Social Media Strategy for New Zealand F&B brand
Project: Back in 2016, I worked with a large agency in New Zealand as a social media strategist & consultant for a few of the brands under their portfolio. One of these brands was the beloved F&B brand, Wattie’s (Kiwis have been growing up with Wattie’s since 1934!).
The agency team required strategy advice into Wattie’s Facebook page to make the most of the community around this brand. Below is a summarised version of some of my recommendations (this would differ today due to Facebook being a very different platform back in 2016 so good to keep that in mind).
Results: Below is an analysis of some of their issues (circa 2016) along with some of my content strategy recommendations:
Facebook issues:
Generic/stock images - is there an opportunity to design quirky little characters? I’ve included a few examples later on.
Too branded/less logos on images would work better - but tone of voice & style of writing is fine as speaks to most demographics.
The recipe tips are great, even if it’s something weird - I was reading people freaking out over sausages & tomato sauce - use that, think of ways of doing an illustrated post of Wattie’s food scientists working on different flavours and with a little thought bubble of something humourous of ‘Hope the Facebook crowd likes it’ (this way you are clearly communicating to your fans that you as a brand value their opinion whilst still entertaining them on social media).
Definitely need continuous, consistent campaigns but on a small scale so can test along the way in terms of feedback and engagement.
Content Ideas:
What about a #SauceOnEverything campaign or series of posts? But get a little bit crazy so to entertain the fans and get them chatting. Can have eight or ten images designed that are consistent in terms of the design, look and feel in terms of colour, and have the little sauce packet or bottle somewhere in the image.
This is a community brand. So let’s draw the community into it. Not many blog posts or articles shared about food bloggers or vloggers experiencing Wattie’s yet perfect opportunity to build user generated content that can be shared and can have an impact on the brand. How about partnering with three New Zealand vloggers & having them do a Wattie’s Food Haul (if it can be a humourous on that would be great), recording on phone or their video cameras, and either uploading on their channels or sending to your team?
In terms of the questions being asked, how about turning it around so it’s a little bit more thoughtful? I sourced this example from IE and thought something similar could be done for Wattie’s in terms of asking insightful questions about the food industry, cooking, using their products - do you think the Facebook audience would respond to that?
I also researched a few other soup brands & their campaigns and the one that seems to be the most popular & effective is Heinz - they focused on the link between soup & being unwell - creating soup you can buy on FB and send to their unwell friend's doorstep (was a few years ago in 2011 when FB apps where all the rage so a bit different now with Facebook Mechanisms but I like to use as inspiration for building on the idea of using the brand & link it to an emotional component). It might be too complicated to focus on social commerce initially, so from a content strategy point of view, how about simplifying it to posting an image of a soup bowl with packet or can of soup and having it say on the image ‘’Get Well Soon....’’ and in the caption asking the fans to comment who they wish they could be making this soup for or who they wish they could share it with. Thus adding an emotional, caring element to the food product.
