Marketing in the Food Industry
This blog discusses how the food industry is shaped by marketing, highlighting the relationship between consumer behaviour and branding strategies. Understanding the psychology of food marketing reveals how brands tailor their messages to resonate with consumers’ desires and emotions, often prioritising comfort over health. For instance, Tesco’s successful rebranding efforts demonstrate the power of strategic marketing in capturing consumer interest, while other rebranding attempts have failed. The rise of social media and influencer marketing has also transformed how food products are promoted, and how trends are overtaking. As we look at why healthy food ads are rare, it’s clear that marketing greatly influences our food choices and how we view different products.
Key Topics Covered
The Psychology of Food Marketing: Understanding Consumer Behaviour
Branding Strategies for Food Products; Tesco’s rebranding; Rebranding fails
The Impact of Social Media, Influencer Marketing, and Food Trends on Consumer Behaviour
Ever Noticed a Healthy Food Ad? Here’s Why You Might Not Have
The Psychology of Food Marketing: Understanding Consumer Behaviour
The psychology of food marketing has shifted dramatically in recent years, as brands increasingly tap into emotional and psychological triggers to influence buying decisions. Today’s consumers are more health conscious, socially aware, and driven by experiences rather than simple product attributes like taste or price. Marketing strategies now emphasise emotional connections—using nostalgia, comfort, and well being as selling points—while appealing to values like sustainability and ethical sourcing. Techniques like limited time offers and personalised targeted ads also play on our psychological tendencies, driving impulse purchases. This manipulation shapes consumer behaviour, often pushing us toward decisions that align less with need and more with want, emotional appeal, and convenience.
Some Effective Marketing Strategies: How Psychological Triggers Influence and Shape Consumer Behaviour
Emotional Appeal—Ads often trigger emotions like nostalgia or excitement, leading to purchases based on feelings rather than logic.
Urgency—Limited time offers and exclusive deals create a fear of missing out (FOMO), leading us to make quick, impulsive choices.
Influence—Seeing others use a product makes us want to follow the trend.
Credibility—Endorsements by celebrities or experts increases trust and likelihood of purchase.
Decision Fatigue—Too many options can overwhelm us, leading to quicker, less rational decisions.
Branding Strategies for Food Products
Branding strategies in the food industry are vital for attracting consumers and driving sales. An impactful example of this includes Tesco's transformation from "Tesco Value" to "Tesco Everyday Value" to their latest tertiary brands such as Stockwell, Creamfields, Ms Molly’s, and Hearty Food Co., which illustrates a shift toward a more appealing brand identity that emphasises quality alongside affordability. This rebranding included a significant upgrade in packaging, moving from less visually appealing designs to brighter colours and eye catching graphics that enhance shelf presence. As consumers, we instinctively associate colourful packaging and catchy brand names with higher quality and value, often believing that products in vibrant designs are better to those in plain packaging. This psychological bias drives our purchasing decisions, leading us to choose products based on looks rather than actual quality or price, which leads us to ask ourselves, are we paying more for the same product?
Effective Strategies Often Include:
Appealing packaging designs—Including vibrant colours and graphics to stand out on shelves and catch consumers' attention.
Storytelling—Brands that communicate their values—such as sustainability, quality ingredients, or local sourcing.
Uniform Branding—Consistent logos, fonts, and messaging. Some failed rebranding includes; X (Formerly known as Twitter) and Tropicana’s redesigned packaging.
Images sourced from: Tesco Everyday Value Corn Flakes (Mirror), Tesco Corn Flakes (Tesco), Tropicana (Creme de Mint), Twitter logos (Digidop)
The Impact of Social Media, Influencer Marketing, and Food Trends on Consumer Behaviour
Social media and influencer marketing have dramatically reshaped how consumers engage with food products, making trends and recommendations very influential. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube allow influencers and brands to showcase food in visually appealing ways, driving viral trends that influence purchasing decisions. A great example of this is the thousands of sponsored videos featuring Bloom’s Greens Powder. Food trends such as plant based diets and nutritional products gain momentum quickly through influencer marketing and social sharing. Consumers are more likely to try new products or adopt certain eating habits when they see them promoted by trusted influencers. This trend has shifted the food and health industry toward more personalised and interactive marketing, where consumer engagement is driven by visual appeal, convenience, and the influence of popular personalities.
Ever Noticed a Healthy Food Ad? Here’s Why You Might Not Have
Despite the growing interest in health and wellness, healthy food ads are surprisingly rare. One reason is that many companies prioritise marketing highly processed, sugary, or fatty foods, which are often more profitable and appealing to consumers. These products tend to have larger advertising budgets, overshadowing healthier options. Additionally, healthy foods often lack the eye catching packaging and bold flavours that attract attention in supermarkets. There’s also a cultural emphasis on convenience and taste, leading to a preference for fast, easy to prepare meals over fresh, wholesome ingredients. As a result, you may find that healthy food options are underrepresented in ads, making it easy to overlook them altogether.
Reasons Healthy Foods Are Often Overlooked in Marketing:
Consumer Habits—Many of us prioritise convenience and taste over health, leading brands to invest in products that meet these demands.
Trends—Marketing often follows food trends, and healthier options may not always align with what’s currently popular in social media and influencer culture.
Consumer Opinions—Many people associate unhealthy foods with comfort and celebration, while healthy eating can be seen as restrictive or less enjoyable.
Target Audience—Ads often focus on demographics that are more likely to buy processed and unhealthy foods.