Can you understand your ingredient list?

The term “clean label” is gaining momentum in the consumer goods and packaging industries. As shoppers continue to seek out healthier alternatives and more natural foods, it is no surprise that consumers are turning toward products that have what is referred to as clean labels. But what exactly is a clean label? That’s why we are here to help.

A clean label is an industry term that is defined by two main factors:

1 – The lack of harmful additives and ingredients in the product (generally you can recognize every word and pronounce it).

2 – The use of valuable certifications and call outs on the packaging itself (in other words organic, non-GMO, etc.)

Consumers are paying more and more attention to labels and using them as the primary way to determine the nutritional value of the product and whether or not they want to purchase it or consume it.

Ultimately, a clean label is an indicator that the product is a safer or healthier choice!

Here are a few components to evaluate:

Front of package certifications – Words such as “natural”, “non-GMO”, “organic” “vegan”, “kosher” and “free-from …” are markers that the product is clean. These indicators work to assure consumers that the item is safe and has been legally verified to meet a certain standard.

Ingredient lists – Reading the ingredient list is a sure way to determine the cleanliness of the label and product. A good rule of thumb is that if you have the ingredient in your kitchen or home, then it is probably safe. Think of it like this, your Grandma did not add BHT to preserve freshness. Ask yourself, “Can I pronounce each ingredient by name?” If the word is unpronounceable or sounds like it came from a chemistry lab, you may want to steer clear. The longer the list, the more likely it is to have additives and extras.

The story – Many products and companies have a unique story. For a clean label product, that story should focus on transparency, honesty, and safety. The story may focus on corporate responsibility, quality of ingredients, or methods used to produce/manufacture the item. Having a direct and transparent story (either available on the packaging, website, or through other channels) contributes to the overall cleanliness of the label.

Of course, there is no cut and dry answer as to what constitutes a “clean” label or otherwise. For instance, certain ingredients, methods, and additives are considered controversial and can play both good and bad roles in product formulation. What we do know is that more and more consumers are searching for clean labels, which means that manufacturers and suppliers may need to reevaluate their strategies.

What do you personally think about the rise of the clean label trend?

If you work in the consumer goods industry, how has your company adapted to the clean label trend?

Leave your comments below and let us know what you think!

Does “being average” work in business?

Every once in a while, you come a cross a blog that just resonates with you. A friend of mine sent me a blog post from Seth Godin the other day that did just that. The title was, “The one that makes things worse” and it talked specifically about that person in the group that wants to make things more average.

I thought Seth was right on point. In today’s market, we are starting to see a bigger split between those that differentiate and those that remain status quo. This is seen in technology, in TV and even in retail package design. There are those companies that want to play it safe, make decisions fast, and appeal to the masses- in other words; they don’t want to rock the boat. Then there are others that are on the opposite end of the spectrum. They want to stand out, have a personality, and if it alienates someone in the process, well that is just the way it will be!

Now you could argue both sides of this coin and probably win the short-term argument with each position. But it is the long term I want to focus on.

Take the new Cadillac car commercials that play incessantly every morning. Their tagline is, “Those that dare, drive the world forward.”#DareGreatly. It’s an interesting tagline and right on target.

So how would we apply this to retail products? We could apply it in product development, pushing our R&D teams to come up with better formulations, healthier formulations that will change the way we eat and our long-term health.

We could apply it to how we market – what if we took the time to market to specific demographic areas? A different targeted campaign, assortment and promotions for urban areas versus rural? What if we dared to really hear what our customers are saying through social media and actually engage them in the conversation?

What if we decided to actually push the boundaries on package design and take a stand? Not cue off the national brand, but build our own brand with personality, meaning and conviction?

It can all be done. It just takes the 5 C’s – courage, conviction, confrontation, cash and commitment.

Let us know what you think about “average”. Does it work for you and your business? Are you willing to put yourself out there? We’d love to hear from you. And if you are one of the people that as Cadillac says “Dare Greatly” – call us! We’d love to work with you.

4 best practices for social media

Whether you love it or hate it, social media is here to stay. For businesses, this has several implications. A digital presence is no longer enough; consumers are looking for brands with active and engaging social media accounts.

At Strategia Design, we’ve been working hard to ramp up our digital presence over the past few months. We’re proud to say we’ve made significant gains and have learned quite a few lessons along the way! Since we began in August, we’ve joined 2 additional platforms and have built up our digital following:

• Facebook page likes have increased by 37%
• Twitter following has increased by over 300%
• Instagram has grown over 120%
• Pinterest followers have increased by almost 300%
• And we’ve grown our LinkedIn following by 28%

Mastering social media is a process of trial and error, since each platform is unique and used for different purposes. We thought we’d share some of our best advice with you:

Consistency breeds trust. It is difficult to grow a following without consistent content and postings. It takes several months of steady, active use (and sometimes paid advertising) to build your page likes and follower engagement. Don’t quit, it just takes some time!

Track, track, track. You can’t grow if you don’t know your stats. Record your starting numbers and monitor growth each week. We use a white board in our office to track our numbers and keep our progress top of mind.

Be authentic & transparent. Show some emotion or personality in your postings in order to be authentic. If you use a scheduling tool, (we recommend Hootsuite!) don’t schedule the same post across multiple platforms – change up the wording and use hashtags when appropriate to avoid sounding auto-generated. You can repurpose content but don’t clone.

Celebrate your efforts. Celebrate victories, both big and small. Before you start posting, set goals or milestones that you hope to achieve. When you hit a certain number, celebrate with a treat, gift card, or other incentive to keep you motivated. It keeps the good juju coming!

What are your best social media tips? How do you navigate the different platforms? Comment below and share your favorite tips and success with us!

Of course, we’d love to connect with you on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Instagram. And if you need help ramping up your social media accounts – we’re here to help! Reach out to us at info@strategiadesign.com.

YouTube vs. Vimeo: which is best for your brand?

The appeal of video is undeniable. Simply put, videos are engaging, straightforward, and entertaining for viewers to watch. Video gives businesses the ability to transmit information or get a point across in a relatively short amount of time. In fact, video increases click-through rates by roughly 96%!

Two video sharing sites, YouTube and Vimeo, are largely responsible for popularizing video and making video sharing accessible to a majority of users. These sites have simplified the process and made it easier for mainstream users to understand. However, questions still remain. What are the major differences? Which platform should you be on to successfully promote your brand? We’re breaking down the differences and benefits of both platforms below:

YouTube:

• YouTube is very open, meaning that anyone can use it for (mostly) any topic. It is very easy to access and share videos, but this can pose a problem for users that want more privacy and control.
• YouTube is free. They make up for this by showing paid advertisements before and after videos. If you don’t mind the advertisements, then YouTube is a good option for you.
• YouTube provides SEO benefits, since the platform is owned by Google. However, if SEO is not important to you (or you don’t know how to properly optimize your video) then this feature doesn’t mean much.
• YouTube is user-friendly for people who are new to video. You can easily edit, change, and update your videos with the Video Manager tab on your account.

Vimeo:

• Vimeo is more advanced. Vimeo has a ton of design features and controls that allow you to create a more customized and professional-looking video.
• Vimeo has both free and paid accounts. However, the free account is limited. If you are looking for a platform to support your company or brand, the paid option will likely be your best choice.
• Vimeo has stronger privacy controls and no advertisements.
• Vimeo is a niche community of users. This platform is generally used by more serious video lovers – they will be more likely to give you helpful feedback or advice.

When it comes down to it, YouTube is the best option if you are looking for a user-friendly platform with a massive reach (they have over 1 billion unique visitors a month!) or if you are just starting out. However, if you desire a more professional-looking video or are representing a company or brand, Vimeo is better suited for your branding needs. If you just can’t decide, consider creating accounts with both platforms, as many people and companies do. No one says you are limited to one option!

What do you think? Which platform do you prefer for business and personal use? Leave your thoughts in the box below!

3 tips to get you camera-ready

The other day, my daughter and her friend spent the snow day at home making movies on our iPad. They created a story line, filmed each clip, uploaded it to iMovie, and created a trailer that looked both professional and fun. I can tell you that today, I still have no idea how to do that. I was really impressed!

For some of you who know me well, you know that I am not 100% comfortable in the spotlight, let alone on video camera. It has taken me a while to work up the courage and get comfortable with creating and putting out videos, social media updates, and communications for my business.

Over the last 6 months, as we’ve started putting out our newsletter and videos, I’ve become more comfortable with seeing myself on camera, reading from the teleprompter and hearing my voice on screen. I am amazed at how fast technology has changed and how fast I have had to adapt. No slow erosion, we are talking rapid light speed needed!

I can tell you it is scary, but I’ve grown a lot by doing this. Not only have I learned more and more about video production, but I’ve also learned how to do makeup (even though I haven’t perfected it yet), how to read from a teleprompter and more. I now admire the newscaster a little more than before and understand that in every profession, what looks easy, isn’t.

Here are a few points that have helped me get more comfortable:

• Practice, practice, practice – As with any presentation, the more you practice, the more natural you sound and the  more comfortable you are. The same is true when you are talking to a camera. We do several run-throughs so that I can get familiar with the breaks in copy and not sound like a robot. The practicing is fun and it makes for great bloopers.

• Don’t take yourself too seriously – You will most likely never get used to hearing yourself or seeing yourself on camera, so let it go. When talking to people face-to-face, we stumble on our words and make little mistakes. On camera, it doesn’t have to be perfect either. In fact, it makes you seem more real, authentic and natural. I can tell you I never like the way my hair looks or the way I sound, but if I waited until l did, I would never produce a single video.

• Invest in good equipment – Good lighting and a good microphone make all the difference. After 6 months, we are still playing with the lighting and are getting better. If you can, hire someone to help you get your set up right. If you can’t, then just experiment. The fun is in the learning process anyway!

Adjusting to the new types of marketing and digital media is still hard for me (and I’m am sure it is for some of you, too) but I encourage you to stick with it! Getting out there and embracing new communications is hard, but fun and I just wanted to share my experience with you. Stepping out of your comfort zone and joining the digital conversation will be very rewarding – if you just give it a chance.