What is a Food and Beverage Branding Agency?

Convert your non-differentiated commodity product line to a brand that commands higher prices, better retail margins, and value to stakeholders.

Branding is one of the most powerful tools in your arsenal for building your company’s reputation, improving the visibility and sales of your food and beverage products, and bolstering your chances of long-term success.

With the help of a food and beverage branding agency, you can design and begin using a brand worthy of your culinary innovations that will genuinely reach your customers.

But what exactly is a food and beverage branding agency, and why is it so valuable?

What Is a Brand?

A brand is a collection of identity markers that allow an individual or organization to differentiate itself from others. These identity markers take the form of names, symbols, terms, designs, colors, tone of voice, and many other features.

For example, a McDonald’s cheeseburger is distinct from other cheeseburgers; it’s only sold at McDonald’s restaurants and uses consistent ingredients and processes, so customers have a consistent experience. In addition, the McDonald’s name, the golden arches, the cheeseburger itself, and even the interior design of each restaurant are all elements of the McDonald’s brand.

Branding can be obvious or subtle and can present itself in various forms. For example, is the signature orange color on Reese’s peanut butter cup wrappers officially trademarked? It can only be legally used to market candy products by the Hershey Company.

You probably have hundreds of macro and micro brand experiences each day – and you may not even consciously realize you have them.

Why Is Food and Beverage Branding Valuable?

Why is food and beverage branding this important?

First impressions. When shopping for a cereal box, you can’t immediately taste the contents of each box. Instead, you’re forced to rely on the exterior appearance of each box. This is where branding is critically important; if you can make an excellent first impression with your target audience, you can significantly increase sales.
Instant communication. Sometimes, brands are used as a form of instant communication with your audience. Specific colors, names, and design elements naturally suggest the type of product you’re selling and the experience you want your customers to have.
Familiarity and consistency. When customers have repeated experiences with your brand, they eventually become familiar with it – as long as your branding efforts and product quality are consistent. This can be incredibly powerful for stimulating brand loyalty and repeat purchases. Once people find a food or beverage product they like in a particular category, they’re often unwilling to switch to a competitor; if powerful enough, your brand becomes “sticky.” This effect is so powerful that it can make customers choose a technically inferior product over a superior one – and there are real-world examples that prove it.

For example, when Coca-Cola developed “New Coke,” blind taste tests revealed that consumers overwhelmingly preferred New Coke to “Old Coke.” Still, because the classic Coca-Cola brand and formula was so familiar, this marketing effort failed spectacularly.

Memorability. Branding is also helpful for improving memorability across all your marketing campaigns. For example, suppose you effectively show off the brand in your advertising, and your product on store shelves reflects those messaging efforts. In that case, people will be much more likely to recognize you and eventually make a purchase. This effect becomes more potent as you scale up your marketing and advertising efforts.
Marketing cohesion. Speaking of marketing, it’s also essential to understand your brand as the core foundation of all your marketing efforts. With your brand at the center of all your messaging strategies, your marketing and advertising will become more consistent – and, therefore, more powerful.
Competitive differentiation. Finally, branding is your most powerful tool for competitive differentiation. Even if you had a functionally identical core product (which we don’t recommend), you could make your product more exciting, engaging, and appealing to your target audience.