How do the food and beverage industry and social media connect? Quick answer: In more ways than one. The average person spends 2 hours and 23 minutes per day on social media – if you are not marketing your product, you could be missing out on the opportunity to reach a huge audience whose time is already spent online. Wondering how your food or beverage brands can shine with social media marketing? We have you covered with these 5 quick steps to take action on ASAP. Warning, do not continue reading if you are hungry.
TRENDING FOOD ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Step one: Keep up with the current trends. Find your competitors and audit their accounts. What is working? What isn’t? What do you love when you scan through the popular page on Instagram or search #FOOD on Twitter? Food and beverages naturally have the ability to be aesthetically pleasing, which gives your industry the leverage up amongst all other brands on social media. People love food. People love drinks. Take advantage of social media for your food brand and understand the common interests and trends. Don’t just hide your product on the shelves and hope for the best. Instead, create a brand voice and target, target, target! Your grid should be representative of your brand while also taking into account the current season (ahem, all of you peppermint lovers, it’s only September!) the current social media food trends, and of course, the best attributes of your product!
TARGET AUDIENCE FOR THE TYPES OF FOOD AND BEVERAGE
Find your audience and speak to them! Quality over quantity: social media followers edition. When developing your brand voice, tone, and look, your audience will be the foundation. Whom are you targeting? The busy mom who needs a healthy snack for lunchboxes, how about the CEO who is cutting the bad coffee habits, or maybe the college student who is sick of microwavable noodles? Through post comments, reactions, and engagement rates, you can see which products people are most interested in consuming. You can also conduct polls and gather data directly from your followers, the people who are most likely to buy what you’re selling.
SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCERS
User-generated content is the golden ticket to product sales on social media. So how do you start a social media food brand? Social Media Influencers are a great asset to have for brands in the food and beverage industry. When someone speaks for your product – others want to consume that product. Take the photos, stage the product, find an influencer that not only speaks to your audience but also your brand. Collect both static images and videos to use as an interactive referral. This is especially important for a brand that is new to the market.
THE VALUE OF THE FOOD BRANDS TO THE AUDIENCES
Don’t forget, your audience has a 3-second attention span when being targeted by social media marketing. Provide information, graphics, and facts that will help a consumer feel confident in their purchases and make them want to come back for more!
FRIDAY PLANS AND POSTING TIME ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Foodie accounts are not known for going silent, and neither should your food or beverage brand! Be sure to post frequently, use relatable hashtags for weekend food searches, and target those Friday at 4 pm hunger cues.
Ready to take your social media food & beverage brand to the next level? We know just where to start! If you’re looking to elevate your platforms, sell some products and create an audience that is as passionate about your brand as you are, you’ve come to the right place. Shoot us a message, we’d be happy to chat (and try your product).
