1 FIND YOUR PURPOSE IN THE FOOD & BEVERAGE INDUSTRY Are you a high school student trying to decide on your career path after graduation? FoodGrads is here to help you explore the Food & Beverage industry, and the variety of fulfilling careers available. We are on a mission to attract, guide and develop the next generation of Food & Beverage industry pros. Learn about careers inSALES & MARKETING and how important these are in keeping your food safe.
Account Manager.......................................................................... 1 Category Manager........................................................................ 5 Customer Service Rep................................................................... 9 Food Marketer............................................................................ 13 Market Data Analyst................................................................... 17 Food Broker................................................................................ 21 Sales Rep..................................................................................... 25 Technical Sales Rep.. ................................................................... 29 How It All Comes Together......................................................... 33 Our Education Partners. ............................................................. 35 TABLE OF CONTENTS
SALES & MARKETING - ACCOUNT MANAGER 2 1 SALES & MARKETING Account Manager Take a moment to think about your favourite brand of cookie. Now think about all the different places you can purchase it from. Every location has been strategically chosen by manufacturing companies based on the consumer they would like to sell to. Each chain of supermarket that they sell to is known as an “account.” Alternatively, for an ingredient sales company (places that sell ingredients like flour and chocolate chips) each cookie factory is considered an “account”. An account is more than just a one-time transaction. If you nurture the relationship, meet client expectations, and build trust than this can lead to long term profitable customers. Companies work with multiple clients but each still requires a personal touch to ensure that the account is in good hands. Having good relationships helps both the account and account representatives. This career profile is looking at the profession of Account Managers and how their management skills help your favourite cookie make it to the shelf. 1. An Account Manager is a Liaison Between a Company and its Customers Account managers represent the post-sales role that focuses on building and strengthening relationships with clients. Their goal is to retain client business and grow and discover opportunities of mutual benefit. Account managers identify the needs of both their business and the customer and decide how to best to meet those needs. They act as the face of the company speaking to specific customers providing updates regarding production, assisting with purchases and suggesting new product/services which would be of benefit to clients. If a customer has a problem with their product, they first reach out to their account manager. Account managers communicate the value of their offerings and negotiate terms so both parties end up happy. They will offer curated custom offerings tailored to the customer’s specific needs. This could include making deliveries on a certain days, selling certain quantities or helping with product development. 2. Account Managers Have Diverse Educational Backgrounds It’s typical for account managers to have a university degree or college diploma in business administration, marketing or commerce. Other degrees include Food Science, engineering and even physical science degrees like Chemistry and Biology. Due to the strong competition for jobs in these fields, a master’s degree could allow for account managers to stand out among other candidates. There are no current schools that offer specific degrees in food account management in Canada or the United States. If students are looking to further their education through a master’s degree, a post graduate degree in Business Administration is suggested. Account Manager Building relationships with customers What Is An Account Manager? https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=jTHZzDWJgZk Learn what an account manager is, what account management skills you need to succeed, and best practices. Photo by Cytonn Photography/Pexels
SALES & MARKETING - ACCOUNT MANAGER ACCOUNT MANAGER - SALES & MARKETING 3 4 managers might track is sales growth, a metric that measures the average sales volume of a company’s products or services has grown, typically from year to year. This metric allows an account manager to determine if a client is gaining this profit in the long term. Overall, by monitoring metrics, account managers determine how well relationships are going and the revenue a company is generating and assess their performances. 7. Account Managers Conduct Presentations One of the most difficult parts about being an account manager is developing new relationships with potential clients. One technique account managers use to influence prospects to purchase from them is presentations. These presentations translate and communicate information such as new products available at their company, project updates or customer reviews. Therefore, effective account managers need to be comfortable presenting in front of others. 8. Account Managers are Good Listeners, Creative, and Self-Starters Being an account manager requires a wide range of skills. However, there are a few which are more essential than others. These skills include: • Listening – Being able to listen is the key to all effective communication. Account managers listen to the concerns of their clients and ask a lot of questions. Active listening involves reading individuals’ body language, maintaining eye contact and mirroring a speaker’s language to show interest. • Self-Starter – Effective account managers are self-starters and are motivated to start new tasks without the help of others. Account managers demonstrate this by developing good productivity habits, using the right tools and setting structured goals. Overall, account managers know what the client needs without upper management instructing them to do so. • Creative – Creativity is an important skill for any account manager who would like to stand out from the crowd. Each client is unique, meaning that the same playbook cannot be used for every clients. Account managers use their experience and knowledge of the client to come up with creative ideas. Becoming an account manager in the food industry is unique compared to other industries such as technology. The food industry allows for a greater range in education, allowing for a larger scope of educational backgrounds to be considered. 3. Account Managers Understand Their Clients Having strong relationships with clients is the heart of an account manager’s job. Account managers truly listen to their clients because they want to understand their client’s needs and find the best solutions to satisfy them. They have a intimate understanding of their client’s strategy, finances, products and market position. Using this knowledge the account manager can use their expertise to provide different product offerings and pricing. Overall, the have exceptional customer service abilities and always look at things from the perspective of the customer. 4. Account Managers Have Intuition Account managers always look to identify new business channels to achieve customer revenue and profit targets. They proactively keep abreast in all news, speculations and emerging strategic objectives related to each customer. They get this information through industry news, conferences, reports and market research. Effective account managers can sort out all of the information they have collected and understand where it fits in the big picture. Account managers think two steps ahead. They demonstrate this skill by creating presentations for clients presenting well-suited product offerings or simply sitting down and having a good phone call. 5. Account Managers Negotiate Account managers are skilled negotiators, matching their company objectives with client needs. The objective of negotiation for account managers is to ensure that their client is happy and the company they work is experiencing business success. They negotiate with a customer’s headquarters and category buyers on pricing, new items and promotions to grow their business. They always negotiate in accordance with the company’s budget and profitability plan to ensure all business deals are profitable on both sides. The objective of negotiating with key accounts is to use strategic selling and negotiating skills to match your company objectives with a key account’s needs, strategies and opportunities, and to increase the overall level of your business with the account. 6. Account Managers Monitor Customer Performance Account management focuses on building long-term beneficial partnerships with clients. To know if these partnerships are beneficial, account managers must monitor a client’s performance both in the short and long term. For example, one metric that account Account managers need a broad network to gather information as well as generate leads. As a student (or recent grad) we highly recommend you grow your professional network! There are several ways you can do this: • Grow your LinkedIn network. • Attend tradeshows and conferences. • Join associations. Here are a few networking blog posts to help students: • How to Survive a Tradeshow or Conference as a Student. • Why You Should be Attending Food Shows & Expos. • Networking 101 – Part 1. • Start Networking Now, While You’re Still At School! • Navigating Digital Networking as a Student. Conestoga College is an Education Partner of ours, check them out on FoodGrads! Click their logo below! Available Programs: Administrative Business, Business, Business – Finance, Business- Supply Chain and Operations, Business Fundamentals, Business Development and Sales, Business Administration – Management Conestoga College Taylor McNerney, Marketing Manager at Griffith Foods. Industry Exp: 8yrs Name the top 3 characteristics you need to be good at your job: • Team Player • Strategic Thinker • Creativity Top 3 advice tips for students and new grads coming into the industry: It doesn’t matter where you get your start. Sometimes this means taking a lower level position than you feel you deserve. Get in, then your hard work and intelligence will get you to the next level. Love what you do and the people you work with. Life is too long to dread Mondays. Never stop learning. Always think about the next degree, or certification, that will keep you relevant and set you apart from your peers. Tell us why your FoodJobRocks? Its all about the people. Not only amazing people within Griffith, but we have amazing customers too. Each one has their own unique challenges, as well as opportunities to help shape the future of food in Canada. Read the full interviewHERE Career Profile Photo by courtneyk/E+/GettyImages
SALES & MARKETING - CATEGORY MANAGER 6 5 SALES & MARKETING Category Manager All the dairy products are together in the fridge area, the middle of the store holds all the dry goods while the produce aisle has the all the fresh fruit and vegetables. Grocery stores are strategically set up this way to help consumers. Could you imagine how fast a store would go out of business if they scattered the cookies all around the store? Stores are set up categorically to help consumers decide what they want to purchase. However, even with this organization there is still many options (like cookies) that a consumer can purchase from. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the number of choices available however situations like this are not ideal for companies because they want the decision to purchase from them easy. How is a company supposed to stand out with all of the possible products in a single grocery category? Well, they entrust this task to professionals known as Category Managers. 1. Category Managers Drive Sales Category managers manage a group or category of products for companies. How big their category or group is depends on the size of the company they work for. For example, a category manager at a large company could be responsible for ‘artisanal breads’, whereas a category manager in a smaller company may work a broader category like ‘baked goods’. Overall, a category manager oversees the management, pricing, sales, and in some cases distribution of a particular product. A key component of their job is building relationships with clients and ensuring that their relationship is mutually beneficial. For example, a category manager may give a client a discount if they purchase multiple products from the same category. Category managers know that building these relationships take time and strategy. This results in them developing long term strategies that drive company sales up. Strategies are built on the analysis of data collected from a variety of sources and translated into meaningful information which could include the performance of individual products, retailer inventory levels and customer demand. Category managers may also update category reports, inputting information into databases so it can be extracted later. These professionals work with staff across departments including pricing, marketing and procurement. These departments help with pricing and the promotion of their product category. Overall, the job of a category manager is to drive customer/shopper satisfaction by increasing category sales. 2. Category Managers Commonly Have Degrees in Business The tasks that category managers take on will differ fromcompany tocompany. Somecompanies may require managers to spend more time analyzing data while others are more customeroriented, focusing on building relationships and negotiating. To reflect this category managers have a variety of educational backgrounds. Some of the most common bachelor’s degrees and college diplomas include marketing, finance, analytics or business. Many companies accept both university and college graduates. However, in most cases, an Category Manager Managing product categories for company success All these products make up a category that a category manager would be responsible for managing: 1. Cookie. 2. Cookie in snack size packaging. 3. Another variety of cookie. 4. Holiday themed cookie. Photo by Pavel Danilyuk/Pexels
SALES & MARKETING - CATEGORY MANAGER CATEGORY MANAGER - SALES & MARKETING 7 8 additional 2-5 years of work experience in a sales, demand planning or marketing role may be required. 3. Category Managers Follow Market Trends Following trends is an integral part of a category manager’s job. Market trends dictate what kinds of advertising, promotions, and marketing campaigns category managers perform for their products. One way they collect data is by developing strategic relationships with key suppliers to ensure early insight to new trends and products. Retailers can provide information such as how well marketing efforts were, the promotions ran and how well the communication strategy was. Using this numerical data they can figure out their next steps. 4. Category Managers Develop National Programs One of the major roles of a category manager is developing promotions and pricing strategies. They develop pricing strategies by analyzing their competition and the attributes of their product. Category managers work closely with the operations teams (the teams that work on manufacturing the products) when a new product is released. New products must adhere to a certain set of standards as set out by a promotional campaign. If it doesn’t than this can lead to a degradation of trust for a brand by consumers. 5. Category Managers Manage Budgets A successful promotion starts with knowing the budget. To manage their budgets, category managers use data to monitor key national promotions. Relevant data includes retail inventory levels, the price of products and the cost of promotional campaigns. All of these factors work together, enabling a category manager to watch where they need to spend their money. Another benefit to having one individual focus on category management rather than a particular brand is it enable sellers to align and organize the selling and supply chain in the most effective and sustainable way by maximizing the key business metrics in the long run. 6. Category Managers Act as a Primary Contact Category managers act as the primary contact for vendors that support different programs and promotions. When speaking with vendors, these professionals ensure that their merchandising is correctly executed according to the business plan. Finally, they directly handle day-to-day operational encounters, building a relationship with the vendors and ensuring that everyone benefits over a long period of time. 7. Category Managers Negotiate Contracts To stay ahead of the competition, category managers use point-of-purchase marketing. Point of purchase marketing is a phrase used to describe the messages delivered to a customer at the exact time they make a purchase. If you are trying to decide between two products to purchase it is likely you will read the label to decide which one to purchase. Category managers sometimes will encourage customers to purchase their product by placing it in highly visible location. This encourages the sale of the product, for example, when customers enter a grocery store, they are more likely to see products that are placed at eye-level than those that are located closer to the ground. Products placed at eye-level are known to be in the “prime location” for consumers to notice them (refer to last image for reference). Category managers negotiate with retailers, often paying them to place their products in an ideal location or developing a partnership with them. However, this negotiation isn’t just limited to pricing. A category manager also negotiates contracts with retailers for marketing campaigns and vendor contracts. Every category manager has their own negotiating style but the key is that mitigate risk within contract and make sustainable decisions for the business. 8. Category Managers are Curious, Competitive, and Creative Being a category manager requires a range of skills. However, there are a few which are more essential than others. These skills include: • Curiosity – These professionals are always curious about trends and consumer behavior. They will formulate a business questions and look for data that answers their question. They are curious about what encourages a customer to purchase one product over another and what they can do to encourage consumers to buy their products. • Competitiveness – Company’s maintain a competitive edge in the industry hiring the right people. Category managers are often competitive in nature because the success of their job is dependent on how well a product performs in the market. They are always analyzing the market and creating the best promotions that beat out the competition. • Creativity– To stand out from the rest of the crowd, category managers must be creative. They think critically and analyze markets to create distinct, exciting and innovative marketing plans. They have to balance being flexible and agile while staying true to their company’s brand. Want to learn more about what it is like interacting with suppliers? Then you should check out tradeshows even as a student! Learn more about how to survive a tradeshow as a student in Jennie Vallangcas blog on FoodGrads! Click the photo to read all about it! What is a pricing strategy? A pricing strategy is essentially how products are priced at retailers. Pricing can be become complicated as it is dependent on location, time of year, demand and the quantity. Prices have to be to set high enough to make a profit but not too high that a customer will purchase it. What is promotional marketing? Promotional marketing refers to the process of sharing knowledge about a brand, product or service through multiple marketing channels to increase brand awareness. Photo by Noel Hendrickson/DigitalVision George Brown College is an Education Partner of ours, check them out on FoodGrads! Click their logo below! Available Programs: Business Administration, Business – Finance, Bachelor of Commerce, Business Administration – Marketing, Marketing Management – Digital Media George Brown College Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko/Pexels Category managers are primarily responsible for managing a category of products. A simple example of different kinds of products in a category is multiple packaging sizes of your favourite cookie.
SALES & MARKETING - CUSTOMER SERVICE REP 10 9 SALES & MARKETING Customer Service Rep. The day has come where your favourite cookie wasn’t quite up to your standards. Although you could post about it on social media you decide to send an email to the company expressing your concern. After all, you love the brand but don’t want to call them out in public. You head over to the company to look for ways to reach out and find out you call, email or direct message the company directly. No matter which option you choose a customer service representative is on the other end of the line. These professionals work hard to keep their customers happy and making the business aware of how they can keep making high quality cookies. 1. Customer Service Reps Interact with Customers Customer Service Representatives (CSR) interact with customers on behalf of a company. Theyanswer customer questions, resolvecustomer complaints and process orders. Customer service identifies problems and concerns for customers by communicating effectively. They resolve product or service problems by clarifying customers’ complaints and determining the cause of the problem. Using the information provided and company standards, they select and explain the best solution to solve the problem. For example, if the cookie you received was over baked the immediate solution that a CSR might take is to reimburse the customer for their purchase. However, if the complaint involves a food safety issue such as foreign material in the product they will ask the customer to send back the product for further investigation. CSRs work with food safety departments to track and identify the root cause of food quality issues. In some smaller food businesses CSRs are responsible for inputting customer orders and taking payments. This is more common in business-to-business (B2B) transactions where a business is buying product from another. If a customer needs help placing an order or wants to change an order, a CSR walks them through the proper steps. In addition, they are responsible for promptly informing customers of shortages on their orders. This includes communicating with various departments to find out the status of shipments. 2. Customer Service Reps Build Customer Relationships Customer service representatives build and foster customer relationships by showing customers that they genuinely care about them. If during a (B2B) transaction they know that the shipment is going to be late, they communicate this ahead of time and show appreciation to the customer. Customer service communicates with customers regularly and uses communication to assess, monitor and develop the relationship. 3. Customer Service Reps Don’t Need Postsecondary Degrees Customer service representatives have a variety of educational backgrounds, as this is a profession in which there is no standard degree. Typically, these professionals have at least a high school diploma because they receive on-theCustomer Service Rep. Ensuring that customers are happy with every purchase Why is customer service so important? Customer service covers all the direct one-on-one interactions a customer has with a company while making a purpose. Many companies see this direct interaction as important because it is critical to business success. Good customer service can encourage long term brand loyalty or instantly break it. The key to good customer service is ease for the customer, timely attention and adequate follow-up. Photo by Drazen Zigic/iStock/GettyImagesPlus
SALES & MARKETING - CUSTOMER SERVICE REP CUSTOMER SERVICE REP - SALES & MARKETING 11 12 identifies vital pieces of information necessary to help a customer and knows what questions to ask to probe for an answer. 7. Customer Service Reps Have Commercial Awareness Commercial awareness is described as having the ability to understand all aspects of the business world and situations from a commercial perspective. Being able to understand where your organization sits in the bigger picture affects how you make decisions. CSRs demonstrate their commercial awareness by knowing issues that their industry faces and information surrounding competitors. 8. Customer Service Reps Resolve Conflicts, Multitask, and Listen Being a Customer Sales Representative requires a wide range of skills. However, there are a few which are more essential than others. These skills include: • Listening–Active listening is the foundation of effective communication. For CSRs to solve problems, they engage with customers and make them feel special. Active listening fosters an understanding and empathy for the customer. • Conflict Resolution – No matter how hard CSRs try, they will come across a time when a customer is angry and refuses to listen. CSRs have the ability to analyze situations and come up with the best solution to diffuse the conflict and turn it around to satisfy the customer. • Multitasking – When a CSR responds to a phone call, they are also responsible for recording the incoming information that a customer provides. During a call, they look into databases, write down information and sometimes talk with other coworkers. CSRs need to be comfortablemultitasking because it is an integral skill for this profession. job training to learn the specific skills needed for the job. However, depending on the size and scope of the company a degree/diploma in business, marketing, administration or operations management may be required or beneficial. If students are looking to achieve a higher role such as a director of customer service, they should obtain a university degree or equivalent. 4. Customer Service Reps Perform Administrative Tasks After each call, a CSR is responsible for updating their customer service database. A database with inputted information allows a company to identify any present trends. Typically these interactions come in the form of complaints. This however can be a rich source of information as it can help operations discover problem that were observed during production. For example, if they notice that multiple people are complaining about over baked cookie this will start an investigation. This investigation could bring to light that the one of the grills in the oven is over-baking the cookies. Eventually, this would lead to maintenance fixing the oven. 5. Customer Service Reps Have Composure One of the most impressive skills that any CSR has is the ability to maintain their composure during stressful times. An effective customer service representative is can maintain a positive, empathetic and professional attitude towards customers. This can be a difficult task when customers are being difficult, but if the CSR stays calm during the interaction, they are better equipped to satisfy a long-time customer than a representative that can’t maintain their composure. 6. Customer Service Reps Deal with Ambiguity Customers may not always give the full picture when it comes to a problem. They may provide half or even false information needed to solve a problem. Customers do this for a variety of reasons. The former is simply to looking to get a refund or cause distrust of a brand. While the later is caused by a customer genuinely not keeping track of all the information necessary because they are busy and unorganized. A CSR Ontario Jobs | CareersNOW! Mentorship Series - Sales and Marketing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9T04zTT0h74 Tune in for an in-depth mentorship session on an in depth view of how a marketing and sales job looks in the food and beverage industry. As well, tips and tricks on how to land your dream career in marketing and sales. This session features two food and beverage industry experts who are active players in the community and offers everything you need to jump start your dream career. If you get a job at McDonalds, in a restaurant or any other food service establishment it will equip you well in customer service. Here are some blog posts to convince you! • Internships: Wake Up & Smell The Coffee! • No Relevant Experience? No Problem • Where to Get the Best Work Experience While in School Niagara College Canada is an Education Partner of ours, check them out on FoodGrads! Click their logo below! Available Programs: Business – Sales and Marketing, Business Administration, Business, Beverage Business Management, Business Administration – Human Resources, Business Administration – Accounting Niagara College Canada 12 skills that all Customer Service Reps need to be successful: • Assertiveness • A sense of humor • Clear communication • Conflict resolution • Depersonalization • Empathy • Listening skills • Patience • Positive attitude • Product knowledge • Self-control • Taking responsibility Photo by Mykyta Dolmatov/iStock/GettyImagesPlus PhotobyDragonImages/iStock/GettyImagesPlus Hi! I’m Quinton, the FoodGrads Bot! For any questions please come visit me at FoodGrads.com!
SALES & MARKETING - FOOD MARKETER 14 13 SALES & MARKETING Food Marketer Have you ever purchased a food product because you saw it on TikTok or Youtube? Was the marketing so good it compelled you to purchase it immediately? Well, that’s thanks to a food marketer! In today’s fast-moving environment, having a great tasting product is simply not enough. For products to become successful, they must be properly marketed. Your favourite cookie is marketed in a way that creates a bond of trust and loyalty between producers/sellers and consumer. How a food is marketed comes in many forms including branding, social media posts, sponsorships and product placements. Marketingalsoextends to theproduct itself and how it looks. One of the most powerful indicators of whether a product will be purchased or not is the package design. It creates an identity and helps consumers associate the product with its brand. For many companies multiple individuals are employed as food marketers who specialize in different marketing avenues. 1. Food Marketers Develop Marketing Plans for Food Products Food marketers are responsible for the marketing of food products and ensuring that the products succeed. They develop, manage and implement marketing activities and strategies for food products. Marketers develop activities by analyzing data on consumers and their purchasing habits. Additionally, they develop promotional activities which could include instore demos, online ad campaigns and sampling. Finding out how well a product sells during promotional activities helps to determine if a marketing strategy is working. Food marketers also play a role in the design of a product. Using market research they will suggest to Research and Development (R&D) new products to create and packaging designs which would be effective in enticing consumers. Finally, marketers perform analysis on the marketplaces identifying market competitors and areas of opportunity. This allows them to identify potential marketing opportunities. 2. Food Marketers Play a Role in R&D R&D technicians aren’t the only ones responsible for developing a food product. Marketers play a large role in product development due to their insights on market trends. Many times, it’s the marketing team who comes up with a product concept and asks the R&D team to develop it. For example, through research, a marketer might notice that mango is a trending flavour. To follow this trend and data, they request R&D to develop a new mango flavoured cookie. Food Marketers Marketing products to increase brand loyalty What is a market segment? A market segment (also known as a market) is the process of dividing a broad consumer or business marketing into subgroups (known as segments) based on some type of shared characteristics. Examples of characteristics include age, shared activities and shopping habits. Want to know what it’s like being a marketing coordinator right after graduation and how they got the role? Than check out episode 12 of the FoodGrads podcast. Click the photo to tune in! Photo by milindri/iStock/GettyImagesPlus
SALES & MARKETING - FOOD MARKETER FOOD MARKETER - SALES & MARKETING 15 16 6. Food Marketers Must be Comfortable with Changes in Technology An esteemed marketer could tell you that in the past 20 years things have changed a lot with the advent of the internet. 20 years ago the internet was barely used and today it has become a standard in society. Many of us can’t even remember a time where there wasn’t any internet. Where businesses used to rely on yellow pages and television advertising, now use online advertising such as social media and influencers. Food marketers need to be comfortable knowing that today’s relevant marketing channels may not be relevant next year. Marketers always update their skills and keeping up with industry trends by following social feeds, engaging in forums (e.g. Reddit), listening to podcasts and just engaging with society. To adapt to the ever-changing nature of technology, it is essential that marketers understand what is current might not be around in 5 years. 7. Food Marketers Must Have Foresight Senior marketers are usually tasked with creating extensive business plans which go years into the future. These plans might include overhauling food packaging designs, establishing new marketing channels and developing new leads. If these plans are made incorrectly than the company loses extensive time and money. Food marketers use data to guide their decisions and help to mitigate risk for long term decisions. 8. Food Marketers Communicate, Think Analytically and Creatively As with any occupation, there are certain sets of skills which will aid you better than others. For a food marketer, these skills include: • Communication – Communicating the value of their product to consumers is essentially the job of a marketer. Therefore, a marketer must have strong communication skills themselves! Marketers consistently speak with other departments through team meetings and email. However, their communication is not just limited to the office. Other examples include talking with influencers for brand placements and consulting with outside research firms. • Analytical Thinking– In today’s market, data is king and those that understand how to use it dominate the market. Marketers must be capable of interpreting both written and visual data so they can incorporate it into their marketing plans. As technology has advanced marketers now have more data than ever before to guide their decisions. • Creativity – Marketers are responsible for producing effective and imaginative ad campaigns which encourage consumers to purchase their products. To stand out from the crowd, marketers must be creative in how they market their products. 3. Food Marketers Work with Outside Companies Most companies in the food industry are small with limited budgets. Therefore, companies are more likely to hire professionals with diverse skill sets rather than those that are specialized in a particular one. To fill in the gaps many food businesses request help from outside organizations. For example, the cookie manufacturer will hire filmmakers to develop a B-roll commercial for their new line of mango flavoured cookies. Alternatively, building on the previous example, the cookie manufacturer might reach out to a research firm to collect data on how much the public likes their product. Data is collected by providing correspondents with samples and surveys where correspondents are asked to numerically rate how much they enjoy a product. This lets them know if their product is a home run or more work is needed. 4. Food Marketers Have Varying Levels of Education Traditionally, food marketers obtain a bachelor’s degrees in business or marketing management. These programs do not directly teach students how to market food. Instead, they explain general marketing techniques which can be applied to marketing food based products. Courses include topics related to accounting, mathematics, marketing research and market planning. Alternatively, there are many marketers who have college diplomas in marketing, business and advertising. These diplomas are typically two years in length and are great for individuals looking for more hands-on, experience-based learning. Seniorlevelmarketersinmulti-levelcorporations generally continue their education to obtain a master’s degree in business administration (MBA). This degree provides advanced skills for careers in business and management by developing a broad understanding of business organizations. However, these programs often require the candidate to have work experience prior to entering. It’s possible to become a food marketer without a degree explicitly in business or marketing. For example, a small food company may put a food marketer in charge of managing their social media channels despite having a degree in food science. Technology’s role in marketing changes frequently, so it is even possible that you could enter a company knowing more about a social media platform than your employer! Your ideas could be really valuable to them. 5. Food Marketers Work Heavily with Internal Teams Marketing is just one department of many within a food business. Food businesses have many departments which include safety/quality, operations, purchasing and accounting. To be a successful organization, these departments must work together towards a shared goal. That’s why it is essential that marketers work with other departments. It is common in the food industry for purchasing, development (R&D) and marketing departments to work together when developing new products. For example, the marketing department might discover that locally sourced fruits are trending. The marketing department works with R&D to develop a product that uses that locally sourced fruit. At the same time, the food marketer will work with the purchasing department to source fruits that meet this marketing trend. Centennial College is an Education Partner of ours, check them out on FoodGrads! Click their logo below! Available Programs: Marketing – Research and Analytics, Marketing Management, Business Administration – Marketing, Marketing – Corporate Account Management, Business – Marketing Centennial College Photo by cerro_photography/iStock/GettyImagePlus Types of ways that food can be marketed: • Branding • Influencer marketing • Sponsorship of events • Commercials • Social media posts If you want tips to help grow your career in the food industry than signup for the FoodGrads newsletter. This way you won’t miss info on: - Mentorship - Job and Career Fairs - Latest Podcast & News - Job Opportunities (coop, internships & full-time) - FoodGrads Training
SALES & MARKETING - MARKET DATA ANALYST 18 17 SALES & MARKETING Marketing Data Analyst You just completed your online grocery order. Everything went smoothly and you managed to pick up a few deals. However, at some point during the purchase, you had trouble deciding between two brands of cookies. You put both in the cart but ultimately decided on the mangoflavoured ones because you’ve never tried them before. Behind the scenes during your purchase, there was data being collected. Specifically, you decided to remove an item from your cart. This data becomes a powerful tool for market data analysts when they are trying to understand consumer behaviour. It’s all about the numbers and their interpretation when it comes to being a market data analyst. 1. Marketing Data Analysts Analyze Data Marketing data analyst are responsible for collecting, analyzing and interpreting data to help businesses with decision making processes. They work with business teams to devise hypotheses and objectives and determine what data would be required to answer these questions. With the data collected they apply a wide range of statistical and quantitative analysis methods which they then interpret into actionable plans. These professionals work collaboratively with marketing staff by helping them to validate their marketing, digital and product team plans. Different methods can be used to create these plans however a common way is to develop statistical/mathematical models. These models for example can predict likely consumer behaviours such as their customer’s lifetime value. This considers age, demographic information and spending habits. At it’s core the job of a market data analyst is to collect, interpret and present data. They will collect data that helps to answer a research question and uncover insights that lead to solutions. This could involve setting metrics that track how many products are sold in a particular month. Nonetheless a key component for their role is how they present their findings. They have to take dense numerical data and turn into something digestible for other staff members. These data transformations come in the form of dashboards, metrics, presentations and reports. Overall, using their insights market data analysts develop solutions and strategies to business opportunities and challenges. 2. Marketing Data Analysts Collect Data Before a data analyst even analyzes any data they need to identify a question that they would like to answer. Questions could include: • How many sales were completed during this quarter? • How often does a customer complete a purchase after they go through this many steps on the website? • Are mango flavoured cookies a viable product flavour for this market segment? After they know the question they want to be answered they can get to work. The first step is to explore if their company is already tracking data which could answer these questions. Sources of data include web traffic data, email lists or grocery sales purchasing records. If this isn’t the case than they will explore and find ways to acquire it. Marketing Data Analyst Analyzing data for actionable insights Photo by Markus Spiske/Pexels Photo by Tiger Lily/Pexels
SALES & MARKETING - MARKET DATA ANALYST MARKET DATA ANALYST - SALES & MARKETING 19 20 where are a program was built to create product recommendation. Knowing how to code will provide you a distinct advantage over the competition. Additional data tools such as SPSS Statistics and SPSS Modeler is common for market researchers. 6. Marketing Data Analysts Follow Trends No one can predict the future however marketing data analysts try to do it anyways. These professionals try to follow trends and predict what will be popular in the future. This field of analytics is known as a predictive modeling. Predictive modeling may involve artificial intelligence (AI) where it can be used for example to predict what the next popular beverage. If you are familiar with fashion microtrends many stores use AI to determine trends and consumer demand patterns. The use of AI is becoming more prominent in the fields of data science because of it’s ability to mine large amounts of data and reduce time. 7. Marketing Data Analysts Work in Teams Marketing Data Analysts play a critical role on project teams because they provide quantitative findings that support their team members ideas. Data helps to connect the dots and helps to get the right messages and right offers to customers. Co-workers in the department for example may want to explore if their idea for dragon fruit flavoured cookies is viable. Marketing data analysts will dig into the data to see if this is the case. They will then translate this data to their team members in the form of presentations, reports and figures. It’s common for them to also set up dashboard for team members to track their progress so the data flow is automated. A simple metric they might track is how many times are two flavours of cookies purchased at the same time. The dashboard could work like a gauge turning from red to green once they hit their goals. Additionally, marketing analysts will be in the thick of meetings when it comes to planning their company’s next move. They can provide insights to other staff members as to what campaigns are doing well and provide direction in the planning of the next one. They will enable teams with key information to understand the current marketing & customer landscape, inform and motivate customer behaviour and shape strategy. 8. Marketing Data Analysts are Curious, Creative, and Team Players Being a Marketing Data Analyst requires a wide range of skills. However, there are a few which are more essential than others. Important market data analyst skills include: • Creative – Although market data analysts have strong technical skills they also need to be creative in how they extract and use data. It takes creativity to define business questions and develop original hypotheses. As well, creativity is needed to promote data visualization such as the use of colours, texts, tables and figures to understand what the data is saying. • Curious – Marketing Data Analysis are like investigators constantly asking questions and stretching boundaries to determine the answers to big questions. They are always wondering questions like “what would happen to X if we did Y?” Curiosity encourages innovation and drives passion on projects. • Team Players – Not everyone is able to effectively interpret raw data like a marketing data analysts do. Therefore, the need to translate this information in a way that is best for the team. Market Data Analysis help teams out with their ideas by finding evidence to support the continuation of their ideas. Marketing data analysts must consider the cost of tracking data because it isn’t always cheap. Gathering data such in the case of surveys and product samples can take a lot of time and money. Some data can be collected from outside research firms or is made freely available such as the case with Google Trends and Analytics. Considering all these factors is a necessity! 3. Marketing Data Analysts Translate Data After the market data analyst has collected their data then move onto to the translation stage. While keeping in mind their research question they will comb through the data. Commonly marketing data analysts will track metrics such as: • Number of sign-ups • Number of purchases • The number of units sold for a variety of a product However, marketers make sure that they are not fixated on “vanity” metrics such as the number of views on a website or the number of followers. Instead, they think about their end goals such customer loyalty and how many actually make a purchase. Translating data effectively can lead to uncovering what is and what is not working for an organization. 4. Marketing Data Analysts Have Degrees in the Field of Computer Science As a key member of the marketing team, a marketing data analyst needs to have a strong aptitude for data science/analysis. Therefore, it’s common for these professionals to have degrees in business, statistics, mathematics, computer science, finance, as well as business administration. However, some companies depending on their size may require a master’s or even postdoctorate degree in a relevant field. In contrast, others may only require a college diploma in business administration, sales or another related field. It is key that the newly hired market data analyst can show evidence that they have proficiency in data analysis with an ability to manipulate large datasets and distill them into thoughtful conclusions. They also need to have strong proficiency in data analysis tools such as Adobe or Google Analytics. Expertise in at least one programming language such as Python and R are a necessity. Students are encouraged to go on LinkedIn and look at some of your favourite product brands. Look at the individuals that work there and see their career path. This can provide valuable insights to the companies hiring style. 5. Marketing Data Analysts Know Different Types of Programming As marketing becomes more data driven more tasks require a bit of coding. Instead of manually performing some tasks marketing data analysts choose to automate repetitive ones through the use of programming languages. Four common programming languages for marketers are SQL, Javascript, Python and Bash. Each programming language has it’s strength’s so it’s up to the marketer to decide what is best for the them. Programming helps marketers because it opens a new set of skills they can use to market. For example, when shopping online many times you will notice that you are recommended certain products based on what is in your cart. This was a result of a coding Interested in learning what a data analyst does in the grocery space? Listen to episode 56 as Evonne Chan talks about how she turned a side project into a career! Click the photo to tune in! The following is an example: 20 people were surveyed about their favourite cookie. Here are the results: • Chocolate chip: 8 • Oatmeal Raisin: 1 • Peanut butter: 6 • Gingersnaps: 2 • Shortbread: 3 A marketing data analyst would transform this data into something more visual. University of Guelph is an Education Partner of ours, check them out on FoodGrads! Click their logo below! Available Programs: Food Industry Management, Mathematical Science, Accounting, Economics, Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics, Management Economics and Finance University of Guelph Photo by FatCamera/E+
SALES & MARKETING - FOOD BROKER 22 21 SALES & MARKETING Food Broker Have you ever had the excitement of finding out that one of your favourite small creators is selling a line of products in the grocery store? If you are a long time fan than it’s exciting to see them grow and reach new territories. However, the process of getting those product into the grocery store probably wasn’t easy. Due to the process being rather complicated they likely reached out to many for help. Lack of experience and knowledge can hinder this process leading to unnecessary headaches and financial losses. Therefore, brands and creators call upon food brokers as a third party to help them sell their food products to grocery stores distributors. 1. Food Brokers Buy and Sell Things on Behalf of Other People A food broker is an independent agent that helps to facilitate transactions between food producers and buyers in the food industry. They ensure that the transactions run smoothly and each party has the necessary information required. Brokers do so by matching food producers with well-suited buyers and taking on a fee for their service. There is a famous saying that, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know” and this couldn’t be more true for a broker. Brokers have diverse networks of people and will turn to them when figuring out the best pairing for their clients. The network also serves as a knowledge hub giving them to a diversity of information helps brokers with food businesses. or example, if a client requires a particular ingredient for their product the broker can additionally assist them in their search. They are that person in your friend group that seems to know everyone. A food broker can be considered to be a parttime salesperson to support the sale of a product. They negotiate prices and conditions for business transactions. Food brokers convince buyers to shelf these products by demonstrating the potential success of the product and projected growth, As well, they help with administrative tasks as well such as invoicing companies after they have products have been purchased. Additionally, they may also assist clients in preparing long term-goals and marketing plans. Food brokers will help clients to determine the foundations of their products, how to position their product against other places as well getting clear on their objectives of where they food producer should take their product. 2. Food Brokers Have a Rich Knowledge of Markets and Regulations A food broker is knowledgeable about food categories and markets. They can synthesize and adapt information from different sources for their clients. Food brokers know where to look for useful information such as trade publications, industry news and conversations they have in the industry. Having strong intellectual capital is gives a food broker a competitive advantage. For example, having a strong intellectual capital could mean that broker is familiar with who are the strong competitive player with a market segment. They know what makes these brands stand out and where a small business could fill in the gaps. Brokers also have access to knowledge to how well a product is performing Food Broker Helping food businesses with sales Photo by scyther5/iStock/GettyImagesPlus Photo by Karolina Grabowska/Pexels
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTQyMDk=