Westporter Ed Moeller, CEO of Inspire Brands, pinch hit at Westport Sunrise Rotary on Friday and talked to the group about brand building. A veteran of Procter & Gamble and Richardson Vicks, and now an independent consultant and advisor to consumer packaged goods marketers, Moeller said, “You buy products, I design them.”
Everything you see is a brand, he said. You are a brand – your strengths, your weaknesses, your foibles, what makes you you makes you a brand.
“Why do you buy what you buy?” he asked. A supermarket may have 30 feet of shelf space devoted to barbecue sauce, so many choices. Moeller’s firm helps his clients understand why you pick the one you do and wants to convince you to buy his client’s.
Moeller’s business is about “making connections” – connecting something tangible to the hearts and minds of consumers, to make them want it and then to go out and buy it.
On example he introduced was Chobani Greek Yogurt. He began working with its founders in 2007 – after the two company founders had spent two years creating the “perfect cup of yogurt” with the freshest fruits. Originally positioned as an ethnic food – competing primarily against Fage, the first to market and the leading Greek yogurt five years ago – today Chobani is the third largest yogurt brand in the U.S.
Inspire Brands began with the purity and health related qualities of the product, created clean, fresh graphics and connected with a consumer by getting her (or maybe him) to see themselves eating a healthy snack with a youthful appeal.
Another product the firm revitalized and extended was Dove Soap. Shower soaps are traditionally bought by women and used by men – don’t we just use whatever soap is in the shower?
Moeller’s firm eliminated the women’s scent, gave its new product a more masculine appearance and appeal and made it a successful brand extension.
He talked about pepperoni, calling it a “flavor, not a meat.” It’s something having many more uses than “just a pizza topping.” After researching market opportunities, the firm developed more than a dozen new products, among them an onion and pepperoni dip using Philadelphia Cream Cheese and Campbell's Onion Soup.
During Q&A he was asked about marketing both Rotary and the Sunrise Rotary Great Duck Race (coming up on June 22). Moeller provided a bit of creativity on demand. Kudos for offering. But to this writer, Inspire Brands’ impressive accomplishments were achieved not by reacting but by completing a thorough analysis and giving the client a solution that “ignites the brand’s potential.”