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Food Marketing Nerds Restaurant and CPG Marketing Podcast

Food Marketing Nerds is an interview series with restaurant marketing experts, the best in CPG marketing, and entrepreneurs in the food and beverage industry. In this weekly podcast series, show host, Alex Oesterle, talks marketing, branding, and social media, diving into the hard and sometimes uncomfortable questions to uncover what's working and what isn't in world of food and beverage marketing. From CMO's to social media managers, the ideas and strategies will change the way you approach your CPG or restaurant marketing. If you're in the food and beverage space or intend to launch your own venture, these interviews are an amazing resource for practical tactics you can implement from day one. After co-founding a digital agency aimed at helping food and beverage brands boost sales to millennials, Alex started interviewing experts in the field to get insights into what makes the best food and beverage brands so successful. He created this podcast to share these interviews with you, and to help other food and beverage businesses achieve their goals in an actionable and entertaining way! Visit FoodMarketingNerds.com for show notes, interview transcripts, and free resources to help you achieve your restaurant marketing or CPG marketing goals.
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Feb 1, 2017

Today’s episode is a little longer than usual, but it's well worth taking the time to listen to the podcast. We’ve got Richard Cran on the show who is about to drop some serious advertising and branding wisdom on you.

Richard’s resume would make Don Draper jealous. Throughout Richard’s career, he’s worked with powerhouses like Taco Bell, Nike, Audi, Samsung, and Harley Davidson just to name a few.

Over the past several years, and most relevant to our restaurant marketing nerds out there, Richard was VP of Marketing Communications for Jack in the Box, where he headed up campaigns impressive enough to make it into Facebook’s quarterly earnings reports.

He’s joining us on the show today having recently started his own firm called AdHoc Advertising, which you’ll get to hear more about in a minute.

On this episode, you’ll learn

  • What iconic brands do to truly differentiate themselves
  • How to measure the direct impact of your social media campaigns
  • Why the high cost of working with influencers can actually be justifiable

And so much more.

If you'd like to get in touch with Richard, you can contact him via email at richard.cran@adhocadvertising.com.

So sit back, grab a pen and paper, and get ready to learn.

Jan 25, 2017

On the show today, we have Marie Miller, who handles social media and public relations for Four Peaks Brewing Company out of Tempe, AZ.

Marie brings a cool perspective to the table because she’s not only marketing for a brewery with multiple restaurant locations, but also a CPG brand with distribution all over the country. 

Today, we’re talking about emerging social media platforms and how you can leverage things like Facebook Live to grow your business. If you haven’t dabbled in Snapchat or are hesitant to test out live streaming apps, Marie offers some practical advice as someone who has been implementing and strategizing ways to build a national brand.

In this episode, you’ll learn

  • How to take a targeted approach to boost brands awareness with Snapchat geo-filters
  • What to look out for when getting started with Facebook Live
  • How to navigate the red tape that comes with marketing an age restrictive product

And a lot more… it’s a fun and lively episode and I think you’ll all enjoy it.

Jan 19, 2017

On the show today, we’ve got Kris Ford, Marketing Director at Deep River Snacks, a company on a mission that makes some delicious, better-for-you chips.

Deep River’s tagline is “We Give a Chip”, because they commit 10% of their net profits from each bag of chips sold to support a number of different charities. I love companies like this that use business as a vehicle to make the world a better place, and if you’re considering implementing a similar program, you’ll have plenty to learn from Kris.

In this episode, you’ll learn

  • How to effectively set yourself apart from the bigger players in the industry
  • What challenges come with committing a percentage of profit to charity
  • How to build a social media community around a bigger cause

And plenty more…

Jan 11, 2017

On the show today, we’ve got Jenny Burns, Marketing Director of Dang Foods.

If you’re not already familiar with Dang Foods, I’m sure you’ve seen their packaging and would recognize their line of toasted coconut chips on the end caps of most grocery stores around the country.

Dang Foods was the trailblazer in the coconut chip category and since their founding several years back, there have been plenty of similar products to hit the market. 

They’ve recently launched a new line of onion chips to compliment what they’re already doing, and Jenny’s experience in branding and marketing has been a big contributor to their recent success.

 In this episode with Jenny, you’ll learn:

  •  How to set yourself up for success with a strong merchandising strategy
  •  What challenges come with inventing your own product category
  •  How to scale the original vision of your brand across a growing team

 And plenty more…

 Jenny brings years of high level marketing experience to the table so you’ll have plenty of practical takeaways from this episode.

Jan 4, 2017

Is your content marketing moving product for your brand? If you're like most people, you probably have a blog, a social media presence, and little to no idea of what kind of return your content is delivering.

We took a week off for the holidays but the amount of knowledge today’s guest is about to drop on you will do plenty to make up for lost time.

We’ve got Julie Feickert on the show today, who is the owner of Cultures for Health. Julie is somewhat of accidental food entrepreneur, her words not mine, but her company has hands down, one of the best content marketing strategies in the natural products industry. 

Julie is a self taught ma ster of digital marketing and has built her company to 30 people over the past eight years. She’s got a great story and awesome products, and she’ll surely teach you a thing or 10 about content marketing.

On today’s episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to strategize your content marketing around new product launches
  • What CPG brands can be doing to increase their e-commerce sales
  • Why social media isn’t necessarily for everyone

And a ton more, so let’s go chat with Julie…

 

Dec 21, 2016

In today's episode, White Castle CMO, Kim Bartley, discusses how and why their iconic restaurants continue to thrive despite fierce competition in the burger space.

When talking about competitive landscapes, most industries have something in common. You’ve got a few big fish with huge marketing budgets, and then you have the challengers, waking up each day looking for innovative ways to compete for the same customers in the same market.

Some challengers lean on creative marketing, some invent unique business models, others are absolute fanatics about building customer relationships. Today’s guest, Kim Bartley, is the CMO for a company that's happened to have mastered all three of those things. Yep, we are talking about White Castle.

From tactical Facebook advertising to strategically providing a medium for "Cravers" to share about their love for the brand, White Castle has been building community and customer loyalty from the top down. 

In today’s interview, Kim explains how White Castle has been so successful in the face of steep competition and changing consumer tastes. She discusses restaurant marketing topics that apply to brands both big and small, including:

How can you leverage data to thrive in a market full of brands with huge ad budgets? (This is one of Kim's main teaching points in her lectures at Ohio State, and her answer is about as practical as any food and restaurant marketing advice you'll hear.)

What can marketing leadership do to build a more loyal fanbase? (A little preview to this answer...Kim herself makes time each day to respond directly to customer feedback about new products and store experiences. Listening to customers isn't just an afterthought.)

Did Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle influence the restaurants' sales?(Ok, this answer might not help your business, but I couldn't resist asking. Plus, it's fun getting to second-hand experience what transpired since the idea of the movie was first introduced.)

References:

Books:

  • Blue Ocean Strategy by Renée Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim

Links:

  • http://whitecastle.com/
  • http://facebook.com/whitecastle
Dec 14, 2016

Today, we’re talking with Pat Warner, VP of Culture at the Waffle House. For those of you who are not familiar with the Waffle House brand, they have over 1800 locations in 25 states — they are huge!

They’ve also got social media presence that gotten them coverage on Colbert, ESPN, and TMZ — just to name a few. Waffle House has a case study of how to turn customers and employees into advocates for the brand and a lot of it comes from using social media and how it is intended to be used.

 If you’re interested in strengthening your company’s culture and how to measure the impact of your social media efforts, you’ll to take a lot away from this interview with Pat. 

Pat’s job is to focus on building the company’s culture, while always staying true to the brand. Here are a few key topics we discuss about how Waffle House has grown to 1,850 locations in a less than in-your-face restaurant marketing approach:

How can large restaurants listen to employee and customer sentiment at scale?
(You’ll enjoy this answer, because the tools Waffle House uses are at the fingertips of all CPG and restaurant marketing professionals.)

What are the driving forces behind culture at a successful restaurant brand? (Pat believes that each restaurant has its own personality, and you’ll get to hear how his corporate office enables, and even facilitates the uniqueness and culture people keep coming back for.)

Can social media be used for both PR and restaurant marketing? (Short answer: Yes. Social media is a perfect extension of the discussions being had in your restaurant – as you’ll hear from Pat, leveraging those conversations can land you on the Colbert Report when done well.)

Books mentioned in the episode:
Getting Things Done by David Allen
Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
Crucial Conversations by Al Switzler, Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, and Ron McMillan

Links mentioned:
https://www.youtube.com/user/whregulars/feed
https://www.facebook.com/WaffleHouse
https://instagram.com/wafflehouseofficial
https://www.linkedin.com/company/waffle-house
Snapchat: @WaffleHousehttps://www.sprinklr.com/
https://www.google.com/alerts

Dec 7, 2016

On the show today, we have Eric Pierce, Director of Strategy and Insights at New Hope Natural Media. We’re talking 2017 trends that are affecting natural products and CPG companies. While this interview may be more geared toward our CPG marketing nerds out there, the macro and cultural shifts Eric covers really apply to anyone with a business model that relies on selling what people eat or drink.

Restaurant marketing nerds, there’s knowledge for you to be gained here too.

Eric and his team are extremely tapped in to the industry, and having just released their 2017 Trends and Opportunities Forecast, it was the perfect time to have him on the show. You'll get to hear about the report in this episode.

If you're interested in where the industry is headed, new categories of products that are starting to emerge, or are looking for potential areas of opportunity for your brand, you're going to take a lot away from our interview with Eric.

In our conversation, Eric tackles the latest trends and how as a marketer you can make the most of what's going on. Here are just a few topics we touch on in the interview:

What categories within natural products industry are most rife with opportunity in 2017 and beyond? (Eric and his team's ability to see and contextualize macro level data puts them in a unique position to catch trends ahead of the market. I think you'll enjoy hearing his answer to this question.)

What are the biggest 2017 trends food and beverage companies should watch out for?  (With their 2017 Trends and Opportunities Forecast hot off the press, Eric shares findings from what he and his team have been working on.)

What are some of the driving forces behind the shifts in consumer taste? (The food industry is changing, and Eric connects the dots between a few trends in technology that may have a correlation to why we demand different food than we did just a decade ago.)

Links discussed in the episode:

Books:

Blue Ocean Strategy
The Dorito Effect by Mike Schatzker
The Third Plate by Dan Barber
The End of Plenty by Joel K. Bourne
Gaining Ground by Forrest Pritchard
The Soil Will Save Usby Kristin Ohlson
The Good Gut by Erica Sonnenburg and Justin L. Sonnenburg
The Hidden Half of Nature by Anne Biklé and David Montgomery
Life's Engines by Paul Falkowski
Links:
http://newhope.com/
http://nextforecast.com/
Food, Inc. (documentary)
Fat Sick and Nearly Dead (documentary)
http://foodmarketingnerds.com/beyond-traditional-food-marketing-will-schafer/
http://whatsnextinnatural.com/

Nov 30, 2016

Over the past several years, marketing to millennials has been a hot topic of conversation. By most definitions, millennials are anyone born between the early 80’s to the late 90’s, best known for their lov of snapchat, obsession with traveling, and most importantly, their massive spending power and large makeup of the US work force.

So, It’s no surprise that many brands have shifted marketing budget to engage this generation – whether through relevant product offerings, on trend design, cause marketing, or in the case of today’s guest, it’s pulling together all the above.

We’re talking with Amanda Sains, Marketing Director of B’More Organic, about their recent rebrand and cause marketing done right. Just a little back story, B More Organic has donated over $600k to an awesome cause you’ll get to hear about in a minute.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

  • How to communicate your company’s mission without sounding preachy
  • What brands should be doing with their packaging to appeal to millennials
  • Why genuine cause marketing is much more than a campaign

And a lot more…

Nov 16, 2016
When it comes to the companies who win awards for product innovation, the first thought that comes to mind is probably some hot new startup on the bleeding edge of an emerging trend. And while that might be true in some cases, B&G Foods is no start up by any stretch of the imagination, and they’ve been reinventing some of the most classic brands in the CPG industry lately, picking up awards while they’re at it . Today we’re talking with Juv Marchisio, Marketing Director of B&G Foods, about innovating both from a product development and marketing standpoint with recent examples from the brands in his portfolio, like Cream of Wheat and Ortega. On this episode, you’ll learn: How to take an analytical look at growth opportunities for your brand Where and when to start in generating demand for a new product What characteristics make food companies an attractive acquisition And much more…
Nov 9, 2016
Over the past several years, the beef jerky category has been on fire with investments from big money players and major acquisitions, and today, we’re talking with Steele Meisinger, te brand manager for one of the companies that started it all: Krave Jerky. After being acquired by Hershey in 2015, Krave has been growing like crazy, and it’s allowed them to do some amazing things in the marketing department. And you’re gonna get to hear about a few of those things from Steele herself. On today’s episode, you’ll learn: Where to start when approaching a truly 360 degree campaign How to integrate native advertising into your marketing strategy What it was like working with Michael Phelps as an Olympic sponsor And much more…
Oct 24, 2016
I don’t know about you but it feels like every other week, there's yet another food company being acquired by an industry beast for 10’s and even 100’s of millions of dollars. It’s encouraging for food entrepreneurs, knowing that many of these companies started with good old-fashioned, grassroots marketing. But does that type of approach even work anymore? Well today’s guest will be the first to say that, yes, it absolutely does. Hannah Kuhlberg is the Bean Queen, aka handler of many things including marketing, for a company called Better Bean Co. She’s been using some really creative, not to mention super effective, ways to leverage this new landscape of marketing and PR to grow her business, one cheeky grassroots effort at a time. On today’s episode, you’ll learn: What strategies work to drive measurable ROI with in-store demos Where to start out to build a successful brand ambassador program How to indirectly help customers find your product on the shelves And much more…
Oct 17, 2016
Today we’re talkin' Hummus. Hummus has been around for THOUSANDS of years, and yet, Hope Foods, makers of Hope Hummus, has redefined the category as we know it. On the show today, we’re gonna be chatting with Will Burger, Director of Marketing for Hope Foods, about how a group of friends went from making hummus in their kitchen at home, to now, still a group of friends making hummus for stores all over the country, all on a shoestring budget. On today’s episode, you’ll learn: How to get buyers and customers talking to each other about your products What you should be doing on social media to build awareness when you’re entering a new market Where to look for inspiration for launching new flavors that people will love And much more…
Oct 7, 2016
Is it possible to change the way people think about a food they’ve loved their entire lives? Today’s guest will tell you that it isn’t easy, but with a great product, and outstanding marketing, it is possible. Will Schafer is the Director of Marketing at Beyond Meat, a company that has been changing the game around plant based protein. And it’s not just vegetarians and vegans, carnivores are embracing their products and for good reason, because they taste exactly like actual meat. In our interview Will talks about how Beyond Meat has been successful in pushed back against conventional norms, especially with their newest product, the Beyond Burger. Even though Beyond Meat has created its own category, the marketing and social media strategies we discuss can be super effective for any food or beverage company launching a new product. In this episode, we talk about: How to introduce a product to a demographic outside your core customers Why social media is so effective for revolutionary food brands How to create demand before your products even launch And a ton more…
Sep 30, 2016
What does it really take to challenge the status quo in the CPG industry? Some might say time, or creativity, others might say strategy. Well today’s guest would likely say, “all of the above”. If you’ve never heard of Scott Jenson before this episode, then surely you’ve heard of his first food startup, Stubbs Barbeque sauce. Scott Jenson co-founded Stubbs BBQ sauce in the early ‘90s, which he sold just a few years ago. Being the pioneer that he is, Scott is now the CEO of Rhythm Superfoods and has his hands in some other great ventures you’ll hear in this episode. In this episode with Scott, you’re gonna learn: - Where your marketing focus needs to be to increase sell-through rate - How often you should be updating your packaging - Why going after different retail channels at once can backfire - And a whole lot more… For links mentioned in the episode or for a full recap, go to FoodMarketingNerds.com.
Sep 23, 2016
What’s up guys, this is Alex Oesterle and thank you for tuning into episode 9 of Food Marketing Nerds. We’ve all heard stories of food startups that have achieved insane growth in a short period of time. If you’re anything like me, those stories leave you thinking, Ok so I know what they achieved, but how did they go about doing it? Today’s guest is Lizzi Ackerman, who is the COO of the all-natural pancake mix brand, Birch Benders. Over the past two years, Birch Benders has gone from a distribution of just under 20 stores to now over 5000. And after talking with Lizzi, I can tell you that it wasn’t luck, but smart, well thought out strategy that led to Birch Benders’ success. A lot of which, you’ll get to hear from Lizzi. In this episode, we’ll be discussing: How your distribution strategy will make or break you Where to focus marketing budget when funds are limited What tools Birch Benders uses to stay lean And many more insights from an entrepreneur who is practicing what she preaches.
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