How to Grow Your Food Business
In the modern age, how can food businesses expand and navigate a world that is always changing in terms of tastes and demographics? Building a brand and a marketing plan is no longer as cut and dried as it used to be.
For example, with the growth of e-commerce, a simple food distribution strategy is no longer enough. To reach all corners of the globe, your food business needs to appeal to multiple markets and multiple diverse tastes at once. When you work in one specific niche, how easy is it, necessarily, to cover as many bases as possible?
Green Seed is a team of multi market specialists that have helped many big-name food businesses find their feet in overseas markets. And a fair few small and medium-sized players too. Here are just a few tried-and-tested ideas, and strategies, that could help to propel your product range to a larger global audience.
Being Careful with Branding
Rule number one for business branding is, of course, to stay true to who you are and what you do. Consistency is vital. However, when you are growing a food business to reach overseas markets, you will need to consider how to modify your approach to really cut through to consumers.
You need to think carefully about how your brand may appeal overseas. Your target demographic may behave differently than they do in the UK. Cultural differences can make or break brands abroad, and you will need to translate more than just the words and phrases you use in your messaging and ingredients on your pack.
A talented food marketing agency will help you cross-cultural borders with care and respect. The key to transforming and expanding your brand is staying true to who you are and what you do while respecting new customers. This is a balance that isn’t always easy on your own.
Identify Bespoke Needs
One of the best distribution strategies for the food industry is to travel the ‘bespoke’ route. This, crucially, means you should tailor your brand and your food line to specific markets wherever you travel. As mentioned above, this can include considering cultural and societal differences.
Adaptability is key in a world which is getting ever smaller. If you are keen to expand your enterprise, your reach and your revenue, you must be ready to appeal to new markets on their doorstep. Green Seed stands by an approach which revolves around flexibility on your side, not on the customers. It’s key to set up a bespoke plan of action for each market- without this you will not appear relevant to the marketplace.
But we also understand it’s about doing it in a sensible way, without wholesale changes, making relevant adjustments to boost chances of success without incurring prohibitive costs.
Immerse Yourself
To be able to successfully expand your food business, and to reach out overseas, you must be willing to immerse yourself in new cultures and new ideas. This means undertaking research of what it is that people consume, and what people expect from brands like yours. Making assumptions simply won’t do.
You need to undertake market research, and to be willing to learn. Any agency willing to offer a solid food distribution strategy will work hard to help you find your feet. Green Seed’s local teams are mother-tongue local employees who understand the way consumers and retail and foodservice buyers think. That can give you a massive head start. And Green Seed are there for you to do the detailed research and planning to create a successful market entry plan.
You could find smart new ways to bring value to new audiences. What are you doing on your home soil that could address gaps in other markets?
Looking Ahead
There are no specific ways to grow your food business which are common to all brands. All businesses are different at their core, but having prior experience of what works best can offer you a great help. Working with an agency such as Green Seed, you will be able to find your niche. We work hard to identify distribution strategies which can tailor to specific markets and demographics.
If you are keen to expand your food business in 2020 and beyond, contact a representative at Green Seed today and let us help you draft the perfect plan of action.