The Impact of Health & Wellness on Grocery Stores

Keep an eye out for grocers playing more of a role in health & wellness in the near future, a move fueled by consumer demand. According to Leslie Sarasin, President & CEO of Food Manufacturing Institute, grocery stores are situated perfectly to assist consumers on their health & wellness journey. This comes at a time of high competition for grocery stores—not only competing against themselves, but also online retailers, as we previously wrote about.  

“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it now — as people prefer holistic approaches to health and wellness, food retailers, standing in the nexus position between food and pharmacy, as well as nutrition and provision of medical services, are uniquely positioned as health and wellness resources for their customers.” – Leslie Sarasin, FMI

Health and wellness engagement at grocery is a huge opportunity for healthy brands to pair with health influencers to meet the needs of Americans. Through their concerted efforts from office to shelf, health influencers and brands can influence the decisions of consumers at a much higher level.

The advantage will go to brands that are smart about engaging key influencers geo-targeted to store locations and partnering with key customers to promote their products and offerings. Pairing “near store” influencer and consumer reach with “in store” shopper marketing will certainly help consumers make healthier decisions.

Improving Consumers’ 200 Food Choices

The current level of uncertainty around healthcare in America brings self-care, and personal responsibility, to the forefront. Americans can combat this uncertainty by taking their health into their own hands. How so? By taking the first line of defense—making better food decisions. But how do consumers learn about new, better-for-you, products? Who can they trust for the information they need to stay healthy and well?

A recent article cited that Americans make over 200 food decisions every day. Yes, you read that correctly... The average consumer makes more than 200 food choices each day. So, as people begin to take charge of their health, there is a huge opportunity for healthy brands to become part of the consideration set. Consumers just need to know about them! 

Beyond brand awareness, consumers need education. They need to know the benefits of a product before they alter one of their 200 food choices. A recent 2016 IFIC study reminds us that consumers trust their health influencers—their own personal health advisors—for nutrition information more than any other source. Together, with full transparency and no financial incentives, healthy brands and influencers can accelerate awareness and make an impactful change on the dietary habits of Americans.

PulseConnect October Member Spotlight: Stacey Green

This month, we spoke with Stacey Green, a Yoga teacher and coach based in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Stacey teaches individuals in group yoga and mindfulness classes.

Q:  How did you hear about PulseConnect and why did you join?  

A: I heard about PulseConnect from a colleague who uses the materials she receives to help move her clients towards mindful eating and a healthier lifestyle. I work on a very personal level with students, which gives me personal insight to what may or may not be useful to them.  

PulseConnect is aware of my practice and audience, which means I only receive materials that add value to the services I offer. 

Q: Does pointing to a specific brand help with the recommendations that you’re making?

A: Yes! If I am aspiring to be an example to my students, pointing to a particular brand I actually believe in and/or use is very helpful.   

Q: What kind of things are your clients asking you about? What topics do you discuss on a daily basis?

A: Clients ask how they can develop regular practices into their life that incorporate wellness on a physical and nutritional level. In my mind, they are connected.    

You don’t have to be fit to start being physical. Whether yoga is for you or it’s something else, I try to encourage people to start. Knowing and doing are not always in sync, which is why it’s helpful to have products and information to share that back up this way of thinking.

Q: What do you like best about PulseConnect?  

A: In a world where everyone is trying to “declutter” their closet, their minds and their refrigerators, I like to try something myself to see who it might help in some way before giving out random stuff in my classes. I’m able to get information and products from PulseConnect and then determine what’s going to be right for a specific clientele. That way my students know  I’ve put some real thought into their well being on a personal level.

What's the Deal With Fat?

Fat is all over the news recently, which leads us to ask: What’s the deal with fat?

In part, this is because of the revelations about how the sugar industry shifted the blame towards fat decades ago. Some doctors are critical of low-fat diets, partially blaming them for America’s dramatic rise in obesity rates. On top of this, we’re hearing more and more about high-fat diets. Specifically, the ketogenic diet (high fat, low carb) has become a hot topic. This sounds counterintuitive, but has strong science behind it. Its claim? Eat more fat, and you will lose weight (at least initially). T.J Murphy of Outside Magazine explains the ketogenic diet as:

“Followers scarf eggs, cheese, and olive oil in hunger-killing quantities, turning their backs on just about every carb other than vegetables. They don’t use half-and-half in their coffee—they use heavy cream. Still, they’re likely to look a little lean, since the ketogenic diet turns them into 24/7 fat burners.”

This is interesting, because it shows a shift in the understanding of fats. It also excites us to be in an industry where we are constantly learning and understanding more about our dietary needs. 

How are you advising your patients on fat? Have your recommendations changed based on these recent findings? 

HERE’S A SHORT HISTORY OF FATS ENDING TWO YEARS AGO. IN JUST TWO YEARS, SO MUCH MORE COULD BE ADDED TO THIS INFOGRAPHIC.

Recap: Expo East

On Thursday, we attended Expo East in Baltimore. Expo East is often overshadowed by New Hope’s much larger conference, Expo West. Expo East still attracts a lot of people (in the ballpark of 28,000 people), but it’s hard to compare to the 77,000 attendees that were present at Expo West this year.  

The buzz at these expos is infectious. There is so much excitement, from startups to industry giants. On one end of the spectrum, you have extremely successful natural products that have been pioneers in the field for 20+ years. On the other, you have companies that are 3 weeks old. In between, there are more than 1,000 exhibitors trying to get the word out about their products.

When walking the floor, speaking to exhibitors, we noticed certain trends that we think are noteworthy:

Free From—There were a growing number of companies present in the “free-from”   category. Consequently, many companies had vegan products for the first time. 

Less Emphasis on Gluten Free—There were a lot of gluten-free products, which goes hand-in-hand with the number of free-from products. However, many companies were not touting their gluten free attributes. 

Jerky—We’ve known that this category is booming, but seeing all these emerging jerky brands was shocking. Boring beef jerky has been spiced up with exciting flavors. Turkey, and other forms of jerky, also had a substantial presence.

Superfoods—Wow, were there a lot of superfood companies. Nutrient rich foods had a huge presence at Expo East. 

Peas—Peas are in. Not in the form that you grew up eating—we’re talking about pea protein. Many post-workout focused protein powders were made up of pea protein. Surprising, since whey has dominated this category for years.

The New Hope Network put on a great show. We really enjoyed seeing our industry friends, and hearing about new companies and trends. We can’t wait to see everyone again in March at Expo West! 

THANKS TO OUR NEW FRIENDS AT MAMMA CHIA FOR THE LAUGHS. WE LOVED THE MASCOT!

The Other Side of Complexity

One of my all-time favorite quotes comes from Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, who said: “For the simplicity that lies this side of complexity, I would not give a fig, but for the simplicity that lies on the other side of complexity, I would give my life."

I think about this quote frequently, but it came to my mind again earlier this month when I read a Reuters article about bite counters. These devices, worn on the wrist, use motion to track the number of bites people take while eating. While they won’t help you eat healthier food, these devices, according to the Clemson University researchers who developed them, could provide much needed self-monitoring and feedback to people looking to lose or manage their weight.

Reading about bite counters, it’s hard not to think of the monsoon of health & wellness information we are inundated with on a daily basis. Information that can be arcane, complex and often contradictory. For the average American who is simply looking to take small steps every day toward a healthier lifestyle, this information can be overwhelming—and often discouraging.  

Instead of contributing to the monsoon, why don’t we resolve to teach Americans the basics about nutrition and how to read a food label for themselves. Instead of promoting a fad diet or device, let’s teach them about basic cooking techniques and the value of a walk.  

Sure, teaching Americans the fundamentals of nutrition and physical fitness isn’t easy, nor is it particularly flashy. It requires expertise, patience and persistence. Many marketers may think that a compelling, but potentially misleading health claim or hitching their brand to a current fad is the better business move. But how has that worked out so far?

Let marketers know what you think, contact us at kevinm@pulseconnect.me to share your insights.

The 4 Keys to Patient Education

A local integrative medicine practice here in Chapel Hill offers regular seminars for their patients and the community. Last week, I attended one on the broad topic of integrative medicine and nutrition—a tough topic to cover in just one hour. But in addition to teaching me some new information, the seminar was beneficial in that it reinforced how challenging it can be to educate consumers about nutrition and health.

Translating often complicated science into easy-to-understand and actionable information for the layperson can be difficult. The seminar led me to reflect on how we create educational materials here at Pulse, and the four keys to effective health and wellness education that guide our efforts.

1. What is the need?

Far too often, health and wellness information is presented as universal truths applicable to anyone anywhere who wants to be healthy. The truth is that our health and wellness needs are incredibly personalized and unique. We may be seeking to simply lead a healthier life, but we may also be looking to prevent or manage a specific condition. The first goal of any health and wellness education should be to clearly and concisely define the need, providing consumers with the ability to determine if the information is relevant to them.

2. What solution is being recommended and how does it work?

Once the need is clearly defined, we want to introduce the solution—or in many cases, solutions. More importantly, we want to explain the “why” and “how” behind the solution. We call this the “biorationale” and the need for this explanation comes from the fact that once a consumer has their health awareness heightened, they want more information, not less. Providing a cogent and understandable explanation that translates complicated science into easy-to-understand language is critical to driving real and lasting behavior change.  

3.  How is the solution applied?

In other words: how much, when, with what, and so on. This key focuses on helping the consumer understand how to incorporate this solution into their daily life and the specific parameters required to achieve the desired positive health benefit. Frequently, this key involves consulting a health professional, which is why face-to-face interactions between a health professional and a consumer are a great way to share this type of education.

4. Which brand and why?

Last, but not least, we want to ensure that we are providing a specific and compelling brand recommendation that will be reinforced by the health and wellness influencer. Here we can focus on a brand’s features and benefits, and its points of differentiation, to ensure we are driving the path to purchase. Year after year for more than 17 years, health and wellness professionals have told us that their patients and clients ask for specific brand recommendations. Providing this information meets the needs of both the professional and the consumer, as I saw at the seminar last week.

Once the topic of essential fatty acids was discussed, a hand popped up from the crowd. “What does that look like… Are there brands that you would suggest?” The host of the seminar answered with a branded recommendation and explanation. As she attempted to continue her speech she was interrupted by another attendee, “Is that at [a local grocery store]? Can I get it through Amazon?”

These are the questions that you, the health and wellness influencer, are asked everyday.  Our goal is to give you the tools you need to answer them.

A Battle Cry to My Dietitian Colleagues

I spent the first decade of my professional career working as an advertising executive. People loved giving me suggestions for future ads or asking why pharmaceutical commercials involved people running in fields while a soothing voiceover announced scary side effects. At no time did I ever encounter anyone actively trying to do my job.  When I decided to pursue becoming a dietitian, I noticed one shocking and disturbing fact: I was hustling for years going to school full-time, taking the proper route toward becoming a credentialed Registered Dietitian, yet there were people who had never taken a single nutrition course touting themselves as “Wellness Professionals” doling out nutrition advice all across cyberspace.  The hardest pill to swallow is that people actually listened to them!

These days, the letters after your name don’t seem to matter as much as the followers you have on social media.  Your “influence” now determines your level of expertise—or at least the media has decided this is the case, given the exposure celebrities and bloggers with large followings receive.  However, the recent IFIC Food & Health Survey reveals that 83% of Americans have little or no trust in advice given from celebrities about food and diet, and named Registered Dietitians as the most trusted source of nutrition information.  So why aren’t dietitians getting the exposure commensurate with this level of trust?

This, my dietitian colleagues, is where I ask a favor of all of you.  It is time we SPEAK UP and BE LOUDER about our knowledge and expertise.  From your immediate social circles, to the community, social media channels, and beyond.  It’s time we, the Registered Dietitian Nutritionists, become THE go-to nutrition experts.  Whether you blog, ‘gram, tweet, or counsel patients face-to-face every day, be the voice of sound science among the nonsensical clutter. Use your influence to empower consumers to make smarter choices when it comes to their health, and make sure they mention it was a Registered Dietitian who helped them.  

We must continue seeking allies and endorsements about our expertise from respected medical professionals in the media and elsewhere.  We need to continue partnering with manufactures and marketing companies to become influencers in the food/beverage/health industry and among consumers.  Dietitians are more than just nutritionists with higher education and clinical experience.  We are THE health and wellness experts, and it is time we make our influence known.  

Defining A Health Influencer

Malcolm Gladwell is often credited with the birth of influencer marketing as his 2000 book “The Tipping Point” highlighted the unique impact certain individuals can have over the preferences—and buying habits—of the people they interact with.

Over the past 16-plus years, influencer marketing has become a broad and varied discipline. As the value of mass media and now digital media are continuing to be questioned, consumer packaged goods brands are turning more and more to influencer marketing to help their brands reach that proverbial tipping point.

These brands have scrambled to identify those key individuals that can persuade others to buy their product, and they have sought them out in communities, on websites, via social media, on TV and in print. If you look around, you can see attempts at influencer marketing everywhere you look. The definition of an influencer, for many, has become very broad and somewhat diffuse.

Our exclusive focus on health & wellness, however, leads us to a very specific and focused definition of an influencer—a definition based on the trust and credibility that consumers demand from those that advise them on their health and wellness.

So, what constitutes a health & wellness influencer at Pulse? For us, it’s someone who:

1.  Counsels, trains or advises people in a professional setting. People trust the health & wellness professionals that they have hand-selected to support them. This includes practicing dietitians, nurses and nurse practitioners, physical trainers, health coaches, pediatric professionals, midwives and many other everyday health & wellness professionals. As the International Food Information Council found, that trust does not necessarily extend to bloggers, TV personalities, the news media, and other sources of indirect influence.

2.  Counsels, trains or advises people on behavior change. When people seek out health & wellness solutions they are looking for products that support positive changes in their behavior—small steps to better health. Whether that’s “free from” food products that support their aspirational wellness goals or functional products that address a specific health need, consumers look for advice on products that help them change their behavior. Our definition of an influencer, therefore, focuses on the professionals who spend time with consumers talking about how to make those positive changes. These “allied” professionals often spend significantly more time with consumers than doctors and make a much more effective vehicle for delivering your brand message directly to the consumer.

3.  Sees patients or clients on a regular basis. Far too often, “influencers” can only deliver that influence indirectly through blog posts, tweets, Facebook posts, or 90-second local news segments. We seek out professionals who see dozens of patients and clients on a weekly basis in order to provide clients with reach to their target consumer. We want the influence delivered directly to the consumer through a face-to-face interaction, not indirectly through media.

4.  Has the training and expertise to understand the needs of their patients & clients. What could be more targeted than relying on the education and experience of a trained health & wellness professional to determine for which patients & clients your product is most relevant. With our influencers, there’s no need to look to demographics or markers to identify which consumers to reach. If you find the right influencers, they do the targeting for you.

5.  Is willing to use branded educational materials, product samples and coupons in their counseling interactions. Not every health & wellness influencer is willing, but our research shows that more than 90% of influencers do recommend specific brands by name to patients and clients. But even when they are generally willing to incorporate materials, we want to be sure that your brand materials are highly relevant to the conversations they are having with people and that they meet a specific need for the consumers they are counseling, training and advising on a daily basis.

It’s not just a one-way street, our members expect high-quality educational materials from us. They rely on us to provide materials that are not only informative and credible, but which are also relevant to the conversations they are having with the people they advise. 

Influencers are at the core of what we do, and we are constantly looking to add qualified influencers to our network. If you fit the description above, join our influencer collective and start receiving educational materials, samples, and coupons that can make a difference in the lives of the people you counsel, train and advise.

PulseConnect. Making Connections, Influencing Behaviors.

Years ago a “health influencer” was someone narrowly defined within the healthcare field: a doctor, nurse, dietitian, or physical therapist. Today, a health and wellness influencer is more broadly defined to reflect a wide variety of professionals that influence Americans’ health and wellness, including personal trainers, midwives, and health coaches.  While practice titles may be different, all kinds of health and wellness professionals leverage a high level of influence with consumers.  Together, this new collective of health and wellness influencers is connecting with more and more clients in novel ways—and brands are recognizing their power.  

Pulse Health & Wellness’s HCPNetwork was an early example of this kind of collective—a place for healthcare professionals to opt-in to receive educational materials, samples and coupons provided by brands.

Relaunching as PulseConnect, this collective of health & wellness experts is expanding its focus and its membership. As a member of PulseConnect, you can receive high-quality, branded educational materials for yourself and your patients, including scientific backgrounders, patient handouts, teaching tools, samples, recipes and coupons.  Plus you will have the opportunity to provide insights and feedback to manufacturers through surveys and one-on-one interviews.

Healthy brands understand that a personal experience with a product and familiarity with its nutritional profile are what drive your recommendation. They know that you need to experience it yourself before you’re comfortable sending your clients in their direction.  In virtually every PulseConnect program,  there will  be special incentives for you to bring a product home and give it a try.  Of course, as you make your recommendations to patients and clients, you’ll have special offers for them too—in the form of samples, coupons, recipes and health & wellness tips.

Over the next few weeks, PulseConnect will be sharing case studies that demonstrate the power of the collective to consumers and influencers. For now, sign-up to be part of this exciting, dynamic collective and invite your friends/colleagues to join too!