CPG Blog

Parents Seek Healthy Ways to Send the Kids Back to School

2009-07-02T06:58:00.000-07:00

posted by Guest Blogger: Heather Dougherty, Research Director at Hitwise

School doors have barely shut for the summer, yet the Back to School season is almost upon us once again. One of the big challenges facing parents is making sure that kids are eating healthy lunches and snacks – especially for the picky kids that frown upon fruits and vegetables. Resolutions for the New Year always drive a spike in search activity in January, but we also see an uptick in searches for ‘healthy snacks’ during the Back to School season as can be seen here from Google Trends.

Digging deep into search behavior:

How can we be confident that parents are indeed searching for healthy snacks for their kids and not for themselves? Upon looking at the top 10 search terms containing the words 'healthy snacks', half of them include the term 'kid; or 'school', a strong indicator that parents look to the web for help in figuring out what to feed their children.

Hitwise investigates deeper into the search terms containing 'healthy snacks for kids':

In addition to snack & lunch ideas, search queries highlight that parents are also seeking help for events like birthday parties, football games and other group activities. Today most parents are faced with tighter shopping budgets along with the challenges of providing a healthy diet. At Hitwise, we have observed that visits to websites offering coupons increased 39% for the week ending June 20, 2009 as compared to the previous year. Together these trends showcase that marketers should be providing offerings that combine healthy eating with cost-savings with group activities.

Where are the clicks going to?

When seeking help in planning healthy snacks, during the last Back to School season, 38% of searchers turned to websites in the Health & Medical category in Sept 2008, particularly 'Information and Wellbeing'.

A closer look at the Industries that received traffic from the search term ‘healthy snacks’ reveals that 'Blogs and Personal Websites' experienced the most significant growth, up 11% from Sept 2007. This indicates how consumers are now looking beyond just health websites but to other consumers like themselves for advice around healthy snacking. We think an opportunity then exists for brands to get their messages about a new healthy product in front of consumers in a blog environment. We even see that Brands & Manufacturers also experienced an increase of +0.66% from the same time frame one year ago.

We speculate that there will be an increase in clicks to brand websites this coming school season since many brands now incorporate both the Health aspect of a product as well as the viral element of blogging or voicing opinions on their sites - the best of both worlds.

If consumers display willingness to visit the websites of Brands and Manufacturers during the quest for food solutions, are there opportunities through paid search to attract these parents? Among those searches for ‘healthy snacks’, the share of paid traffic generated by all variations of 'healthy snacks' was 12% for the 12 weeks ending September 28, 2008, indicating plenty of room for healthy competition for this keyword amongst marketers during the Back to School season.

For additional search driven insights from Hitwise, please visit ilovedata.com.

The Role of Search in Integrated Marketing

2009-06-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

It is self-evident that we are living in a time of extraordinary economic upheaval. To succeed in this uncertain environment – and be in position for success when the world economy stabilizes – marketers must embrace the concept of smart, measurable, integrated marketing.
So how should a marketer take advantage of online to encourage and measure a promotional (or any) campaign’s success? Following a few basic rules is a great way to start. Part one of this two-part series will cover the basics, while part two will take a deeper dive into each section.

Rule #1: Fish Where the Fish Are

Traditional marketing relied on a wide net approach. Media like television were (and are) great at reaching many people, but even when you narrow the focus by targeting to certain demographics, advertising messages would reach a great many people with no interest in the product. (This sort of waste is what John Wannamaker meant when he said that he knew half of his advertising budget was wasted, but he didn’t know which half.)
The advent of online media, though, allowed companies to be where their customers are and to take advantage of their interests at relevant points of engagement. A key component of reaching these already interested customers is search advertising. For instance, this year, for the first time ever, more people searched for “coupons” than for “Britney”!

Rule #2: Be a Savvy Search Marketer

The role of search in direct response is obvious; you want to be there to scoop up demand when it’s expressed. However, what’s usually underestimated is the effect search advertising can have on brand building. As companies work harder and harder to communicate the value of their brand to target audiences (and as consumers choose how they spend each dollar more carefully than ever) it is paramount that marketers ensure their brands are present when a consumer is searching – whether searching for the brand itself or searching related terms. For instance, if you’re selling baseball bats, you not only want to be sure to appear when consumers search for your brand name, but also when they search for “baseball,” “baseball bat” and maybe even “sports. While closing the sale is critically important, that moment will never come if you don’t build the brand first…and search can help build that desire.

Rule #3: Beware the HiPPO

Most marketing decisions are made based on the HiPPO: (the Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) . Better, though, is decision making based on data. This is another area where online media shines. It is no longer necessary to make decisions guided by the boss’ “gut.” Instead, marketers can make well-informed decisions and act on them in real time.

Rule #4: Measure, Measure, Measure

No other medium has ever offered such immediate and deep data on the effectiveness of advertising spend. Using (often free) tools, advertisers today can test copy, offers and geography. They can know the sources of their traffic and how they are performing relative to each other. They can know which of their website pages are most effective and “sticky.”
These very high-level concepts can guide marketers toward strategies that offer unprecedented certainty.

Posted by Tim Reis, head of Google's East Coast CPG Practice.
Tim is also a co-chair of PMA’s Digital Center of Excellence and is an incoming PMA Board Member.

Fire Up Your Brand This Memorial Day Weekend

2009-06-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day marks the start of the summer season, which means picnics and cookouts galore.

Around this time, there is also a surge in grilling, picnic, and cookout related searches, which continues through the summer months as can be seen from Google Insights for Search:

Did You Know?
The largest volume of grilling, cookout, and picnic related searches occur Wednesday-Sunday.
Marketers promoting their brand through Search Campaigns can use the Google Ad Scheduler to heavy up their campaigns during these key search dates.

According to the Adwords Keyword Tool, the Top Search Terms relevant to this holiday are:
"recipes for grilling, grilling chicken, grill recipes, grilling recipes chicken, grilling steak, picnic food, pork recipes, steak recipes, picnic food recipes" and search volume for these keywords last month topped 1 million.

The above insights can help marketers of products such as spices, dressings, condiments and even paper cups and plates manage their campaigns during this peak season.

We leave you with a recipe for my favorite Red Potato Bliss Salad with Dill that is sure to be a crowd pleaser at any BBQ:

- 1lb small red potatoes, boiled until tender and drained.
- 4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and then chopped
- 3/4 cup of low fat mayo
- 2 stalks finely chopped celery
- 3 bunches of finely chopped green onion
- 2 tbsp chopped dill pickle
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh dillweed
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp of the dill pickle liquid
- Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Cool potatoes then chop into coarse chunks, leaving most of skin intact. Combine potatoes with remaining ingredients in a large bowl and gently toss with spoon to mix flavors. Chill 4-6 hours and serve and enjoy!

Posted by Jenny Liu, Industry Marketing Manager, CPG

Cadbury Continues to Raise Eyebrows!

2009-05-29T15:15:00.000-07:00

Once again a CPG company is raising the bar (and yes, eyebrows) with another video hit. Hopefully you've seen Cadbury Dairy Milk Eyebrow video.

Below is a graph from Google Trends showing search volume for both videos. (Gorilla in Red, Eyebrows in Blue) While Eyebrows has not yet reached the viral impact that the Cadbury Gorilla had in 2007,Eyebrows does have 5 Million views so far, and more and more parodies and remixes are showing up every week.

Gorilla continues to live on through remixes, as Cadbury slides over and lets the consumers steer the brand for a little while. Here are a few Gorilla remixes from fans featuring The Fray, Nirvana, Cameo's Word Up and Radiohead, as well as a remix with Total Eclipse of the Heart! and Wilson Phillips!

It's great to see CPG brands pushing fun and highly entertaining content, not to mention allowing the consumers to share their own creativity back with the world. Does it sell more chocolate? Staying top of mind and allowing others to build on to a super creative and entertaining video must have a positive branding effect.

Posted By Rich Godwin, Manager of Sales CPG West

A Big Stick for Marketers

2009-05-22T09:35:00.000-07:00

Teddy Roosevelt popularized the proverb "Speak softly and carry a big stick, you will go far." Well we've decided to use a stick, a pet stick, to help popularize Google for Advertisers.

What is Google for Advertisers? We've brought 7 of our marketing tools together to demonstrate how they can help to sell a Pet Stick and of course, how they can help your business and brands grow.

Google for Advertisers has a tremendous amount of info that's easy to find, navigate and take in. This site offers basic overviews and easy access to in-depth looks at marketing tools like Search, display, Mobile, Google Trends, Ad Planner and much more....um...more than you can shake a stick at. Sorry, had to do it.

Posted by Rich Godwin, Manager of CPG Sales, West

Analytics Webinar with Avinash Kaushik

2009-05-21T08:15:00.000-07:00

Little Changes, Large Results: 5 Things Marketers Can Do Now

In today's tough economic climate, it's increasing important for marketers to utilize resources effectively - in particular, media dollars - in order to maximize ROI. But often times, marketers overlook what's immediately achievable.

A few weeks ago, Google Analytics Evangelist, Avinash Kaushik, led a discussion on the 'Top 5 Things Marketers Can Do Now" in order to maximize ROI. We realize some of you may have missed the opportunity to hear Avinash speak, but may still be interested in the tips he was able to provide. As such, we've posted a recording of his talk onto the Google Brand Channel on YouTube, which you can access here.

After viewing this recording, you'll learn how to immediately implement Avinash's tips for using data-driven insights to guide your marketing message and media strategies. You'll walk away knowing how to improve marketing efficiency, drive insights into consumer behavior, and generate greater returns on your marketing investments.

4 Best Practices for Consumer Packaged Good Marketers Targeting U.S. Hispanics Online

2009-05-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

Trend data from one of Google's Internal tools shows how search impressions on Hispanic consumer packaged good related keywords have been on the rise.

US Hispanics Search

Impressions

The above trend lines are a reflection of the consumer search behavior behind US Hispanics, a demographic that is highly attractive to many advertisers due to their expected growth and predicted purchasing power.

Often, marketers find it challenging to develop media campaigns because they are unsure as to whether or not their targets are bi-lingual or Spanish speaking, and whether they search in English, Spanish or both. We have seen multiple research studies that suggest different preferences, and we think that factors such as the consumer's age, gender, and acculturation play int the overall preference. As such, our first best practice for marketers who are trying to target US Hispanics is:

1. Create search campaigns that include keywords buys and ad copy in both English and

Spanish - After an initial test period, optimize and see which words and ads are working best. It is much easier to start broadly and then prune away what doesn't work, and it is far too risky to leave out an entire audience.

Recently, Scarborough Research's "The Power of the Hispanic Consumer Online " report identified 13 local markets with an above-average concentration of Hispanic adults and examined their internet patterns. They noted that in Phoenix, AZ, Hispanic internet access has grown 43% since 2004, the highest of any Hispanic market. On the flip-side, Hispanic Internet access grew only 4% in San Francisco. CPG marketers looking to make a large impact with product launches in specific markets should implement best practice number two:

2. Geo-Target your search campaigns - heavy up in the strategic DMAs to help drive traffic into stores that matter.

Scarborough's Research has also found that Hispanics are more likely than other cellular users to utilize many cellular features, including internet access and email. Hispanics are highly dependent on their cell phones to stay closely connected with family, friends and the latest trends. Quite easily, CPG marketers can ensure their ads reach Hispanics when they are on the move with best practice three:

3. Extend your search campaigns to Mobile Search

Finally, if a consumer is already searching in Spanish and is compelled to click on a Spanish search ad, chances are that the consumer has an expectation to land on a Spanish section of a brand's website. Whenever possible, CPG marketers should remember:

4. Ensure click through to an appropriate landing page - start and end a transaction in the same language to maintain a positive experience for the user.

We hope the best practices

presented above can help jump start your U.S. Hispanic campaigns. Keep in mind that the interactive marketplace for this audience is still nascent. Brands that are first-movers within this space could lay the groundwork for creating greater opportunities for lifetime brand loyalty.

Posted by Jenny Liu, Industry Marketing Manager, CPG

The Search for Beauty Buyers

2009-04-29T14:24:00.000-07:00

Google partnered with Compete in Q3 2008 to better understand beauty searching, researching and purchasing behavior.

We sought to learn more about consumers' behaviors through an analysis of click-streams, as well as via surveys collected from panelists.

Compete will be sharing the broadview findings from this analysis.

Please join us:

Date: Tuesday, May 5th, 2009

Time: 1pm EST

Missed this webinar? No worries. We recorded the webinar and you can replay it here.

Posted by Jenny Liu, Industry Marketing Manager, CPG

Paid Search Builds Brands: Unilever Success Story

2009-04-23T14:05:00.000-07:00

Posted by Jenny Liu, Industry Marketing Manager, CPG

In 2008, Google's U.S. Consumer Packaged Goods Team released a series of Brand Value of

Search (BVOS) Studies that communicated how paid search was able to raise brand metrics such as aided awareness, purchase consideration and purchase intent for the following sub-verticals: beverage, household laundry, salty snack and cosmetics. These studies helped the industry view how search could be used effectively for more than direct response.

To give you a bit more insight on how customers have used search effectively for

reasons other than direct response, we'd like to share a new Brand Value of Search study conducted out of Google's UK office. Google, in association with Unilever, Mindshare and research partner MetrixLab, fielded a study with 5,000 mothers with children under 15, to test the efficiency and effectiveness of paid search for Unilever's Flora brand's "Cooking with Schools" campaign. Flora is one of Unilever's biggest food brands and has brand associations of cholesterol reduction, hearth health and the London Marathon. Flora was seeking to better extend this assocation with family, kids, cooking and nutrition. Not only did they want to increase traffic to their website but they also wanted to be top of mind for their target audience.

To measure this, Metrix Lab administered online surveys to the 5,000 mothers and then cut the data in ways to isolate media exposure. Respondents were asked to conduct search tasks such as "research healthy recipes" or "activities to do with your kids", and the test group would be exposed to a sponsored link promoting Flora's Cooking with Schools campaign.

This study was unique in several ways that allow us to dig more in-depth into the brand power of paid search.

First, the study took a look at the difference in brand value between consumers exposed to the sponsored link but did not click through to Flora's website, and those did click through. The results showed a 19% lift in brand metrics in those who were exposed to a sponsored link (paid search ad) and clicked through.

As ClickZ notes in a recent write-up, "The results in lift are significant and, because PPC search marketers pay only for the click, the lift in branding due to the sponsored link is free."

Second, it was able to show that paid search was 10x more efficient than TV at raising Top of Mind Awareness, and 4x more efficient than Radio, for this campaign.

Third, the study illustrates the synergistic value of paid search and traditional offline media.

Print plus search is 9% more efficient at impacting brand value than print alone.

As reported in an article published by Marketing Week UK, Amanda Smith, relationship marketing manager at Flora, adds, "We are now seeing the impact sponsored search can have on branding and how it can work with other media, both on and offline, to bring us the most effective campaigns."

This finding is highly valuable to every marketer who is being asked to make the most of every penny spent on their campaign, and who are being held acccountable for how efficient and effective their campaigns perform.

We have the full study available to share with you upon request. Just inquire with your Google account sales team!

Lipton "Free Your Y" Ad Effectiveness Webinar on 4/1/109

2009-03-26T10:24:00.000-07:00

In 2008, Unilever and Mindshare teamed up with Google to run a campaign for Lipton White Tea called "Free Your Y" . The campaign integrated a YouTube contest asking consumers to show off their youthful spirit on video.

The media was supported by Google search, display on Google's Content Network and YouTube.

Join us for an April 1 Webinar, to hear about the effectiveness of this campaign. The CPG Marketing and Research teams will be sharing website visitation trends, branding metrics and offline sales lift results from the campaign.

Date: April 1, 2009

Time: 1:00 pm ET

Instructions: Must be registered at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the webinar at this link here

Event password: googleCPG

If you missed this webinar, you can downloaded the recording here.

Posted by Jenny Liu, Industry Marketing Manager, CPG

And the Super Bowl Ad Blitz Winners Are...

2009-02-06T09:03:00.000-08:00

Posted by Vannie Shu, Account Coordinator, CPG West

The top five winners have been announced for YouTube's Ad Blitz, a contest where users vote on their favorite Super Bowl commercials.

"Free Doritos" won the top Ad Blitz prize. The Doritos spot won a Homepage Roadblock on YouTube, which receives around 25MM US impressions daily.

Coming in second was E*Trade's "Singing Baby," followed by CareerBuilder.com, Pepsi Max's "I'm Good", and Doritos' "Power of the Crunch."

Many brands relied on Google Search and YouTube's Sponsored Videos to drive traffic and votes to their Super Bowl ads. Sponsored Videos is a great way for video content owners to surface their videos against search terms on YouTube. With over 20,000 search results for "super bowl commercials," finding your video could be like a looking for a needle in a haystack.

Although their methodologies differed, Ad Blitz and USA Today's Ad Meter shared both Doritos' "Free Doritos" and "Power of the Crunch" in their five most liked Super Bowl ads. YouTube's Ad Blitz tracked users' "thumbs up" votes beginning immediately after the Super Bowl through Wednesday, while USA Today's Ad Meter tracked second-by-second responses by a panel of viewers during the Super Bowl.

Be the Valentine’s Day Wingman

2009-02-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

Posted by Ashley Hedges, Account Planner, Consumer Packaged Goods

Looking to earn some extra points among male consumers? We might have the perfect solution for you. Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and we’re placing our bets that the men out there are in need of a wingman that has some quick ideas to make this Valentine’s Day extra special.

According to a recent survey conducted by Harris Interactive, on behalf of Whole Foods, 73% of respondents said they prefer dining out at home on Valentine’s Day vs. going out to eat because it is more personal, thoughtful or caring.

As men make their way into the kitchen trying to whip up a delicious meal for their significant other they’ll be looking for all the advice they can get, so be there to help them out. Men will be going online to get cooking tips and to track down the perfect recipe. Be the brand that comes to the rescue by launching paid search and contextually targeted campaigns. Feed them meal ideas and shopping lists so they can spend less time searching and more time in the kitchen. Help men survive Valentine’s Day and they’ll be sure to thank you later.

Food Trends to Watch for in ‘09

2009-01-28T07:16:00.000-08:00

Posted by Anastasiya Blyukher, Proposal Coordinator, CPG Central

According to an article from MediaPost's Karl Greenberg, Market research firm Mintel says that 54% of people who dine out regularly are cutting back on this expense because of the economy. Though consumers are trading restaurant booths for their dining room tables, they are by no means sacrificing on quality when it comes to what they eat. Below are several of the trends that Mintel predicts will steer consumers’ palates in ’09:

Comfort food – In these difficult times, consumers are seeking comfort food – food that is braised, grilled, slow baked, or poached.

Cocktail Revival & Innovation – According to Mintel, we'll see a comeback in classic cocktails, plus some innovation with ingredients like ginger, cucumber, and chili pepper, paired with gin, tequila, pisco, and framboise.

Fresh Ingredients – This year, consumers will seek more organic and locally-grown foods.

Mediterranean Cuisine – Food from this region is a rising trend among Americans, and consumers will satisfy these tastes with more specific - and authentic - dishes.

Research of food's origins and prep – In 2009, consumers will increasingly take interest in the origins, health benefits, and preparation techniques of their food.

Less time in restaurants means more time in the kitchen, which means more time spent online searching for recipes. Increasing visibility during these searches is sure to make your brand a main ingredient in home-cooked meals – and home-mixed cocktails – all year long.

Feeling Nostalgic?

2009-01-26T12:21:00.000-08:00

Posted by Susan Minniear, Senior Account Manager, CPG West

Sometimes, upon hearing a Debbie Gibson song, I find myself transported to the eighties as a kid; fondly remembering puffy paint sweatshirts, “Family Ties” or when Bret Michaels was in a hit rock band and not on a VH1 reality show. There’s comfort in remembering special moments, people, places or products from the past.

And of course, I’m not alone in this type of sentiment. As it turns out, recent studies are showing that people turn to Nostalgia more often during tough economic times for comfort and memories of simpler, happier times.

A recent article in the LA Times suggests that Nostalgia “buffers people from loneliness and eases them through hard times”; “increases the perception of social support” and “gives us stability when we live in a time of constant change.”

Considering the powerful emotion of Nostalgia will be critical for Marketers as we foray into the unknown this year. It’s difficult to say how long this recession will last. But in the meantime, consumers will be comforted with warm and fuzzy memories of days past. So, it is even more important for us to consider a consumer’s emotional state when creating our messaging. For example, perhaps it’s associating food products with special family memories, or lowering prices on products to remind consumers of what they used to pay in the ‘good old days’.

Some of the related top recommendations in an article from Harvard Business School include:

Research the customer. Instead of cutting the market research budget, you need to know more than ever how consumers are redefining value and responding to the recession. Price elasticity curves are changing. Consumers take more time searching for durable goods and negotiate harder at the point of sale. They are more willing to postpone purchases, trade down, or buy less.
Focus on family values. When economic hard times loom, we tend to retreat to our village. Look for cozy hearth-and-home family scenes in advertising to replace images of extreme sports, adventure and rugged individualism. Zany humor and appeals on the basis of fear are out.
Adjust pricing tactics. Customers will be shopping around for the best deals. You do not necessarily have to cut list prices but you may need to offer more temporary price promotions, reduce thresholds for quantity discounts, extend credit to long-standing customers and price smaller pack sizes more aggressively.
Maintain marketing spending. This is not the time to cut advertising. It is well documented that brands that increase advertising during a recession, when competitors are cutting back, can improve market share and return on investment at lower cost than during good economic times.

Do More with Less

2009-01-07T16:56:00.000-08:00

Remember learning about Simple Machines? They are the 6 basic tools that can use leverage to multiple force....lever, pulley, incline plane...remember?

Well, we've pulled a lot of the simple tools Google offers to marketers into one place called domorewithless.

Together these are great tools that are pretty simple to use and can provide you and your brands with powerful information to improve your business. You'll find 15 tools at DoMoreForLess, many of them free, including:

Keyword Tool Insert your site's URL to get a better sense for all the search terms that fit with your website, or input your existing keywords to check out search volume and competition and get ideas for new keywords.

Webmaster Central can help you with your crawling and site indexing questions and driving more traffic to your site.

Google Analytics Our personal favorite freebie! Google Analytics offers a host of fantastic tools to help you figure out where your traffic is coming from and how users are interacting with your site.

Lots of other great tools there. We hope they help you to leverage your marketing muscles to multiply your branding force.

Rich

Posted by Rich Godwin, Head of Industry CPG West

What's 'In-Store' for '09

2008-12-22T08:42:00.000-08:00

As we round out 2008 and ring in the new year, here are a couple trends that will be hitting your store shelves in 2009.

1. Manufacturers are going nuts. Expect to see more and more products go 'naked' as they tout nuts and seeds as a main ingredient.

2. Take time to Relax. First it was all about energy, now it's time to relax. Get ready to see everyday staples from beverages, coffee and gum infused with ingredients that promise to calm and soothe your senses and deliver a relaxation effect.

3. Just add water. In 2008 we started seeing companies downsize packaging as a way to cut costs and produce less waste for the environment. Now they are taking it one step further and asking consumers to add their own water to cut down on the cost of transporting water. More and more expect to see empty bottles with a liquid or powder concentrate and instructions that say 'Just add water.'

4. You are what you eat. A list of new foods and drinks promise a new way to look beautiful. Skin-beautifying antioxidants and nourishing ingredients such as biotin and zinc populate the ingredients list of new products from companies like Nestle and Masterfoods in 2009.

5. Get Steamy. Leave the pots and pans in the cabinet. As we search for more hours in the day, microwave cook-in-bags are becoming a hot commodity. This was a trend that has picked up 'steam' in the past few years and expect to see more new product launches in 2009.

6. Detox Diets. After the holiays we'll all probably need a little detox regimen. Stop in to your local supermarket and look for detox products that use liver-friendly ingredients such as Function Urban's Detox Goji Berry drink or Biore's Detoxify Daily Scrub. The detox craze is intensifying now that celebrities like Oprah and Beyonce have jumped on the trend.

7. It's a Sweet Alternative. Move over Equal and Splenda and say hello to Stevia, the 'holy grail' of sweetners. Rooted from a South American Stevia plant, the zero calorie sweetner is on its way to the U.S., pending approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. If approved, get ready to see the flood gates open across many of your favorite 'diet' and 'sugar-free' food items.

8. Are you eco-friendly? Everyone wants to do their part to make the environment safer. With more product categories incorporating eco-friendly ingredients and processes, it will be easier for all of us to do our part. Expect to see more eco-friendly products ranging from the baby care to personal care and beauty categories in the next year.

9. Flower Power. Don't be shocked if your favorite sparkling beverage includes a hint of refreshing hibiscus or your candy bar is infused with lavender-jalapeno flavor. In the coming year, more and more manufacturers will start infusing floral flavors into new food and drink products.

10. Nourish the Brain. We can always strive to be a little smarter and now getting smarter might be as easy as reading what's on the label. Look for more manufacturers to tout ingredients that are good for your brain and more mentions of the word brain on product packaging. One example in the U.S. includes Kellogg's Live Bright Brain Health Bar.

Posted by Ashley Hedges, Account Planner - Consumer Packaged Goods

A Cure for the Common Flu Campaign

2008-12-18T11:53:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, we introduced you to Google Flu Trends, a new tool from Google that tracks flu activity across the U.S. up to two weeks faster than the data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It works by measuring the amount of flu-related searches in a state or region and then using that data to estimate actual flu activity.

As winter progresses and flu activity increases, this tool is your #1 ally for reaching consumers at the moment of greatest relevance. Below are a few simple steps to get you started.

1. Visit Google Flu Trends and identify regions of opportunity.

2. Set up a flu search campaign and reach consumers where flu related searches are highest.

3. Contextually target to reach consumers on the sites they visit to find flu remedies.

4. Geo-target your campaign to regions and cities of interest.

5. Monitor Flu Trends and continuously optimize.

Data this strong is sure to fortify any campaign, so take a dose, or two, of Google Flu Trends with yours, and call us in the morning.

Posted by Anastasiya Blyukher, Account Proposal Coordinator, CPG

12/18 Webinar: Nature Valley Case Study

2008-12-10T06:43:00.000-08:00

Please join us for the Nature Valley "Where's Yours Case Study" presentation on Thursday, December 18, 12pm- 1pm EST.

An esteemed panel from General Mills, MRM Worldwide and Google will showcase the results from the digital campaign, YouTube contest and ad effectiveness research.

John Williams of General Mills will provide a campaign overview, Shane Robbins of MRM Worldwide will recap the campaign strategy and Angela Reynar of Google, Inc. will highlight the ad effectiveness research, which measured brand lift, online behavior and offline sales.

Click HERE to register for and attend the event.
Password: googleCPG

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Posted by Ashley Hedges
CPG Account Planner

It's 10 p.m. Do You Know Where Your Teens Are?

2008-12-09T11:24:00.000-08:00

We'll give you one guess. Online.

It shouldn't be news for marketers that kids and teens are online but the frequency and duration with which they are may be surprising. eMarketer estimates that 82% of US teens 12-17 and 43.5% of kids ages 3-11 will use the Internet on a monthly basis in 2009. And when they aren't online, they are still connected through their mobile device. Nearly 2/3's of US teens have a mobile phone.

The Internet and their mobile phones are their lifeline and their primary means of communication. The percentage of teens who text, make a call on their mobile phone, send an instant message or chat via a social networking site is on par with the percentage that spend time with friends in person outside of school. Imagine that, actually having a live, face-to-face conversation with a friend these days.

A teen's life is incomplete without technology and these multi-media mavens don't distinguish across communication channels - offline, online and mobile. To them, they all provide a means of communication and they rely on each other to keep them in the loop. As long as they know where the party is Friday night, they could care less if they found out on Facebook, in an email or in a text message.

So while it may be 10:00 on a Friday night and you don't know exactly where your teen consumers are, it's a safe bet they are plugged in. Why don't you give them a call?

(Original source: "Kids and Teens Are Always On." eMarketer, November 17, 2008.)

Posted by :

Ashley Hedges

CPG Account Planner, Google

Digital Marketing in the Downturn

2008-11-25T13:57:00.000-08:00

As we have all witnessed the economy has been fluctuating in these uncertain times. Not only do we have to worry about our personal assets, but we need to think about our clients as well.

eMarketer CEO Geoff Ramsey, recently hosted a webinar, "7 Strategies for Surviving the Downturn". I think the 7 points he highlighted are helpful tips to keep in mind when we are thinking about our Marketing plans going into 2009.

1. Accountability- track how online effects offline
2. Keep doing search-all research companies have double digit gains for search in the coming year
3. Don't ignore the power of branding online (branding, display and sponsorships)
-only 30% of of chief marketers considered the offline impact of online advertising
4.Stay close to the customers
-A huge push on social media. Pick the right community for your target and add real value. Regular media messages aren't going to work.
-share the love by tapping into coveted influentials and create a community
- consumers #1 trust is word of mouth about a brand.
5. Engender Trust-trust is SO important for brands
6.Engage with online video
7. Test Test Test

As we ring in the new year, why not make our marketing dollars work harder and smarter and think about these strategies as we see what challenges await us in '09!

Posted by Amy Chauvin, CPG Account Planner

Diet Foods 2.0

2008-11-25T09:44:00.000-08:00

Low Fat. Low in Sugar.Low Calories. These are the buzz words of yesterday for products geared toward weight management and healthier living. Today we see words like "Green-Tea Extracts", "Antioxidants", "Fiber Enriched", and "Probiotics", reflecting a significant shift towards functional foods. Ingredients found in functional foods often have promising benefits such as increased metabolism, suppressed appetite, cancer-fighting power, or aided digestion.

As MediaPost noted in a late October issue of Marketing Daily, this shift offers marketers the opportunity to grab the attention of weight conscious consumers. The opportunity is sizable, as the US continues to battle obesity. Euromonitor reports that functional Foods & Beverages saw growth of about 10% in 2007 worldwide, while non-functional F&B only grew 2-4%. Today, functional foods can be found in almost every aisle of the supermarket, including the dairy case, the bottled water shelf and even the bakery.

The level of research online behind functional foods is high. Exotic ingredients and new cutting edge formulas add new vocabulary to the every day weight management jargon, prompting consumers to search online about the meaning behind these new words.

Online, consumers can research to better understand the benefit of the functional foods and to compare reviews about whether the food or beverage will actually deliver on the added benefit, as well the trade-off on taste. Consumers want to hear it from the mouths of other consumers who, like them, have sought out the product because they believed that it would help them lose weight or become more healthy.

Safety also remains of great concern to consumers as many of these functional ingredients are quite new and are supposed to enhance or suppress certain body chemistry. The Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA) has some regulation in place to help alleviate some consumer concerns. Functional foods that have been been US FDA approved can be marketed as food, while those that have not been evaluated by the FDA are supposed to be marketed as a nutritional supplement.

But even with this regulation in place, you can bet that the first place a consumer turns to, should they experience an increased heart beat as a result of consuming a new functional food, is to turn to the internet to see what's normal.

It will be interesting to see, come January 2009 and post holiday over-eating, which functional foods become all the rage as millions of Americans make the new year's resolution to lose weight.

Posted by Jenny Liu, Sr. Account Planner NY

Flu Knew?

2008-11-11T13:12:00.000-08:00

Reading the New York Times over lunch I discovered that Google has developed an interesting way to track the flu.

The New York Times story outlines how Google has spent the last year analyzing search trends to help indicate where and when the flu is breaking out. The theory being that people will increase searches on flu-like terms when they have flu-like symptoms.

Google Flu Trends also indicates where and when the flu is hitting a week to 10 days faster than what is currently available from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

What's this got to do with Consumer Package Goods? As you likely know, search ads work so well because they are solution based. When I'm searching for information on a sore throat, a cough drop or TheraFlu a search ad is very likely to be useful and helpful, bringing an answer to my search query and one step closer to some relief from my sickness.

Now CPG brands that are helpful to someone suffering from the flu can geographically target to regions that are likely seeing a sharp rise in flu suffers. That's nothing to sneeze at.

Posted by Rich Godwin, Head of Industry CPG West

YouTube - CPG Brands continuing innovation.

2008-08-27T11:42:00.000-07:00

Oreo's is running on the homepage of YouTube today. They have a fun new video promoting the ongoing DSRL campaign. Featuring Serena and Venus Williams and the last 2 Super Bowl MVP's, Eli and Peyton Manning perfectly timed with the start of the NFL season and the US Open.

This much star power timed so perfectly should return huge viewings for Oreo.

You might not have seen another CPG campaign on YouTube that is getting a lot of buzz too.

Clorox's Greenworks posted The Reserve Graffiti Project on YouTube in early June, and it has 500,000 views and has received a lot of media attention. We are seeing lots of smart and innovative ways that CPG brands are testing and experimenting with YouTube, and we want to share them with you.

Rich Godwin Team Manager

The Branding Value of a Search Impression?

2008-08-26T15:32:00.000-07:00

We are often asked and have long wondered "What impact does a search result have on branding for cpg?" Our answer has often been....vague.

To uncover the answer we recently commissioned a study with Media Screen.

Search is a known winner for direct response, and we wanted to prove that search has value as a branding tool too! The study measured the branding impact of paid search ads on organic search terms for four CPG product categories; cosmetic, beverage, food/snack and household/laundry.

In the study respondents were then asked to complete a brand survey to measure the brand impact on aided awareness, unaided awareness, purchase intent and purchase consideration after being exposed to search results.

Our key findings were what we had expected - when the test brand appears in paid search positions, unaided awareness and purchase intent increase for that brand.

The survey also took into consideration the impact on competitive brands. It was concluded that when the test brand appears in paid search positions, unaided and aided awareness decrease for other brands.

Yahoo! recently commissioned a similar study with Media Vest. Their study confirmed our finds that a sponsored search link has a positive impact on unaided awareness.

"What this study actually proves is that search moves the branding needle for CPG," Yaakov Kimelfeld, senior VP-analytics for MediaVest said, "It's really good news for brand marketers, because there are really strong efficiencies they can find in search marketing."

If you are interested in learning more about the results of the study, let us know!

Amy Chauvin CPG Bay Area

Choose your own YouTube adventure

2008-08-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

People are watching hundreds of millions of videos a day on YouTube and uploading hundreds of thousands of videos daily. In fact, ten hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every minute. The distribution platform has democratized the ability of the average person broadcast information globally. YouTube hosts communities for everyone, including those interested cooking, fitness, beauty, and music.

Lately, a new breed of interactive videos have been popping up all over YouTube. These videos leverage the platform's video response and annotation features to create interactive stories and games.

This series of videos allows viewers to interact by choosing which which video to watch next. Your task is to hunt for Sparta the missing cat. The embedded video gives you an idea of the concept, but you must visit YouTube to start your journey. Can you find Sparta the cat?

Other interactive videos, like shell cup and magic tricks, have popped up as well. These interactive videos create another opportunity for video watchers to engage beyond commenting and rating videos. Who doesn't like to choose their path or to control the outcome of a story or game? The Choose Your Own Adventure concept was wildly popular in children's books of the 1980s and 1900s. Could it be time to for a revival in video form?

CPG advertisers can leverage interactive videos to interact and engage consumers in a new way. Contact us if you are interested in learning more or need help brainstorming creative ways to use interactive video.

Posted by Vannie Shu Bay Area CPG Team