By Leo Valiquette
Global food giant Nestle is a champion for healthy lifestyles and good nutrition. At least, that’s the impression given by its well-oiled marketing machine if you take the time to peruse its flagship website, or the website of its Canadian subsidiary. From tips on how to get the kids off to school with quick and nutritious breakfasts, to its various environmental and charitable efforts around the world, Nestle is putting a substantial effort into building a very specific brand image.
But, as I heard from unmarketer Scott Stratten when he spoke last week at CIRA’s AGM, brand is something that can be influenced, but not dictated, regardless of how much time, effort and money is sunk into the effort. And it doesn’t take much to derail even the most well planned branding strategy.
Nestle prides itself on “responsible consumer communication,” particularly to children. In Canada, it is a member of the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, a “voluntary program created by 16 leading food and beverage companies. The program involves promotion and support of healthy dietary choices and lifestyles among children 12 years-old and under. Participants also focus on shifting their advertising and marketing emphasis to foods and beverages that are consistent with the principles of sound nutrition guidance.”
Advertising Standards Canada, the industry association behind Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, even recognized Nestle and other participants last week for their upstanding efforts.
What’s wrong with this picture?
So it came as something of a surprise to see a Canadian television ad featuring the family of six-time CFL all-star Geroy Simon plugging various Nestle products as part of a campaign with the tagline “Team up with Nestle to keep them happy and nourished.”
Now, this is obviously an ad aimed at parents, not children. But let’s look closer. It portrays a busy family trying to get out the door in the morning and how Nestle’s various products serve to provide quick and healthy choices. But here are the three products that get placement in the ad:
- Kids drinking an instant breakfast.
- Candy bars and packaged chocolate milk going into their lunchboxes.
This will no doubt make the kids happy, but “nourished?”
Now I am sure that Nestle would argue that the instant breakfast contains loads of vitamins, minerals and whatever else can be synthesized to avoid the need to eat real food, while the chocolate milk is low in sugar and the chocolate bars are mini-sized to ensure portion control. These would all be valid statements. But why are these products plugged in the absence of other options which are undeniably healthier? Yes, there is fresh fruit present on the kitchen counter, but no one touches it. The fruit is passed over in favour of candy bars.
Most people are not going to visit the Nestle website where they will be advised to “try whole grain cereals topped with fruit” or “try eggs and whole grain toast with an orange.” Their only exposure to Nestle’s marketing effort will be TV ads. And those TV ads will have planted an image that ties instant meals and sugary treats together with good nutrition. And let’s not fool ourselves that this advertising isn’t targeting children. Young viewers will see and latch onto the image of candy bars going into a lunchbox, regardless of whether the ad is addressed to their parents.
You could argue that the ultimate responsibility for making healthy choices lies with the parents, which is true. But North America’s skyrocketing rates of child obesity and diabetes illustrates all too well that a large proportion of parents do not police their children’s (or their own) nutrition diligently enough, or are fighting an uphill battle.
To quote Marion Nestle (who, as far as I know, has no relation to the food company), professor in the department of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University:
“Research also shows what sells food to kids: cartoons, celebrities, commercials on their favorite television programs, and toys in Happy Meals. This kind of marketing induces kids to want the products, pester their parents for them, and throw tantrums if parents say no. Marketing makes kids think they are supposed to eat advertised foods, and so undermines parental authority.”
The dangers of sending mixed messages
Nestle markets hundreds of different products. “We produce and market a wide range of foods and beverages to satisfy many consumer needs – nutrition, variety, pleasure and convenience – which all contribute to achieving overall well-being,” reads the company’s website. And don’t get me wrong, my waistline proves that I am the last person who would argue against enjoying foods for pleasure.
But Nestle is stepping on a rather slippery slope here as it treads the line between its brand image which carries the slogan of “Good Food, Good Life,” and the commercial needs of plugging certain products at consumers. Two words come to mind: hypocrisy and disrespect.
It’s a cautionary tale that has significance for any effort to position any kind of product in the marketplace. Your brand image is defined by how consumers perceive it. Your messaging, and what you claim to stand for, must be consistently conveyed through every form of communication and interaction with your marketplace. Otherwise, you risk creating the impression that you are deliberately misleading consumers with false claims intended solely to lure them in and make a sale.
Image: Unbounce.com
