How Quaker Foods is Using Social Media

Good interview in eMarketer with Annie Young-Scrivner who is Chief Marketing Officer and Sales VP at Quaker Foods & Snacks about how Quaker Foods is using social media to market oats. Excerpts from the interview are below:

eMarketer: How is the new slogan, “Go Humans Go,” expressed in Quaker’s digital marketing efforts?

Annie Young-Scrivner: Quaker saw real success by engaging consumers via social media through our “Start with Substance” campaign. We have continued to connect with our customers in this way with the Go Project through blogger engagement, activity on Twitter and Facebook, and upcoming integrations with digital communities like CafeMom and BabyCenter.com.

We feel this is an area where we can set ourselves apart from our competitors by interacting with our customers on an authentic and real-time platform. Through these interactions, we’ve been able to demonstrate our commitment to our consumers’ communities, talk about the issues that matter most to them and hear their immediate feedback.

eMarketer: Is this effort a lot different in terms of the media used than previous campaigns?

Ms. Young-Scrivner: We’ve traditionally gone out with print and TV. For this campaign, we want to reach consumers through PR, in-store marketing and signage, social media and online marketing, as well as TV and print ads. This is a more holistic approach.
We are using Yahoo! Chat and other instant messaging platforms, reaching out to bloggers and our own employees.

eMarketer: Does the new strategy express a message of value given the state of the economy?

Ms. Young-Scrivner: Absolutely. In this economic climate, Quaker products made with whole-grain oats deliver one of the most nutritious breakfast and snack offerings. They’re also one of most affordable and versatile—Quaker Old Fashioned Oats is 15 cents per serving. The campaign is focused on making the most of your life and using this “super grain” to power yourself to do more. In that way, it does relate to adding value to your life.

eMarketer: Do you have any opt-in consumer relationship marketing programs that are based online?

Ms. Young-Scrivner: Quaker offers consumer opt-in programs via our eNewsletters. In addition, downloadable coupons and online samples are available on our Website, Quakeroats.com. We also leverage coupon sites like Coupons Inc. and SmartSource to supplement our Website coupon activity. We monitor our consumers’ online behavior so that we can continuously optimize our programs and offer consumers what they are looking for.

eMarketer: Does the Internet change Quaker’s relationships with grocers and retailers, and how does it change the relationship with consumers?

Ms. Young-Scrivner: The Internet has a favorable impact on Quaker’s relationships with both retailers and consumers. It facilitates stronger partnerships, higher engagement and authentic conversations.