Market-leading yoghurt firm Chobani鈥檚 consumers are so invested in the business, they help co-create exciting new product ranges. Such is the case with the limited Halloween range it releases each year, explains Maria Voronina, the business鈥檚 senior brand manager for innovation and new platforms.
鈥淲e’re constantly talking to our consumers and engaging from multiple channels in a very personal way. That allows us to form relationships with them that make it possible for us to pull them into our new product development process,鈥� she explains.
Consumer involvement in the Halloween range started in 2016, when Chobani launched its first pumpkin pie yoghurt. Last year, it introduced a yoghurt pouch in the shape of a ghost. This year, it launched six new Halloween-themed packaging designs.
鈥淐onsumers knew this was coming because Halloween is an annual event and they get very excited. We ask people what they want and they submit ideas for flavours 鈥� some even design packaging. It鈥檚 an amazing source of inspiration. We鈥檙e currently planning next year based on this feedback, and I can guarantee it will be something special. It will be something different and we鈥檒l be drawing on our consumers鈥� ideas,鈥� says Voronina.
Chobani has enjoyed incredible success thanks to the proximity it enjoys with its consumers 鈥� every person who contacts Chobani with either a compliment or complaint receives a handwritten note.
Commenting on the best way to engage with consumers, Sydney university academic Vince Mitchell says understanding what they want involves thoroughly researching their behaviour and attitudes.
鈥淭his can range from watching how people buy and eat, to getting them to answer survey questions, to listening in on what people say on social media or in focus groups. It’s particularly important to have a range of methods. As [British advertising legend David Ogilvy] once said, ‘People don’t think how they feel, don’t say what they think and don’t do what they say鈥�,鈥� says Mitchell.
It鈥檚 important to Chobani to take a very personal approach to its interactions with its customers.
鈥淢arketing used to be about a one-way dialogue with consumers,鈥� says Voronina. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 completely changed 鈥� now consumers have a voice; they co-create your value. We have transcended mass marketing because we find the time to treat every person as an individual. We have so many personal stories from people who contact us who might be battling cancer or trying to lose weight. We record every interaction and follow up with them later, checking in and maintaining that relationship.鈥�
Mitchell says it鈥檚 important to have formal processes for involving consumers and incentivising them to become involved in product development.
鈥淔rom early-stage market research, ask them about what they like and dislike about current offerings on the market,鈥� he says. 鈥淭est concepts with them and allow them to play with prototypes or even buy them in simulated online or real life stores. Many companies co-create or use customer ideas as the inspiration for their products.鈥�
The Chobani team鈥檚 dedication is also a critical part of its success. Says Voronina: 鈥淓very employee knows the values, what the brand stands for and what it takes to deliver a truly exceptional experience. When everyone is responsible for the brand experience, your business becomes something really different.鈥�
Chobani also brings retailers along with it on its journey. 鈥淲e deal with our business partners in the same way we engage with our consumers. We aim to surprise and delight companies that have worked with us for a long time in the same way we do with our consumers; that鈥檚 very, very important.鈥�
This article first appeared in the
