According to a recent article in USA Today, “simple” will mean to consumers in 2010 what “cheap” means in 2009. In fact, the move to simplify is already underway, because “Simple is better,” as stated in the first line of the article: “Marketers such as Starbucks discover that simple sells.”
The gist: consumers like food products that contain as few ingredients as possible…as long as those few ingredients look and feel healthier…and as long as they can pronounce them. Interesting premise. Noteworthy trend.
“Consumers these days want to know what’s in the stuff they eat and drink–they want to know what’s not.” Labels that include additives like MSG and unpronounceable ingredients like chemical preservatives are causing more concern among consumers. Widespread allergic reactions in an overwhelming proliferation of processed foods are spurring much of this. A growing desire to choose healthier foods is another.
Some savvy marketers are using this feedback to cut down on the number of ingredients in many of their products. They’re also revisiting what those ingredients are and making changes to respond to consumer demands.
Ironically, the concept of “five simple ingredients” became the hot marketing tool behind the launch of a new Haagen-Dazs ice cream line. While we know that “milk, cream, sugar, eggs and one natural flavor” are hardly the hallmark of a “healthy” product, consumers still responded favorably.
After all, these are five pure ingredients, aren’t they? No chemical gobbledygook here. Then, the company posted its five ingredients right on the packaging of its new seven product roll-out. Result? The new simple product line now accounts for 10% of HD’s overall business. Not bad.
The concept was so successful, a whole queue of food companies have gotten into the “simple” act.
- Starbucks has reconfigured its food offerings by simplifying each product’s ingredients. Its Vivanno fruit smoothies now tout four ingredients: milk, juice, banana and natural protein fiber powder.
- Kraft’s Triscuit brand has embraced the new trend. Its ingredients: wheat, salt and oil. Soybean oil has also replaced the less healthy palm oil.
- Kraft’s Back to Nature line will debut a Triple Ginger cookie in January containing whole grain wheat, cane juice, crystallized ginger, ground ginger and ginger extract. Pretty healthy ingredients for a cookie product.
- Campbell’s Select Harvest soups offer limited ingredients and explain what each one is. The line doesn’t use any artificial colorings either.
- Beech-Nut Let’s Grow toddler foods put a “No Junk” promise on its packaging. “No” meaning no added sugars, modified starches or fillers.
I expect this trend to grow as more and more mainstream food companies take a page from their natural product industry counterparts. By simplifying ingredients, and choosing healthier ingredient alternatives, companies are responding to growing consumer concerns. Furthermore, by explaining the ingredients they are using, there seems to be a push for more transparency. And that has to be a good thing. Right?
Questions:
- Are you a label reader when you purchase foods and beverages? Have you deliberately chosen one product over another due to fewer, “cleaner” ingredients?
- Do you prefer fewer, simpler ingredients in the products you purchase, if you have a choice?
- Have you ever written or called a company to request they simplify or eliminate ingredients from a favorite product? Or have you purchased specific products in natural food stores rather than trying to find a cleaner choice in a supermarket?
I’d love to hear from you.
Not only am I a label reader, Ted, I am perennially CHEAP!
That word has no negative connotation in my books. As a consumer, I want value and quality whenever I can get it.
However, if value means purchasing products with poor ingredients, then the value disappears. Last week, my husband purchased four boxes of Kellogg’s Raisin Bran at $1.25 each. Great deal, but the cereal contains high fructose corn syrup so the boxes went back.
Loved your comments, Elaine. Mind you: I didn’t say “cheap” was out, I just added “simple” as the latest consumer buzz word. To your point: wouldn’t you prefer being able to buy Raisin Bran with fewer, simpler ingredients to read? The point: consumers don’t want to keep buying products with long lists of unpronounceable ingredients that sound suspiciously unhealthy. Great catch on the HFCS, BTW. Consumers are voting “no” on high fructose corn syrup more than ever.
Thanks, Elaine, for sharing your insights.
It’s been my experience that Trader Joe’s is pretty good at this concept but there’s always room for improvement. As for Haagen Dazs, I think they killed my favorite “light” line in favor of the “five” concept. Sadly, I cannot eat ice cream with reckless abandon now…
Good insight, Paul. Agreed about Trader Joe products. Of course, when you specialize in selling natural, organic and gourmet foods, they generally have fewer ingredients. Cleaner ingredients, too; that is, no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, etc. Love the comment about the ice cream. Try Dreyer’s light varieties. They’re pretty good. That’s Edy’s on the east coast, folks.
Thanks, Paul, for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate it.
I am, and always have been, a label reader. The fact that many brands are making that easier is, to me, simply wonderful.
Now, as a marketer, you have to step back and think about things a little differently. By simplifying their products, are these companies, in turn, simplifying their marketing teams job? Is it easier to sell a simpler, cleaner product?
Tessa Carroll
http://www.blogs.vbpoutsourcing.com
Hi Tessa,
Thanks for weighing in here. You’ve asked a provocative question. In my opinion, simplifying things in a complicated world ought to endear the brands that do this to consumers. Having said that, people are looking for cleaner, not only simpler products. If a food product lists only five ingredients, but they’re all artificial and chemical, that’s not so good given a savvier, more educated consumer. Whenever simpler + cleaner can be accomplished at the same time, I think marketers will have winners on their hands. Does this make marketers’ jobs irrelevant? I don’t think so. If anything, keeping up with today’s consumer is more challenging than ever. Thus, I think wise, insightful marketers are more necessary than ever.
Good stuff, Tessa. Thanks again.
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