Keeping up with the kids
01 April 2010 14:30
Gill McShane
If you want to create a buzz around your product and communicate with consumers in the 21st century you have to tap into the cyber world. It’s as simple as that. We’ve had the press, radio and television. Today’s technologically sophisticated consumers are looking for something more. Enter online social networking…
It seems the public has an overwhelming enthusiasm for web-based interaction. Wherever you go these days, people are blogging their opinion on Twitter, updating their status on Facebook, publishing photos on Flickr, uploading videos to YouTube, listening to music on MySpace, playing Xbox Live with gamers across the globe. Need I go on?
While I’m certainly no online junkie (frankly, I don’t know where people find the time to tweet their every movement), I am a big fan of the web – it’s the place I go to for information, where I do most of my shopping and the easiest way to keep up-to-date with my friends. And, yes, I’ll admit it, I quite like Facebook.
But whether you’re a light or heavy user, there’s no denying that the Internet and its social networking platforms is an invaluable way in which to upload your message and filter it among a maximum number of potential supporters – something, it seems, the produce business, particularly the fresh-cut sector, has noticed too.
In the last 12 months, there has been a wave of web-based innovation within the convenience sector, illustrated by our cover story. As companies seek out new and original ways of connecting with consumers and boosting their competitive edge, you might even venture to say that the fresh-cut industry is taking social media and web-based marketing to a new level.
Today, all of the big produce firms (and some of the not so prominent) have profiles on Twitter and Facebook. Many have also launched specialized websites with both educational and interactive features – from recipes, health guides and traceability tools to games, chat rooms, blogs, videos and photo sharing.
And the proof is in the pudding. For those firms who have built up relationships with online communities, their consumer-targeted messages are reportedly boosting sales. Even Barack Obama used Facebook to promote his presidential campaign. And, not to be outdone, Americafruit Magazine has a profile on Twitter too. In fact, I’ve just tweeted a sneak preview of this issue’s cover to our fans! So much for not succumbing to the technological age…
If you want to create a buzz around your product and communicate with consumers in the 21st century you have to tap into the cyber world. It’s as simple as that. We’ve had the press, radio and television. Today’s technologically sophisticated consumers are looking for something more. Enter online social networking…
It seems the public has an overwhelming enthusiasm for web-based interaction. Wherever you go these days, people are blogging their opinion on Twitter, updating their status on Facebook, publishing photos on Flickr, uploading videos to YouTube, listening to music on MySpace, playing Xbox Live with gamers across the globe. Need I go on?
While I’m certainly no online junkie (frankly, I don’t know where people find the time to tweet their every movement), I am a big fan of the web – it’s the place I go to for information, where I do most of my shopping and the easiest way to keep up-to-date with my friends. And, yes, I’ll admit it, I quite like Facebook.
But whether you’re a light or heavy user, there’s no denying that the Internet and its social networking platforms is an invaluable way in which to upload your message and filter it among a maximum number of potential supporters – something, it seems, the produce business, particularly the fresh-cut sector, has noticed too.
In the last 12 months, there has been a wave of web-based innovation within the convenience sector, illustrated by our cover story. As companies seek out new and original ways of connecting with consumers and boosting their competitive edge, you might even venture to say that the fresh-cut industry is taking social media and web-based marketing to a new level.
Today, all of the big produce firms (and some of the not so prominent) have profiles on Twitter and Facebook. Many have also launched specialized websites with both educational and interactive features – from recipes, health guides and traceability tools to games, chat rooms, blogs, videos and photo sharing.
And the proof is in the pudding. For those firms who have built up relationships with online communities, their consumer-targeted messages are reportedly boosting sales. Even Barack Obama used Facebook to promote his presidential campaign. And, not to be outdone, Americafruit Magazine has a profile on Twitter too. In fact, I’ve just tweeted a sneak preview of this issue’s cover to our fans! So much for not succumbing to the technological age…
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