Dive Brief:
- Food and beverage manufacturers, including Coca-Cola and Hidden Valley, are releasing promotional items to make their products stand out to consumers, according to a recent article on CNBC.
- Hidden Valley sells everything from custom salad dressing cozies to ranch dressing fountains, while Coke is offering a small 12-ounce size evening bag. Fast food chains McDonalds, Taco Bell, and Arby’s also are branching out with items ranging from the bizarre (taco adorned bodysuits) to the wacky (curly fry golf club cover).
- "The brands are really fighting for mindshare, and they don't want to just be seen as a very functional brand that helps you satiate your hunger. They want to be a part of your lifestyle," Julie Cottineau, CEO of Westchester, New York-based consulting firm BrandTwist, told CNBC. "They're trying to give you a means to say, 'This is a brand that's part of my identity.' "
Dive Insight:
As shelf space in supermarkets becomes increasingly competitive, food manufacturers are turning to promotional items to appeal to consumers and make their brands stand out.
It’s nothing new for people to consider a clothing brand as a part of their identity. Generation Z and Millennials are extending that to the food they eat as a means for self-expression. Their enthusiasm for posting pictures of themselves with certain dishes or beverages is just another platform for them to tell the world a little bit more about who they are and what items they buy.
Now, more food makers are catching on and selling products that will further establish that link between their product and a consumer’s sense of self. They know that shoppers will post on Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat or other social media outlets about what they are doing, and those messages are frequently shared and reshared —creating free buzz and publicity for the brand.
Most of the attention these new promotional items receive is positive for their respective brands. Cheetos executives knew when they launched their $20,000 orange sapphire and black and white diamond earring and ring set that there were few consumers who would buy expensive jewelry inspired by a snack food. Still, the set was sold, consumers posted about it online and the snack maker got some free airplay on both TV and radio news and chat shows.
Hidden Valley tied its unique items more closely to the company's signature product, ranch dressing. It also chose to make them more affordable. The ranch fountain, the savory cousin to the sweet chocolate fountain, retailed for $89 and has already sold out. The Hidden Valley bottle coozie is still available online for $20 for the true dressing enthusiast concerned about keeping the bottle cold on the dinner table.
Fun products like these will always draw some element of negative attention, but the naysayers are far outweighed by the fans that delight in having another way to show their enthusiasm for a brand. Companies do risk spreading themselves too thin or diminishing their core product brand with these goods, but it doesn’t appear that any major manufacturer has forgotten that they’re a food or beverage maker first, and fountain maker second.