not all the pesticides used to kill bugs, grubs, or fungus on the farm washes off under the tap at home. US Government tests show which fruits and vegetables, prepared typically at home, still have a pesticide residue. And who’s to say how much pre-washing is done on your commercially prepared food? At the restaurant you ate at last week? The ready meal? The salad in your sandwich?

All natural?

How are you addressing this major concern in your products?

We know consumers are less and less willing to pay extra for organic yet they are very interested in the benefit - especially for their children. Is out of sight really out of mind for consumers? Or are you staring at a potential point of meaningful brand differentiation in your category?

You can reduce your exposure to pesticides by as much as 80% if you avoiding the most contaminated foods in the grocery store.

To do so, you need the latest info from the why the Environmental Working Group’s “Dirty Dozen” list of foods most likely to have high pesticide residues. Since 1995, the organization has taken the government data and identified which type of produce has the most chemicals.

This year, celery takes the number one spot and both blueberries and spinach make an appearance (displacing lettuce and pears).

The best way to avoid pesticide residue on foods is to buy organic produce — USDA and its equivalent bodies globally have rules prohibiting the use of pesticides on any crop with the certified organic label.

You can read the article by Dan Shipley from the Daily Green in full here. It’s well worth a read. I guarantee it will make you think twice about your personal choices - and it reveals some safer alternatives you can easily substitute for the key offenders.

The 2010 Dirty Dozen*

But for those of you who don’t have time, here’s a summary of the 2010 Dirty Dozen: Celery, Peaches, Strawberries, Apples,

Cream with your strawberries? You may want to give them a second wash first...

Blueberries, Nectarines, Bell Peppers, Spinach, Kale, Cherries, Potatoes and Grapes.

Fear not, we are the Healthy Marketing Team, so I wouldn’t blog and leave you without a solution…

The Clean 15!

According to the experts, the best way to reduce your exposure to the toxins is by switching the Dirty Dozen for the The Clean 15: Onions, Avocados, Sweet Corn, Pineapple, Mango, Asparagus, Peas, Kiwi, Cabbage, Aubergine (Egg Plant), Papaya, Water Melon, Broccoli, Tomato and Sweet Potato.

What Are Shoppers Avoiding in Your Country?

The great news is that the results are in from the 2010 HealthFocus Global Shopper Survey. We have the very latest news on what consumers are wanting to avoid, increase their consumption of, what they are fearful of, which ingredients are hot and which are not. We’ve surveyed 24 countries from Japan and Australia to Saudi Arabia and UK … and everywhere in between. To find out what’s changed, what you should be including in your NPD and what you should be leaving out email me: sam@healthymarketingteam.com

*NB The Dirty Dozen is a USA Study - but think, are the issues in your country very different? The HealthFocus result will give you a detailed ingredient by ingredient, benefit by benefit view in your market, so don’t miss out on this vital new insight to shape your NPD for 2010 and 2011.

M&S bringing new convenience with a shopping experience to fit around your life

UK retailer M&S has created “Shop Your Way” to help you to shop and up the stakes in this ultra-competitive market.

Rocket science this is not, but in a world with increasingly, busy, rushed and stressed shoppers, here’s a retailer who’s showing they understand and fit in with your lifestyle…

• You want to shop online - come to us.
• You want to shop by phone - come to us.
• You want to shop in the store - come to us.
• You want it delivered - come to us.
• You want to pre-order and collect it … you can do that too.

… You can see their video here

What can YOU do to make YOUR consumers’ lives easier?

At the Healthy Marketing Team our innovation offer can help you inject new convenience into your products, concepts and brands. Our Healthy Marketing Innovation model enables you to reveal new opportunities. Convenience is just one of the many dimensions where we enable innovation to accelerate your brand growth.

Brands that 'get' personalisation understand that you are different.

Let’s get personal…

One of the major trends we’ve observed has been the rise of PERSONALISATION. In short, Brands which offer greater personalisation win. The best example, already a modern classic, is  iTunes + iPod - who wants to have a record label select their tracks for them on a CD when you can edit your own playlist? And consumers are increasingly demanding ever greater control and personalisation every part of their lives - and their food and retail experiences are no exception.

Well done M&S. Who’s next?

To find out more about how the Healthy Marketing Team can help grow your business, contact sam@healthymarketingteam to arrange a free initial telephone consultation.

"I don't actually do sport - but my sports nutrition is my first step towards a healthier lifestyle."

This perhaps you think this seems an easy question to answer? Senior Healthy Marketing Consultant,  Sam Waterfall contends the answer is anything but obvious.

Case in point:  Sports Nutrition

Who buys Sports Nutrition products? Sports people, right?

Not so fast, my friend.

Of course that’s a “yes and no” answer.  Sports people do consume the product, but it turns out that the Sports Nutrition market is being driven by non-sporty consumers.

According to Lorraine Heller writing for Food Navigator-usa.com on 3 June, “As global sales of sports nutrition products maintain healthy growth rates, one distinct - and unexpected - group of consumers is emerging as the main driver for the market, made up of people who are not necessarily interested in sports.”

Datamonitor found that these so called “lifestyle users” were “the last group to embrace sports nutrition products, but in the last few years they have become a crucial part of the market.”

You can read the full article by Lorraine Heller here.

The Healthy Marketing Model - Where should your brand be positioned in your category?

Of course if you’ve followed the work of The Healthy Marketing Team this will be no surprise to you.  The Healthy Marketing Model plots the development of any category.

Not only does it let you predict what will happen in your category, it will actually enable you to plan it!

When we’ve worked in sports nutrition, we’ve observed the progression from a purely laboratory / R&D driven world of sporting excellence towards a ’sport for all’ positioning - and guided our Clients to the emerging business opportunity.

The fact is that in all categories, the brands that win understand intially where they should be positioned in the market. With their positioning clear, they then target their consumers with an appealling concept - in other words, they tell them the exact story they want to hear.

In our case study of Sports Nutrition, the science-led ‘Expert’ or ‘Performance’ brands focus on proven breakthroughs from the  elite sports scene and are exclusively available via websites and specialist retailers.  But, as Datamonitor have reported, today the category has ‘trickled down’ to sell ‘non-sporty consumers’ the athletic-health / the athletic-performance / or even just the athletic-look (!) in the convenience of an RTD bottle.

Segment to win…

Who is really buying your product? Segment your market to target and grow.

So now that sports nutrition is for more than just sports people, Marketers are required to take a different approach to growth their brands and bring the sports nutrition lifestyle to the various distinct segments of sports-benefit seeking consumers: Refreshment seekers / Meal replacement seekers / Healthy snack seekers / Energy boost seekers / Image seekers / etc.

Beyond sports nutrition…

So think about your category. And my question to you is “Who is REALLY buying your product?”

Where is your category going? (and where can you drive your category to?) We’ve seen Nike and Adidas take the training shoe from the track to the street.  Your category is evolving too. Will you lead or follow? And if your product has a secondary target consumer, who are they? And how can you extend your brand to meet their needs?

To make this happen for your brands, contact sam@healthymarketingteam.com to arrange a no obligation, free initial consultation.

We know about the economic power and bustle of Hong Kong, but Food Retailing is also world class in this incredible city.

On one of my recent trips to Asia I had a particularly long layover in Hong Kong. So I did what any Healthy Marketing Consultant would do… Headed straight for the Food Shops!

… And what an incredible experience I was treated to! In this blog update I want to share with you some of what I found and, I hope, treat you to some of the “Quality Mind Stretch” that the Hong Kong Retailers gave me…

When we think of Hong Kong we think of many things: The economic engine, the fast paced lifestyle, the luxury branded goods and, of course, that incomparable skyline rising from Victoria Harbour. But we perhaps should be adding leading edge food retailing to that list.

There was so much to talk about so I’m going to focus my attention on one ‘home run’ example - C!ty’Super - probably the best quality retailing I’ve ever seen and judging by their price points, probably one of the most profitable.

How do we know great Quality?

Great quality probably tops the list in the category of “I know it when I see it”. But what does it look like? How can we define it? And, more importantly, how can we introduce some of those quality cues into our products to justify higher prices and build the customer insistence enjoyed by the world’s finest brands? Let’s take a look at this case study and answer these big questions…

So what is C!ty’Super?

C!ty'Super - 'Mega Lifestyle' Shopping in Hong Kong

If you’ve not had the pleasure of a shopping trip to C!ty’Super, let me enlighten you. According to their website, “City’Super is a Mega Lifestyle Speciality Store” - Now isn’t that fun already? They continue, “that offers a true ‘one-stop-shopping’ experience for today’s busy urban professionals. Our stores have been designed to be part of our customers’ lifestyles by fulfilling their daily needs as well as enhancing the quality of their lives.”  … There’s more and the rest is well worth a read - you can find it here.

Let’s look at a few of the techniques at work in C!ty’Super…

TECHNIQUE 1: Quality decor enhanced with colour and lighting

Light Fantastic - signage to backlighting enhance the shopping experience.

One of the first things you notice is the boutique feel they’ve created.

With a generally dark decor, they use lighting to tremendous effect to guide your attention and build a sense of luxury. This spans all aspects of the store from highlighting shelf spotlights to lit signage.

They’ve also stepped up in their choice of flooring. No sign of the generic supermarket surface here, at C!ty’Super they’ve chosen ceramic tiles and hardwood which create the impression of being in a beautifully design home kitchen or restaurant.

How can you apply this idea to your products? Clearly you won’t be attaching lights and tiles to your products, but NPD involves decisions on format, texture, typography, colour, form, material. Semiotics are critical to the impression your consumer takes from your brand. According to leading Branding Agency, Design Bridge, the decisions you take on semiotics are core to your brand identity and will be at the heart of your New Product Development choices.

When we work with our Clients, using Wennstrom’s FourFactorsTM to guide winning concept development, we ensure that all Four Factors are in balance - telling a consistent story to create a product which instantly appeals to its target consumer.

TECHNIQUE 2: Use Drama to Captivate…

What? You don't normally buy your cheese from the bubble tank? Dramatic Merchandising at work in C!ty'Super.

How do you retail cheese? You put it on the refrigerated shelf, right?

Wrong!

Not at C!ty’Super. At C!ty’Super you build a whole new display and keep cheese fresh by storing it in an illuminated tank of gently effervescing water. When I arrived at this part of the store there was a crowd of people just watching the cheese display. That’s right, just standing, watching the cheese display! Their merchandising was so good it had drawn a crowd. (And just in case you were wondering, they were buying too. Despite the advanced, multi-point till system, the lines were tailing out of the shop!) So I joined the crowd and started taking photos. C!ty’Super is creating RETAIL MAGIC. They are the “Disney of Retail”!

How can you apply this idea to your products? OK, so you’re selling yoghurt, not theme park tickets. I hear you. But the same principle ABSOLUTELY still applies! Think about how you can create drama around the benefit of your product. For example, if your product is a pouring yoghurt make sure your packaging makes it obvious it’s for pouring - switch from a regular carton to a Tetra Top with a wide cap to improve the pouring experience (and make it easy to hygienically re-seal). Make sure the product name tells the pouring story too. Sure you know it’s supposed to be a pouring yoghurt, but your shopper is seeing it for the first time and has NO IDEA. You need to make sure that every element, the pack, the name, the colour, the design, the touch, are all telling the concept story. In this way you make it easier for your consumer to ‘get’ your big idea.

TECHNIQUE 3: Think Exclusive. Think Single-minded…

Islands of exclusivity communicate precisely what's on offer at C!ty'Super

At C!ty’Super they know that if they’ve got an idea it’s worth making a big deal about. So they create themed islands. Maybe it’s a display from out of town. Maybe it’s fresh pasta. Maybe it’s a particular type of fish. But by keeping their display single-minded they attract your attention and you know what’s on offer.

How can you apply this idea to your products? Healthy Marketing Team Brand Specialist, Neal Cavalier-Smith explains the power of single-minded Brands: Pointing to Benecol he says, “Benecol only does cholesterol lowering. That’s why we all know they are the experts. They are dedicated.” Similarly Cavalier-Smith points to other single-minded brand propositions, “Danone’s Activia is focused on improved digestive transit, their Actimel brand is focused exclusively on delivering the immunity benefit.” The key here is to ask what your brand(s) and what your product(s) stand for in the mind of the consumer. When you know the answer, your brand action is to tell that single-minded story with every aspect of your proposition: pack choice, design, name, price point, etc.

TECHNIQUE 4: Act like a Quality Brand…

Duluxe. At the C!ty'Super Patisserie you don't just have the croissant, you have the Luxury Marzipan and Swiss Chocolate Croissant. Actually. Make that two.

The final example I’ll share from C!ty’Super is how they’ve gone the extra mile to Act like a Quality Brand should act. Perception is King and when it comes to retailing, C!ty Super get my vote for reigning supreme!

Tom Peters would say that they take care of the ‘Little Big Things’. I just didn’t want to leave!

In the Patisserie, they’ve just taken that little bit (make that a MASSIVE bit) of extra care to ensure that you’re not just buying another item, you’re selecting a moment of luxury, just as if you were fine dining at a 5-star hotel. Every detail has been ‘upgraded to First’ from the impression on approach to the recycled shopping bag as you check out.

How can you apply this idea to your products? I think this one is simplest to apply.

Idea 1: Just use your imagination by answering the question, “If my brand was to be served at the Four Seasons Hotel, how would I need to improve it?”. Take your team through this one. It’s well worth taking time.

Idea 2: ‘Map’ your consumers’ experience from when they first hear about your product to when they have to dispose of the container. How can you improve every step of their journey with your brand?

Move to action because Perception is Reality…

Perception is reality in branding - so make sure your brand is acting the way you want it to be seen.

There’s so much we can learn from the brands who are getting it right. This quick case study at C!ty’Super in Hong Kong shares just a few highlights. If you can apply any one of these 4 techniques you can start to improve your brand, avoid the commodity trap and command a higher price. Even during a downturn, there’s demand for quality. Are you delivering it?

Find out more…

To find out more about how to increase your prices and drive greater demand for your products and brands contact Sam Waterfall sam@healthymarketingteam.com or Nick Gray at Design Bridge nick.gray@designbridge.com. Sam and Nick will be happy to offer you a free of charge, no obligation consultation to discuss your opportunities.

The Power of Building Trends into Your Brands…

Senior Healthy Marketing Consultant, Sam Waterfall reports from Vietnam and shares 3 lessons we can all learn from this burgeoning economy.

In May 2010 The Healthy Marketing Team were in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Despite having read the reports and digested the ‘consultant diet’ of zip file after zip file of data, when we personally witnessed the speed of the economic growth in Vietnam we were AMAZED…

A quick look at the figures:

• Vietnam topped a recent A.T.Kearney Report; listed as No. 1 country for retail investment
• Retail outlet growth in excess of 10% per annum
• Sales growth in excess of 20%
• Asia’s 3rd largest % of working women: 73% (behind only China and Thailand)
• A GDP which has more than doubled since 2001

Viet Family: Strong values in faced paced Ho Chi Minh City

What do the Local Experts say?

We were privileged to speak to a group of over 150 Food & Beverage experts and while (for confidentiality reasons) I am not at liberty to reveal the survey results, I can reveal that this is a market which is driven to seek ever greater performance and achievement: a people massively committed to family values and their children’s success.

Despite recent annual inflation between 10 and 20% per annum, the primary household shoppers are fiercely protective of their shopping budget for family, children and health. With these fundamentals in place, the population believes it will be fit to compete - and that is exactly what it’s doing. Competition is intense among the population but beyond borders, Vietnam is a fast accelerating powerhouse of growth to rival its Asian neighbours.

Riding the trend curve by building in what consumers are looking for is a cost effective strategy for a brand instead of having to buy awareness through advertising and retail space.

3 Healthy Marketing Lessons for Food & Beverage Marketers in all countries

As we work with Clients worldwide, we help to grow brands or to renovate brands by aligning them with strong trends. The critical element is understanding the timing and lifecycle of the trend. Ideally you aim to catch them early and ride up the steepest part of their growth curve.

1. Let the power of the trend save you time and money…

It can be useful to think of the analogy of a trend being like a powerful wind. If our brand is a small sailboat or even a large cruise ship, moving with the wind will be far easier, faster and more energy and cost efficient then trying to sail into the wind.

In Vietnam, as I mentioned in the video, we observed the ‘natural’ trend gaining hold. Vietnamese consumers were scared by the recent milk scandals in China and value safe, toxin free foods from trusted brands. Building this into a brand proposition may help you to ride the growth curve ‘with the powerful wind behind you’.

On Trend. Women can Look Good and Feel Good with Passiona Coffee in Vietnam.

As we shopped the modern trade in Vietnam, we noticed another strong trend or ‘favourable wind’ serving to accelerate the growth of brands which had build it into their proposition: I also saw many brands on the ‘Look good, Feel good” trend - all benefiting from the strong desire among the many younger consumers to look as attractive as possible. Coffee is hugely popular in Vietnam and now it’s increasingly available in single serve portions targeted at fashionable women and striving men.

Safety, Health, Beauty, Taste - 2 Zero Coffee is trying to include many of the major trends.

2. If the timing is right, benefit from more than one trend…

The ’stand out’ example of the on trend product was 2 Zero coffee. Take a look at their website here and watch the TV Commercial - it’s hard to imagine stronger imagery of success, beauty, achievement being associated with a brand. As they say, 2 Zero is ‘not just coffee’ - it carries one story about health (reducing cholesterol, anti-constipation and preventing obesity) and second story about looks and beauty based on the ingredient collagen. In this way, the brand is riding the trends of safety, health, beauty and taste.

3. Why riding the trend curve works so well…

Harnessing the trend means you're not trying to convince or sell consumers

The reason that trends can help grow your business is simple. By delivering on trend messages, on trend benefits and on trend propositions, you are telling your consumers the story they are already looking out for and wanting to hear. You are not trying to ’sell’ them a new advertising message. You are not trying to convince them of something which they don’t yet believe.

As Victor Hugo observed, “An invasion of armies can be resisted but not an idea whose time has come.”  Observe the timing of the trends in your market and harness their power to grow your brand.

To discover the Healthy Marketing Team’s latest Trend Analysis for your market, or to book your free, no obligation initial consultation, contact sam@healthymarketingteam.com.

Even in a developing market like Trinidad and Tobago, with a very poor chilled-distribution chain you can find dozens of alternative healthy propositions on shelf.

The question is how can you use the FourFactors to position in an increasingly crowded and complex market?

Watch this blog for new news soon on “Positioning for Health in Developing Markets”

In this interview made by global ingredient company DSM, Healthy Marketing Team Founder & Expert Consultant, Peter Wennstrom gives his analysis of how Ingredient Companies can deliver better results and accelerate growth by reducing confusion and clarifying benefits to their Customers and their Consumers.

The Healthy Marketing Team work globally throughout the food, bevergage and ingredients sector. To find out how we can help to grow your business contact peter@healthymarketingteam.com

Sam Waterfall from Kuala Lumpur with an important message. I don’t have time to get back to Europe to tell you this! It’s urgent! I’m recording this on Saturday morning. It’s 1 May 2010 and there are just 15 days left for you to sign up for the 2010 Nordic Survey from HealthFocus.

Here’s everything you need to know:

The survey will cover Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden.

Nordic Markets Map

Background – HealthFocus International Nordic surveys identify major changes in consumer preferences

The 2006 HealthFocus trend survey of the Nordic countries helped our customers to fully understand the impact of environmental trends and their relation to health and to food choices. The surveys spotted the decline in interest for “light” products and the dramatic change in basic consumer motivations as a reaction to the consequences of a stressed and busy lifestyle.

How frequent are the Nordic trend surveys?

HealthFocus surveyed the four Nordic countries for the first time in 2003, again in 2006 and now in 2010 to measure key trends. The 2010 survey is an opportunity to capture recent changes in these markets; to see what products, ingredients and benefits consumers are looking for; and to identify where the differences and the similarities are between these neighbouring countries.

See the Nordic consumers in the context of the global trends

The Nordic trend surveys are comparable with the HealthFocus International Consumer Segmentation and include many of the questions in the more comprehensive worldwide database, making it possible to analyze trends in the Nordic markets alongside developments in all of the 35 markets worldwide that has been surveyed by HealthFocus. The 2010 research will further extend your knowledge of global consumer attitudes and behaviors to health and nutrition.

Respondents

Interviews are conducted in the local language among a representative sample of households in each country. The respondents are:

Men and women, aged 18 to 70 years.

The primary grocery shopper for their household. Primary grocery shoppers are responsible for most or equally sharing the household grocery shopping responsibilities.

Sample Size

500 respondents in each country.

Interview methodology

All interviews will be conducted online.

To discuss details Contact

Steve Walton swalton@healthfocus.com  +1 727 821 7499

Sam Waterfall sam@healthymarketingteam.com

Sponsorship Opportunities: