The rise of social media has, in many ways, liberated consumers. No longer is it a one-way relationship where companies do the talking and consumers simply listen. People can now find information about their favorite brands through various channels, and smart marketers are using every available tool to make sure they're found.Lori Taylor is marketing manager at the Indianapolis Fruit Company and runs its blog, The Produce Mom. The blog is based on Taylor's life, and though it contains information on produce and the produce industry, it delivers this information through a personal lens.
"The blog is something different that allows us to speak to our customers in a friendly tone," says Taylor. "It has a candid feel to it."
The blog is one part of Indy Fruit's marketing efforts. Their social media footprint includes websites, Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, and Taylor believes that all of these tools are necessary in order to engage with consumers today. As Taylor points out, with people consuming more of their information online, it's imperative for marketers to know how to effectively harness social media.
"I rarely, if ever, read something that's been printed," she notes. "All of my consumer information is gained through social media or internet marketing."
But the blog is successful not just because it's a blog or it takes advantage of social media sites like Facebook and Pinterest; it's successful because it delivers compelling content.
"I represent the target consumer," says Taylor. "I'm a young mother – my husband and I have two sons – and it's a constant battle to feed the boys healthy foods. I shop for household groceries every week and I stick to a tight budget. I blog about what we eat for breakfast or how I got my pouty child to eat his vegetables – these are things people can understand. The relevance to everyday life makes the blog an enjoyable and popular read."
She believes her personal experiences help consumers relate to her, and they, in turn, have responded extremely well.
"The blog has easily been our most successful internet marketing campaign," she says. “We have more followers of the blog's social media sites than we do "Indianapolis Fruit, Garden Cut and Piazza Produce combined."