The Real Risk When Marketing a Healthy Brand

We have been working with health & wellness professionals for 20 years—both those who practice in the community and those that work in the food industry.

That's why it is always such a pleasure for us to go to the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics' annual Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo. Not only do we get to see long-time friends and colleagues, but we get an opportunity to hear directly from registered dietitians in the food industry about the challenges and opportunities they are facing.

One common theme we heard this year in catching up with colleagues and clients was: "How do I get the brand team to understand that marketing to consumers through health & wellness professionals doesn't detract from, but rather adds to, their core consumer marketing strategy?"

Brand teams are often wary of marketing to and through health & wellness professionals out of concern that any communication outside the standard brand matrix will detract from their core brand building—or worse yet, undermine their brand. In fact, the opposite is true. Health professionals add credibility and trust to core brand building activities.

As we are constantly saying, health-conscious consumers want more information, not less. A well-honed brand communicated through advertising can be effective in building awareness and interest in a product, but for a health-conscious consumer, understanding the what, how and why of that product is what seals the deal when it comes to health & wellness. So, not only does marketing to and through health & wellness professionals bring the features and benefits of your healthy brand to life in meaningful and transparent ways, but it serves as brand building in its own right—brand building focused on a unique consumer that is driven by the health & wellness attributes of your product.

Marketing to and through health & wellness professionals introduces your healthy brand to a segment of consumers who may not be seeing your targeted brand messaging. This is an untapped marketing opportunity that can coexist alongside your primary brand messaging with just some subtle “tweaks” to provide that additional health & wellness education and information that health-conscious consumers are looking for. Think of it as a primary strategy against a secondary target.

The bottom line is that consumers trust conversations with health & wellness professionals more than any other source of nutrition guidance. If your healthy food brand has the nutritional bona fides, then not activating consumers through health & wellness professionals is leaving money on the table. Building relationships of trust and credibility with health & wellness professionals drives branded recommendations of your product, leading to trial and loyalty.

No one is suggesting that marketing to and through health & wellness professionals should become your only marketing strategy. By all means, continue to build and communicate your brand to consumers through all of the myriad channels available to you. Talk about the aspirational aspects of the brand, reinforce the brand values, and speak directly to your core target consumer.

But when it comes to consumers who can benefit from the nutritional value of your healthy food brand, you need to be flexible enough to seize that opportunity by communicating to those consumers in a trusted way that deepens product knowledge and builds upon their desire for specific health & wellness benefits.

If you're marketing a healthy food brand, the real risk is ignoring the vital role health & wellness professionals play in driving the purchase decisions of health-conscious consumers.