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In our previous column, you learned how to successfully move inventory and the strategies you can use to optimize your placement. In this article, we’re diving deep into the world of advertising! We’ll break down the different types of advertising, why they’re important, and the secrets you need to know to get the attention of top retail buyers.

Let’s get started!

The importance of advertising

Advertising plays a crucial role in CPG marketing. This is highlighted in the fact that “roughly 23% of CPG companies’ budgets were devoted to marketing efforts in early 2023,” making it the highest share of ad expenditures among all U.S. industries.

Overall, advertising in any form serves three primary purposes:

Inform Persuade Remind

Advertising also works to serve several strategic functions because it:

Differentiates your product in a saturated market Builds brand recognition & loyalty  Drives sales & market share gains Educates others on your products’ benefits & uses Establishes and reinforces your brand image

When it comes to CPG marketing, advertising helps inform consumers and retail buyers about your brand and exists as a platform to educate people about the benefits it provides. It allows you to make a more intimate and emotional connection …

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Behind the Scenes of a Professional Product Photo Shoot

In today’s digital world, having great product shots are essential to a brand’s success. Whether they are for grabbing the attention of buyers on your RangeMe profile, or driving D2C sales on your website and social media, how you visually showcase your products to the world should be a key component of every brand’s marketing strategy.

But what exactly is it that goes into capturing these images, whether they are pure product shots in front of a white background, or lifestyle shots in a variety of settings? To answer this question, I spoke with my friend Larry Shore of The Shore Shot to get a behind-the-scenes view of what went into the photos he recently shot for Daisy Betance, Founder of RangeMe subscriber Little Buddha. Below, he’ll walk us through his vision and setup for some of the product photos from the shoot for Little Buddha’s various digital platforms, with some guidance for brands that might look to shoot their own product photos. But first, a little about the brand…

A holistic approach to skincare

Little Buddha is committed to promoting a holistic approach to skincare that encompasses both the well-being of our planet and the well-being of our minds, …

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As we prepare to enter a new year, what can we expect? To answer this question, the Food Biz Wiz team joined forces with the folks at ECRM & RangeMe to examine what’s been working – and what’s not working – over the past twelve months, and to share our views on how it will all play out in 2024. 

We have good news and bad news for suppliers for the upcoming year so let’s outline it all. Below you’ll find a summary of our 2024 predictions, based on the conversation I had with Joe Tarnowski for my last Food Biz Wiz podcast of 2023 (no 226). To listen to the full conversation, you can find my podcast episode here! You’ll find Joe’s take on these predictions in the shaded parts of each segment.

Let’s start with the (potentially) bad news first…

Continued supply chain and labor challenges

We predict that we’ll continue to see increased challenges with labor shortages, supply chain hiccups in certain categories, and increased consolidation and mergers between retailers. Suppliers may feel a negative impact here: wholesale buyers will continue to have less patience for brands who aren’t truly ready for retail, as they don’t have …

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It’s time to shelve your worries about claims and hit “add to cart” on product liability insurance! (Too much? We’ll dial it back). There’s an easy way to safeguard your business and it starts with protecting the products you sell. But what exactly does product liability insurance do for retailers? That’s what we’re here to talk to you about today.

“Product What Insurance?!”

Before we dive into the nitty gritty insurance details, there’s usually one question most people have: Why are there so many different types of product liability insurance?

In short, we can blame SEO for the laundry list of names. There’s also the fact that “product liability insurance” is a mouthful, so some people call it product insurance or liability insurance. All of this, combined with insurance companies still using technical terms, has created a lot of nicknames for this coverage.

You might see these names, but know they all generally refer the same type of insurance:

Retail product insurance Product liability insurance for retailers Retailer product liability Insurance for retail products

Things might start to differ when you see the phrase “retail insurance,” since that type of coverage tends to go beyond what we are talking about today. …

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RangeMe Submission Leads to Birdy Boutique’s Products Flying Off the Shelves at Meijer

When a new product quickly goes through several POs at a major retailer, you know it’s a hit. And sometimes the most successful product innovations are often simple concepts that just haven’t been thought of before, like the Learning Blankets made by women- and veteran-owned brand Birdy Boutique!

The products are super-comfy children’s blankets that help kids learn about a variety of topics, from geography to new languages, animals and nature. They can also be customized for retailers. Meijer, for example, ordered blankets with a design from a local artist to celebrate Black History month — the brand’s fourth PO with the retailer, which began as a submission via RangeMe.

In addition, Birdy Boutique secured a partnership with Walgreens through ECRM’s Diverse and Minority Owned General Merchandise Session.

In the video below, I speak with Co-Founder Joanna Jozwik Serra and Business Development Manager Anna Rusinowski about the origin of the company and its products, and how they have leveraged ECRM and RangeMe to get on the shelf at major retailers.

Lots of great advice for brands looking to succeed at retail!

Editor’s note: Brands with general merchandise products can meet with retail buyers face-to-face at ECRM General Merchandise Sessions.

The …

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Want to Elevate Your Customer Relationships? Then it’s Time to Go Deep.

I once received a phone call from an old friend who emphatically presented the merits of collaborating with him on a project his company was spearheading within our industry. For 20 minutes, he presented a binder full of reasons why it would (in his opinion) be good for me to invest my time, energy, and creativity in his initiative. 

After laying out the pitch I asked him a simple question: “Would you like to better understand my thoughts?” My old friend paused and replied, “Ummmm, sure, that would be a good idea Dan. Tell me what you are trying to accomplish these days?” We both started laughing and I proceeded to share how my coaching business had evolved since we last spoke.

 Most sales leaders do not invest enough time understanding the stated and unstated agenda of their customers, partners, and teammates. They rarely uncover hidden problems or stress points that need to be solved. My friend forgot the golden rule of sales: it’s not about you, it’s about us. A customer meeting emphasizes diagnosing the situation long before prescribing a solution.

The secret

Elevating a relationship isn’t something you do, it’s the result of everything you’ve done. Most people …

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