“Instant access may have changed how and where we shop, but when it comes to what today’s consumers and customers expect, some things never change.”

Flashback to the natural foods heyday of the 1990s and it might seem that the values of conscious food consumers haven’t changed much over the last 30 years. Trusted local, high quality ingredients. Organic choices. A “natural” approach to real foods as opposed to complicated, unknown chemicals. Plant-based protein sources for a mix of nutritional preferences. Artisanal emphasis. Partnerships between local food producers and the community. Family-friendly products brought to market by trusted brands that understood responsible food practices and production.

From a food producer’s perspective, the business challenges of meeting consumer and retailers’ stringent demands also appear similar: ensuring product safety and integrity, reducing the risk of food recalls, navigating labeling concerns, procuring trusted suppliers for quality ingredients and meeting high standards for animal welfare and environmental sustainability

These shared tenets for wholesome living and responsible eating seem awfully similar despite the time difference. So, what’s changed?

Instant Access

A far cry from the “convenience” foods of the past — fewer healthy options that usually sacrificed quality for a quick meal fix — today’s instant access means I can buy organic beef bone broth, fresh salmon and organic micro-greens for dinner tonight on the same app I use to buy replacement chargers for my iPhone and even a bulk bag of dog food if I’m in a crunch. My groceries, likely delivered by an Amazon or Walmart van or even a driverless delivery vehicle, can also be accompanied by a bottle of Quintessa that years ago would’ve required a trip to a local wine merchant. Instant access to high-quality foods are changing the way consumers eat and changing the way the food and beverage industry is evolving to embrace the new “fast food.” It’s been estimated that the number of U.S. adults who order groceries at least once a month with an app will increase by nearly 50 percent this year compared to 2018.

In Store Incentives

How can brick and mortar stores lure customers back into their aisles? To encourage and incentivize in-store purchases, food producers are employing QR codes and scan-and-save options to give consumers instant access to deals that make shopping more interactive. Scannable codes give consumers access to a mobile world of coupons, recipes and traceable sourcing details that increase brand engagement and reward entry.

Food Safety Traceability

We read headlines nearly every day about new food recalls. Two separate chicken nugget recalls right before the Super Bowl led to concerns about the category as a whole and garnered headline news coverage from CNN and the “Today Show.” According to USDA reports, the agency in 2005 handled 53 food recalls, with just one related to extraneous/foreign materials and nine related to undeclared allergens. In 2018, the agency oversaw 125 food recalls, with 23 related to extraneous materials and 26 related to undeclared allergens. Is the food supply less safe? Hardly. Technical innovations, like high sensitivity imaging devices, along with increased training, shared resources and knowledge among industry partners, have significantly increased the ability of producers to detect potential risks before products ever leave the production line.

For those producers who do face recalls? The advent of blockchain technology and increased use of traceable sourcing systems makes it far easier to track down the root cause of potential product issues and supply challenges. Data-based solutions from the farm, transport provider or retailer system allow food producers and regulators to quickly trace risks and ensure that products are effectively removed from the marketplace.

Transparency Watch

Who’s literally watching the farm? Fresh foods producers must prioritize the integrity of the foods they raise for consumption. This includes the land on which they grow vegetables or raise livestock. Even with the popularity of farm-to-table and Slow Food movements, few U.S. consumers have access to the farms where the food they buy is grown. In large part, this limited access is vital for sound biosecurity practices that protect the food supply. Thanks to the proactive marketing and community engagement of many producers who choose to provide real-time footage of farms and food production, consumers have more ways to see agriculture in action. Also, now, more than ever, activists and producers alike are employing drone and AI technology to monitor property and livestock practices. In a visual duel of he-said, she-said, live streaming production and practices simultaneously protect and target food brands online and with media.

Luxe Knows No Bounds

Lack of access for in-demand food and beverage items used to signal luxury: the coveted cult whiskey, the limited-edition vintage, the in-the-know butcher or the farmer’s market friend that would save a bag of squash blossoms or ramps in peak season if you knew when to go. The instant access of today’s consumer grocery e-marketplace has increased our ability to find coveted foodie finds on demand, online or in app. Greater access and increased competition for these items has also allowed us the ability to shop smarter and perhaps more frugally (service fee be darned). But will this instant access replace the emotional connection we crave with the brands we favor and the conscientious people behind them?

Some things never change. The foundation of good public relations remains rooted in consciousness, transparency and brand trust. Voice activated or not, these are the basics that today’s consumers and customers expect now.

The post Have Consumer Food Priorities Changed Since the ’90s? appeared first on Fineman PR.

It seems common sense to avoid doing what Sacco and others have done, but this ‘shoot first, aim later’ approach to tweeting is all too common nowadays. We can’t make it through a 24 hour news cycle without a high-profile celebrity or company executive tweeting something that lands them in the media hot seat until the next person makes the same mistake and the spotlight shifts. Even seasoned PR professionals aren’t spared from this sort of embarrassment by clicking “post” too soon.

So what should people do? How can you avoid being the next poster child for ill-advised social media behavior?

Stop. Read it. Walk away. Read it again.

I understand that Twitter is real-time. We all want to be the first person to tweet about a current event, but this very thing that makes Twitter the great platform it is can also lead us down a path to career self destruction. We need to pause and read all of our tweets carefully with multiple audiences in mind, not just our closest friends, to consider how those different audiences may interpret our tweets. Many people go through this thought process but all too often it happens after a tweet has been posted (your tweet will then mysteriously disappear but not before someone gets a screenshot – take a look at this one from last week’s Rose Bowl for example). Why not save yourself a headache, and possibly your job, by thinking about it for just a few seconds before posting it live? If you’re debating whether or not to post it for more than 10 seconds then it might be best just to play it safe and not tweet.

Don’t Be Insensitive

It seems like every time a tragedy occurs, there is always at least one company who will try to market themselves via Twitter by leveraging the tragedy. For example, take a look at this Epicurious tweet from the Boston Marathon bombings in which they suggested that people eat a cranberry scone in honor of Boston. Really?!

If there is a tragedy occurring somewhere in the world, don’t make a joke out of it for personal gain; it’s better to keep any jokes about human suffering to yourself. Don’t use a tragic incident to leverage and market your product or service – it’s bound to do more harm than good.

Don’t Tweet About Contentious Issues

Try not to tweet about divisive issues in our society such as same sex marriage, immigration, etc. It’s always best not to start a war on Twitter with a follower who could bait you into firing off more misguided tweets in a fit of rage. Leave this up to the pundits on CNN.

Control Your Emotions, Don’t Let Your Emotions Control You

People get caught up in the moment; they get passionate. When this happens it can cause someone to tweet something offensive. We may realize that our emotions got the best of us shortly after sending a tweet, but, again, there is always the high probability that someone out there got a screenshot of your tweet that will then live forever in cyberspace. It’s always best to take a step back when we are in an emotional state and think about what we want to say or simply not say anything at all on such a public platform.

Instances like the ones above remind us just how important it is to watch what we tweet. Perhaps a friendly client reminder or a staff social media boot camp might be a good idea. Like Steve Martin recently said, “It’s your brain, a button, then millions of reactions.” These reactions can cost you your job or customers.

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