Marketing - Face or No Face? (FFA/Sansa thread)

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<pre>Once again the discussion has evolved to a new thread; just wonderful
to see the interaction.

Please allow me summarise the discussion thread so far:
- Most agree that the organoleptic characteristics are as (if not
more) important as the chemical (read FFA) standards,
- The global olive oil market has a number of different product
niches, not all of which we (as an industry) necessarily want to
compete in (gourmet, supermarket, industrial seem to be appropriate
labels),
- Punitive means of preventing low quality oil being available in the
market have been used but appear to need continual vigilance by the
industry and government, and
- We agree that a "Face" would be helpful in developing the market
but there are different views on who would be appropriate.
I hope this is an accurate and fair summary; please add or refine as
appropriate.

I've read the discussion about the development of the wine industry
and the lessons we can learn from there with great interest.
Certainly, the industry has benefited greatly from industry wide
programs of quality assurance and specialised tertiary-level training
in viticulture and oneology. They are certainly worthy of emulation
and support to a far greater level in Australia. (Unfortunately, I
cannot comment on other countries such as Argentina, Italy or Turkey
for example).

Where I think we need to be careful as an industry is at the consumer
marketing level. Wine is predominantly a consumable product. It can
be used as an ingredient in cooking but mostly is marketed as product
that is capable of being consumed alone or to complement meals. By
contrast, olive oil is predominantly used as an ingredient in
cooking. It provides texture and flavour to the food as well as
health benefits to the consumer. It is sometimes consumed by itself
(or more commonly with bread, olives, tomato and cheese) but really
it is an ingredient.

Consequently, I will differ from most people on what type of
celebrity is needed! I don't believe it is a producer (grower or
processor) that is needed. (Of course, I do believe that some growers
and processors will become celebrities). The industry needs chefs
(someone like Aristos) and food celebrities (like Nigella Lawson) to
drive the public awareness of how premium (read EVOO) makes a
difference in certain foods. The chefs need to be trained in
organoleptic characteristics, the public needs to be trained to use
good olive oil in cooking (including salads). For the consumer, it's
the brand that's likely to count. Brands will convey a set of values
(e.g. organic, natural, healthy lifestyle, pure) to them as well as a
taste experience (e.g. smooth, grassy, peppery).

In Summary:
- Let's emulate the wine industry and establish a Olive Industry
Institute to gather statistics and conduct research on future trends
(production and marketing).
- Let's emulate the wine industry and support the development of
national research and training centers in olive production and
processing within tertiary institutes.
- Let's emulate the wine industry and establish a Olive Marketing
Authority to enforce standards, support brand development and help
the industry build international markets.
- But, let's depart from the wine industry experience and actively
create our own "celebrity indentities" who can work at both the
consumer and food & beverage market levels.

Hmmm, I wonder how people will respond :-).

Regards,
Lambros Karavis.
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<pre>Lambros

I think that your thoughts on "The Face" topic are spot on and should be
followed up. I also think that it is possible for most of us to then sit
back and wait for "The Face" to deliver the goods for us so that we increase
our sales and make lots of money.

In addition to your suggestions I believe that we could all do something to
increase sales of our product. I notice that every time I speak to a local
community group there is a jump in sales of evoo at the local supermarket.
Every time that we put on a stall at a local fete/show/fair we encounter
people who admit that our efforts have started them using evoo. There is a
lot that we can do at a local level as well as at a higher level with a
celebrity. I keep pointing out to people that if they buy 500ml of oil a
week at the supermarket that translates into 26 litres/year. If we all
managed to get 4 people per year to swap to using evoo, and they convinced a
friend or two as well we would increase sales in our own area and most
likely increase sales of our own product. I believe that we all have to do
this sort of thing in addition to the ideas that Lambros put forward.

There are heaps of ways of promoting evoo locally. My latest idea, which I
would love to see copied, is to sponsor a special category in the cake
making section of the local show. The organisers estimate that there will be
about 12 entries. The recipe uses 450ml of evoo. If each entrant does one
trial and one final entry they will have used about 1 litre of evoo. So
that's only 12 litres, but if they like the cake and make it once every 2
months for the next year that's another 36 litres. If their friends like it
as well it doesn't take long to boost that to around 100 litres and once
they are buying evoo they will likely experiment and use more of it. A cake
competition is only a gimmick but if it sells more evoo then why not use it
as a way of complementing all the other more traditional ways of promoting
the product. The more ideas that we can generate that we can all take part
in, the more we will sell our product. I would appreciate suggestions that
we can each implement in our own area so that we can work locally as well as
at a broader level.

Kent Hallett
South Australia


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<pre>Kent,

Yes! Yes!! YES!!! All of the ideas are great!

Kent Hallett wrote:

> Lambros
>
> I think that your thoughts on "The Face" topic are spot on and should be
> followed up. I also think that it is possible for most of us to then sit
> back and wait for "The Face" to deliver the goods for us so that we
> increase
> our sales and make lots of money.
>
> In addition to your suggestions I believe that we could all do
> something to
> increase sales of our product.

--------snip----------------------

>
> There are heaps of ways of promoting evoo locally. My latest idea, which I
> would love to see copied, is to sponsor a special category in the cake
> making section of the local show. The organisers estimate that there
> will be
> about 12 entries. The recipe uses 450ml of evoo. If each entrant does one
> trial and one final entry they will have used about 1 litre of evoo. So
> that's only 12 litres, but if they like the cake and make it once every 2
> months for the next year that's another 36 litres. If their friends
> like it
> as well it doesn't take long to boost that to around 100 litres and once
> they are buying evoo they will likely experiment and use more of it. A
> cake
> competition is only a gimmick but if it sells more evoo then why not
> use it
> as a way of complementing all the other more traditional ways of promoting
> the product. The more ideas that we can generate that we can all take part
> in, the more we will sell our product. I would appreciate suggestions that
> we can each implement in our own area so that we can work locally as
> well as
> at a broader level.

I love the idea! Do you want to post the recipe? I might even try it myself!

>
>
> Kent Hallett
> South Australia
>
>
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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<pre>Dear John - Re. Cakes made with EVOO.We have several delicious cake recipes
featured in Olive Oil - Recipes from the West Australian Olive Festival.My
favourites are: Spice Cake - sensational - and Walnut, Fig & Olive Oil
cake- devised in heaven.These great little recipe books are available from
the Australian Olive Association.Also - try the Spiced Lamb Shanks, Roasted
Roots with Herbs etc. etc.Good cooking !Yours, Maggie
----- Original Message -----
From: "John Attwood" <johnat@...>
To: <OliveOil@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, August 15, 2002 6:38 PM
Subject: Re: [OliveOil] Marketing - Face or No Face? (FFA/Sansa thread)


> Kent,
>
> Yes! Yes!! YES!!! All of the ideas are great!
>
> Kent Hallett wrote:
>
> > Lambros
> >
> > I think that your thoughts on "The Face" topic are spot on and should be
> > followed up. I also think that it is possible for most of us to then sit
> > back and wait for "The Face" to deliver the goods for us so that we
> > increase
> > our sales and make lots of money.
> >
> > In addition to your suggestions I believe that we could all do
> > something to
> > increase sales of our product.
>
> --------snip----------------------
>
> >
> > There are heaps of ways of promoting evoo locally. My latest idea, which
I
> > would love to see copied, is to sponsor a special category in the cake
> > making section of the local show. The organisers estimate that there
> > will be
> > about 12 entries. The recipe uses 450ml of evoo. If each entrant does
one
> > trial and one final entry they will have used about 1 litre of evoo. So
> > that's only 12 litres, but if they like the cake and make it once every
2
> > months for the next year that's another 36 litres. If their friends
> > like it
> > as well it doesn't take long to boost that to around 100 litres and once
> > they are buying evoo they will likely experiment and use more of it. A
> > cake
> > competition is only a gimmick but if it sells more evoo then why not
> > use it
> > as a way of complementing all the other more traditional ways of
promoting
> > the product. The more ideas that we can generate that we can all take
part
> > in, the more we will sell our product. I would appreciate suggestions
that
> > we can each implement in our own area so that we can work locally as
> > well as
> > at a broader level.
>
> I love the idea! Do you want to post the recipe? I might even try it
myself!
>
> >
> >
> > Kent Hallett
> > South Australia
> >
> >
> > ---
> > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
> > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
> > <http://www.grisoft.com%29.>
> > Version: 6.0.381 / Virus Database: 214 - Release Date: 03-08-02
> >
> >
> >
> > Yahoo! Groups Sponsor
> > ADVERTISEMENT
> >
<http://rd.yahoo.com/M=213858.2225295...web/S=17072169
73:HM/A=763352/R=0/*http://www.classmates.com/index.tf?s=5085>
> >
> >
> >
> > **************************************************
> > Post message: OliveOil@yahoogroups.com
> > Subscribe: OliveOil-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
> > Unsubscribe: OliveOil-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> > Moderators: OliveOil-owner@yahoogroups.com
> >
> > Only 108 votes so far.... Where are you from?????
> > Vote: http://www.my3q.com/home/napm/6634.phtml
> > Results: http://www.my3q.com/view/viewSummary.phtml?questid=1855
> > **************************************************
> >
> > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service
> > <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> .
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>
> **************************************************
> Post message: OliveOil@yahoogroups.com
> Subscribe: OliveOil-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
> Unsubscribe: OliveOil-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> Moderators: OliveOil-owner@yahoogroups.com
>
> Only 108 votes so far.... Where are you from?????
> Vote: http://www.my3q.com/home/napm/6634.phtml
> Results: http://www.my3q.com/view/viewSummary.phtml?questid=1855
> **************************************************
>
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>
>
>
</pre>
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