Marketing snapshot - Hortlink 2017, edition 2

This Hort Innovation Sweetpotato Fund marketing snapshot has been taken from Hort Innovation’s Hortlink 2017, edition 2.

The Australian Sweetpotatoes inaugural marketing campaign began in early March. Initial activity has included…

Developing a suite of sweetpotato assets

The consumer-facing website www.australiansweetpotatoes.com.au has been established as a go-to spot for all things Australian Sweetpotatoes. The site includes innovative recipe ideas, health and nutrition information, tips and other sweetpotato information to inspire Australian consumers to supercharge their meals with sweetpotatoes.

Recipes that have been developed also feature in hard-copy recipe cards and a booklet specifically targeting families.

Meanwhile, the campaign to date has produced some amazing cooking videos showing how easy to prepare and versatile sweetpotatoes are. The videos are short, highly stylised and clearly branded, and will be pushed out through web and social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook (www.facebook.com/australiansweetpotatoes), Instagram and recipe and cookbook community MyFoodBook (www.myfoodbook.com.au).

Showcasing at the Sydney Royal Easter Show

Running from April 6 to 19, the Sydney Royal Easter Show was a great opportunity to showcase Australian Sweetpotatoes, with more than 922,000 people walking through the gates.

The sweetpotato stand was located immediately inside one of the main entrances to the Woolworths Fresh Food Dome, with the exhibit and the Australian Sweetpotato logo clearly visible to showgoers outside of the pavilion too. Wicker baskets holding sweetpotatoes were displayed across the stand’s counters, and brand ambassadors wore Australian Sweetpotato branded hats and aprons.

The ambassadors prepared and handed out samples of two different dishes – sweetpotato fritters and sweetpotato fries – explaining how to prepare them step-by-step. While communicating the key messages of the Supercharge Your Meal campaign and handing out recipe brochures, the ambassadors also promoted the sweetpotato dishes as a healthy alternative to the food normally on offer at the Easter Show.

A total of 35,000 samples and 30,000 brochures and recipe cards were distributed over the 14-day period of the Show.

In-store promotions

From March 6 to April 1, Australian Sweetpotato ambassadors with branded aprons and caps prepared and offered shoppers sweetpotato chips within 107 Coles and 106 Woolworths stores across the country.

A total of 31,982 interactions with consumers were had and 24,542 samples given out during the period, with ambassadors communicating the health benefits and uses of sweetpotatoes, while distributing Supercharge Your Meal recipe brochures and encouraging purchase.

The in-store demonstrations provided some insights into shoppers’ minds, with the following statistics revealed:

• 23 per cent of shoppers were unaware of the benefits of sweetpotatoes before the demonstration
• 49 per cent already buy sweetpotatoes for their health benefits and nutritional value
• 63 per cent said everyone in their household likes sweetpotatoes
• 76 per cent preferred sweetpotatoes over potatoes
• 25 per cent found price a potential barrier to purchase.