How Appetite Appeal Can Help Grow Your Brand On this episode of the Peppered Podcast, we will be discussing Appetite Appeal. Not only is this one of my favorite topics in food and beverage marketing, but it’s a critical component in growing brands. The LOVE of FOOD is one of the strongest human emotions. Food fantasies—anticipating that special mom…

Tara-Ann Dugan is the Director of Consumer and Marketplace Insights for the National Pork Board and has more than 12 years of food marketing and research experience, spanning across McDonald’s Corporation, Nielsen, IRI, and Hammacher Schlemmer. She has some great insight not only in the protein category but eating occasions in general. On today’s s…

Krishna Kaliannan is the founder of Catalina Crunch, a better-for-you cereal brand that could be equated to “healthy version” Cocoa Puffs. Hailed as a breakthrough in cereal science, Catalina Crunch has that same “light and crunchy” texture and delicious sweet taste that we all grew to love in our favorite childhood cereals—but, with none of the ba…

This episode of the Peppered Podcast is with Loren Brill, founder of Sweet Loren’s. Sweet Loren’s is a fast-emerging brand of refrigerated cookie dough—self-described as a clean food company transforming what it means to be convenient and delicious. I love the fact that Sweet Loren’s is extremely indulgent, deliciously sweet —and made with clean, s…

This episode of the Peppered Podcast is with Dan Follese, executive chef and founder of both Follese Consulting and the Food Trend Translator. In the food and beverage biz, innovation is a powerful influence with consumers and can be a strong driving force for brands. And, most innovation is driven by consumer trends. Knowing what the current trend…

This episode of the Peppered Podcast focuses exclusively on digital marketing and features Nate Bachynski. It seems like everyone today is an “expert” in digital marketing. So many of the food and beverage brands that I come in contact with simply don’t have their digital and social strategies buttoned-up. If you want to learn the basic framework f…

My guest on this episode of the Peppered Podcast is Jeff Metzger, President of Best-Met Publishing and publisher for Food World, Food Trade News, and the Mid-Atlantic Grocery Industry Directory. Jeff has been a “go-to guy” for decades for manufacturers, brands, retail executives, buyers, brokers, or anyone who needs to be in the “know” for the groc…

In this episode of the Peppered Podcast, I’m having a conversation with Jim Low. Jim is the Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Schuman Cheese. He’s also worked at Enjoy Life Foods, a popular better-for-you snack brand and global food giant, Mondelez, where he worked on the Ritz Crackers, Wheat Thins, and Trident Gum brands. On this ep…

On this episode of the Peppered Podcast I’m talking with Patrick Wells about online culture. Patrick is a social expert and the creative genius behind MoonPie’s incredible success on Twitter. On this episode we discuss:· Relating to online culture· How to create a viral moment· What most brands are doing wrong on social media· Can social media real…

On this episode of the Peppered Podcast I’m speaking with Chris Kirby, founder of Ithaca Cold-Crafted, the first ever, cold-crafted hummus. This is not just another “me too” hummus. They use a cold pressure process instead of heat pasteurization, which keeps their ingredients raw, full of nutrients, and incredibly flavorful. On this episode we disc…

Joe Sideranko works with Ipsos. Ipsos is a global leader in the area of market research, and one of the world’s largest providers of advertising testing services. As I’ve worked with Ipsos over the years, I’ve found their products and process to be incredibly helpful in refining creative and ad work. Their approach is different than any other resea…

David & Adam Jones are the founders of Peloton Cascara Tea. Cascara is the fruit that surrounds the coffee bean and has now been discovered as one of the newest superfoods. I think that the tea that these guys have developed is one of the most innovative drinks that I’ve seen in a while. It has all the makings of an up-and-coming brand.On this epis…

Jim Partner is president of The Partner Company and an adjunct professor at St. Joseph's University in their food marketing program. In this episode we talked about how to successfully launch a food or beverage product.“Launch and Learn” is somewhat of an oxymoron—and it’s the exact opposite of what makes for a successful launch strategy in the foo…

David Walsh is the Vice President of SNAC International. SNAC is the leading international trade association for the snack industry. They represent over 400 companies worldwide, including snack industry suppliers, marketers, and manufacturers. On this episode we discuss:- What’s hot in snacking- The “New” snacking- Where the new growth is coming fr…

Shelley Balanko is the Senior Vice President with the Hartman Group. The Hartman Group is a nationally recognized thought leader on demand-side trends for the food and beverage industry, and they work with some of the world’s largest food and beverage companies on issues of portfolio management, brand renovation, consumer insights, and innovation. …

Mark Chudnoff is one of the industry’s leading experts in marketing research and president of Chudnoff Associates, a full-service marketing research firm, known for their expertise in food and beverage.On this episode we discuss:• The diverse tools available for developing marketing insights• How to use research and insights to assure you have the …

Nick Fuglestad is a director for MacGuffin Films in Manhattan, NYC. MacGuffin is the world’s premiere tabletop commercial production company for Food and Beverage marketing.In this episode we discuss:· The art and science of appetite appeal· The artistry of food and beverage video· How to create effective film and video in advertising· Why appetite…

Bob Burke is an author, advisor, keynote speaker, board member for dozens of natural product brands, and one of the country’s leading experts and thought leaders in natural and organic products. He's helped hundreds of companies and brands bring natural and specialty products to market, and was named one of the "Top 25 Business Builders of the Natu…

This episode of the Peppered Podcast features Jeff Martin. Jeff is a senior-level executive in the food industry with nearly 40 years of experience. He’s been on both the retail and brand side of sales and marketing, with positions as executive VP of Sales and Marketing for Utz Quality Foods and executive Vice President of Merchandising and Marketi…

The Peppered Podcast brings seasoned talk for food and beverage marketing and brand professionals. Whether you are a new emerging food or beverage brand or a well-established brand, this podcast will deliver useful, tangible, practical information and insights to you—game changing knowledge, that you can immediately be put into practice in the day-…