Blogging-Grocers' Memo: Grocers That 'Blog,' 'Twitter,' 'Facebook' ... and More

Safeway 2.0: Safeway Stores, Inc. recently became the latest major (as in third-largest U.S. supermarket chain) grocery chain to add a Blog to its Website, Safeway.com.

Safeway Stores bills its relatively new Blog as "The Official Safeway Blog." The Safeway Web site-based Blog is written by Kate, who is a full-time Safeway employee. Below is how Kate describes the Safeway Blog and herself:

About the Blog
Welcome to the official Safeway blog. What's this blog all about? In a nutshell, it's about family, food, value and fun. Of course, what makes this blog really exciting is YOU — so join the conversation!

About the Author:
Hi, my name is Kate. I am mom to three wonderful daughters Gabriella, Madeleine, and Mae and wife to a great guy, Max. I work full time at Safeway and a large part of my job is getting to hear from a lot of women out there about everything that's important to them. Welcome to my blog.

Safeway Stores, Inc. added Kate's Blog when it did a redesign of its Safeway.com Web site in the late fall of last year.

In the Blog, Kate writes about a wide variety of topics: nutrition, meal ideas, local foods, natural and organic products, what's happening in the stores, promotions, and the like. She also encourages readers to comment on the posts.

For example, below is Kate's post from today, March 4, 2009:

Local Mandarins
03-04-2009 08:10 AM
By Kate

My favorite fruit of winter is the mandarins, we go through a five pound bag a week! Super sweet, easy to peel, and the girls love them. The brand we have in our store is from California, which I appreciate as I know they didn't travel huge distances to get to my store which means they’re always fresh (haven’t had a “dried out” one yet) and taste great! We try and support our local businesses in whatever we do –the local “pizza place”, the barber – vs. the chains. We feel it’s particularly important now as we’ve seen so many businesses close on our “main street”. What do you buy that’s local?

[View the Safeway Web site Blog here.]

Safeway Stores, Inc. isn't using the Twitter micro-blogging, social networking site as of yet, something grocery chains like Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe's, Tesco's Fresh & Easy, Oregon's New Season's Market and a number of others have started to do. Are you listening Kate? We think it would be a great tie-in with her Blog.

The New Seasons Market Blog - and Peanut Butter: Speaking of Portland, Oregon-based New Seasons Market, the nine-store natural foods chain also is a "Blogging-Grocer." And the independent natural grocery chain recently used its Blog to update consumers and customers on the peanut product recall, which appears to be far from close to being over.

The February 19 Blog post is titled: "What's the Story With Our Bulk Peanut Butter Recall?"

In the post, New Seasons' president Lisa Sedlar says the natural grocer has thus far removed over 135 different FDA-recalled peanut-related products from store shelves. She says it's been the most massive product recall she has experienced in her 20-plus years in the natural products industry.

[You can read her post on the peanut product recall and issue in the New Season's Market Blog here.]

New Seasons Market also has a feed on the popular social networking site Twitter. You can view it here. Below are New Seasons' two most recent "Tweets" (Twitter talk for posts) on its Twitter feed:

@rebeccashapiro Of course. Plenty of GF cereals to munch an along with alternative milks like hemp & hazelnut.about 5 hours ago from TweetDeck in reply to rebeccashapiro
Free cereal & milk tasting this weekend.

Cereal: It's the budget crunch that goes great with milk! http://budurl.com/freecerealabout 6 hours ago from TweetDeck.

[Read about another way New Seasons Market has used its Blog: December 7, 2008: Retail Memo: New Seasons Market CEO Brian Rohter Speaks Out Again Today on the Whole Foods Market, Inc. Subpoena of His Company's Data.]

New Seasons' also uses Facebook. There's a link to its Facebook site on the Blog.

The "Whole Leader" of the "Blogging-Grocer" Pack in the U.S.: Whole Foods Market, Inc. is the pioneer in the food retailing industry in using Blogs as a part of the its social networking communications and marketing outreach strategy.

The first Blog on the Whole Foods Market Web site was (and is) "The CEO's Blog, written and published by CEO John Mackey. He started the Blog in 2005. CEO Mackey hasn't been posting much on his Blog of late though. His last post was in early November, 2008.

CEO Mackey also no longer posts anything on his "The CEO's Blog" about the FTC. v. Whole Foods Market, Inc. ongoing antitrust case. He stopped posting about the legal case last year after just one post (See the May 21, 2008 post here) about his return to Blogging. He did so so as to not interfere with the ongoing litigation.

Last year Whole Foods kicked-up its Blogging activity a few notches when it redesigned its Web site and added its very active "Whole Story" Blog. The natural grocer uses the Blog regularly, posting culinary suggestions and recipes, items about new products at Whole Foods, nutrition information, stories on sustainability, local foods and other similar issues, and a "Whole Lot More."

Whole Foods also has been using the Blog to inform consumers about the FDA peanut product recall, including listing all of the items its pulled from its shelves in Blog posts.

Whole Foods also includes food-related videos and podcasts on its Web site in conjunction with its "Whole Story" Blog.

Additionally, Whole Foods now has a series of interactive forums on its Web site, in which consumers can discuss food-related topics and issues with each other, as well as with Whole Foods Market's Bloggers.

Lastly, Whole Foods ties its Web site Blogging in with three social networking sites: Twitter, Facebook and Flikr (for photographs). The links to each are here: Whole Foods Market photos on Flickr, Whole Foods Market on Facebook, Whole Foods Market updates on Twitter.

A number of Whole Foods regional divisions, such as Los Angeles and Columbus, Ohio, also have Twitter sites of there own, which offer a local angle.

Whole Foods Market is taking Blogging and the use of social networking sites very seriously. In fact, its the only grocery chain of any format we are aware of that currently has a senior staff member, Paige Brady, who's full-time job is social networking. She's Whole Foods' "Blogger-in-Chief."

At this point in time, based on our research, Whole Foods is the top "Blogging-Grocer" in the U.S.

[Suggested Reading: June 7, 2008: Retail Memo: Whole Foods Market, Inc. Launches New and Improved Company Blog; Leadership 2.0 and Increased Transparency on the Move in Food Retailing ... May 22, 2008: Retail Memo: Whole Foods Market CEO John Mackey is 'Back to Blogging'; As Well as Being 'Back in Town.' ... May 25, 2008: nday, May 25, 2008 Retail Memo: More On John Mackey's Return to Blogging...United Kingdom's Waitrose Chief Exec Mark Price Goes His Own Way in His 'The Grocer's Blog'.]

The UK's "Grocery-Blogger-in-Chief": The May 25, 2008 post linked above mentions Mark Price, the CEO (official title: managing director) of the upscale Waitrose supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. If by our own account Whole Foods Market is the leading "Blogging- Grocer" in the U.S., Waitrose gets that honor in the UK.

In addition to Waitrose chief Mark Price's Blog, there's also a Blog by the grocery chain's nutritionist, and another by a local British hog farmer who supplies premium pork to Waitrose.

We really like the personal touch Waitrose uses in its Blogging. It creates interest in the personalities behind the grocery chain.

[You can check out the latest Blog posts from the Waitrose folks here.]

[Three past stories from NSFM about the Waitrose "Blogging-Grocers": Retail Memo: Waitrose's 'Chubby Grocer' Mark Price 'Weighs-In' on His Rival; Marks & Spencer CEO and 'The King of Pants' Sir Stuart Rose... Leadership 2.0 Memo: More Food and Grocery Industry Leaders Need to Adopt Digital, Interactive Communications Strategies in This Digital Age... Retail Memo: More On John Mackey's Return to Blogging...United Kingdom's Waitrose Chief Exec Mark Price Goes His Own Way in His 'The Grocer's Blog'.]

A Very Independent "Blogging-Grocer": Jim Hiller, the owner and CEO of Michigan's eight-store Hiller's Markets, goes his own way in his grocer's Blog, taking positions and offering his opinions in the Blog on a variety of issues.

His chief issue of late has been urging folks to buy American automobiles, which shouldn't be a surprise since Hiller's stores are located in the Detroit, Michigan region, home to America's struggling "Big Three" automobile companies.

But Hiller also writes about a wide-variety of other issues in his Blog -- like oysters -- which he wrote about in a post on February 16.

But today's post in his Blog, "Jim's Blog: A Message From the Helm," on the Hiller's Market Website is about cars. It's titled: "A New Ride," and is well worth reading. [Click here to read the post.]

We like that independent grocer Jim Hiller shows who he is in his Blog. After all, one of the keys to the success of independent grocers in the U.S. is showing a personality. Jim Hiller does that in spades, as does Hiller's Market in its merchandising and operations.

[Suggested Reading: December 23, 2008: Independent Grocer Memo: Eight-Store Michigan USA Independent Hiller's Markets Demonstrates Why Independents Survive and Thrive in the U.S.]

[Blogging-Grocers Memo is a regular feature of Natural~Specialty Foods Memo (NSFM). If you spot a grocer Blogging about something of interest (or even not of interest), feel free to send us a note and a link at: nsfoodsmemo@yahoo.com. Comments on grocers and Blogging are welcome on this post. Just click the "comments" link below and offer your opinion.]

[Follow Natural~Specialty Foods Memo (NSFM) around on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/nsfoodsmemo]

Marketing Memo: PepsiCo Takes A Page From President Obama's Successful Campaign For Change With its 'Refresh America' Multi-Media Marketing Campaign

Pepsi's consumer-interactive banner ad above is being featured on Web sites like Yahoo Music and Google.com's Content Network. When users click on the banner it takes then to YouTube, where they can then upload a video telling President Barack Obama what they think needs to be changed (and not changed) in America. The banner ad is part of Pepsi's "Refresh Everything" multi-media advertising campaign, which features a social media focus. The "Refresh Everything" campaign looks a whole lot like the new President's winning Presidential campaign.

Special Report: President Obama & the U.S. food industry

If you've been watching the television coverage of the U.S. Presidential Inauguration celebration of over the last few days, including today's swearing-in and related festivities for America's new 44th President, Barack Obama, you may have noticed the series of commercials running on many of the television channels from beverage and food giant PepsiCo. The ads look very much like, and use themes and words -- such as "hope" and "change" -- very similar to those the new President used throughout his successful campaign for the nation's highest office. Pepsi has even temporarily changed its iconic logo in the TV commercials to look very similar to the logo President Obama used on his signs and elsewhere throughout his nearly two-year campaign for President of the United States of America. Brand Obama equals brand Pepsi appears to be the message.

The Obama campaign-like advertising and marketing campaign being conducted by PepsiCo, the U.S.-based global food and beverage company that in addition to its huge soda pop and snack foods franchises also is a major player in the natural food and beverage segments, is specifically designed to tap into the new spirit in America based on the themes of hope and change the new President has inspired and continued to do so in his inauguration speech to America and the world. [You can view PepsiCo's brand portfolio here.]

Pepsi calls it its "Refresh Everything" campaign. It's key target audience with the campaign is the "Millennial" generation, the very same segment of young Americans who came out by the millions and donated money to, worked for, and voted for President Barack Obama.

As a part of its integrated "Refresh Everything" campaign. Change. Refresh. Renew. We get it. The campaign, which without a doubt is built around the election of the new President, includes an innovative social media effort in which Pepsi is making use of an application that lets users upload their own videos directly through an ad banner posted on various Web sites.

Pepsi calls the social media feature "Dear Mr. President." Its focus is to encourage its Millennial segment target audience to upload videos expressing their thoughts to today's incoming president on what should and shouldn't be changed about the country. In other words Pepsi is taking a page right out of the Obama Presidential campaign's Web-based effort in which throughout the campaign it used social media to ask voters that very same question. Obama campaign staffers then replied to voters in an interactive manner about the ideas they offered for America via the campaign Web site.

[Take a look at the new Whitehouse.gov Website, the site for the President of the United States of America. At noon today, at the very same time Barack Obama was sworn-in as President, the Web site was changed (dramatically) from that of the George W. Bush Administration to the Obama Administration. The site looks much different than the Bush site. In fact, the Obama Administration (and U.S. government) Presidential Web site looks very similar to the Obama Presidential campaign site, and it includes a couple interactive and social media-type functions, with more to come. If the Obama Administration can execute its policies like the team did the Web site change today -- it was changed literally seconds after the new President was inaugurated this afternoon -- the U.S. could be in for some real change in how the White House works.]

Pepsi first posted the ad banner for its "Dear Mr. President" social media/marketing campaign on Yahoo Music.com and the Google.com Content Network on Jan. 14, just a week ago. The big push has been over the last three days. The banners remain up until tomorrow. However, the "Refresh Everything" campaign and Web site continues on.

When the ad banner is clicked it takes the user directly into Pepsi's "Refresh Everything" campaign area on YouTube.com, where a "Dear Mr. President" video can be uploaded in the same way all YouTube videos are posted by users. Those users without Webcams can submit a text message instead.

The social media/ad banner campaign was created for Pepsi by the R/GA marketing agency. R/GA executive vice president and chief marketing services officer Dawn Winchester says, as far as she is aware, "this is the first time an ad banner has recorded video in this manner."

The innovative social marketing application fits the digital behavioral habits Pepsi's Millenial target audience perfectly, as well as many other consumers like those of us who are a bit older but still are social media savvy, in our analysis. We think PepsiCo is on to something very innovative and hot, both with the overall "Refresh Everything" campaign in general, but specifically with the "Dear Mr. President" social media feature using YouTube.

Natural~Specialty Foods Memo (NSFM) talked this week to a member of the Obama transition communications team who told us the President's staff is aware of the PepsiCo "Refresh Everything" campaign and the "Dear Mr. President" YouTube feature and will be taking a look at the videos posted by the users, who just happen to be voters as well.

Ms. Winchester says that while YouTube is the hub of the overall digital and social marketing campaign, consumer interaction with the Pepsi brand also is being promoted through the "Refresh Everything" campaign site, a mobile site and other social media sites. For example, she says "Refresh Everything" launched only a couple weeks ago on Facebook and already has more than 170,000 fans.

In our analysis, from a marketing standpoint Pepsi's tie-in with the themes of the victorious Obama campaign and its interactive rather than hard-sell design of the campaign makes it a winner.

Additionally, Pepsi has sponsored a number of activities around the inauguration of President Obama, including being a lead sponsor of the pre-inaugural concert and celebration at the Lincoln Memorial which honored Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on his birthday, as well as celebrated the election of America's 44th and first black President. Pepsi's sponsorship of these various activities includes substantial donations to charitable organizations.

Coke better watch out. After all, change is in the air.

Boxing Day Memo: Giving Back

Boxing Day: Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Today is Boxing Day, the day after Christmas. It's the day when people get to play with their Christmas gifts and return those they don't want to the stores so they can select something they "really" do want. It's also a big shopping day. Many shoppers use the day to go shopping with the gift cards they received as Christmas gifts, and also to take advantage of the "day after Christmas" specials many retail stores offer.

Boxing Day, which is a statutory holiday in the United Kingdom and in Canada, and celebrated more informally in the U.S. and other nations, has its origins in the old British Empire. On the day after Christmas--Boxing Day--the lords of the manor would hand out boxes of cloth, grains, other foodstuffs and tools to the serfs that lived on their land.

It also was the day when servants who had to work serving dinner to the landed gentry on Christmas Day got to take boxes of leftovers home to eat with their families. In some parts of the British Commonwealth, some stores close on Boxing Day in tribute to the working person.

Boxing Day also is a day, based on this tradition, to appreciate what one received on Christmas--and to express generosity by helping those who have less.

In the spirit of Boxing Day, and helping those with less, we've come up with four charities or helping organizations we ask you to read about, and if possible donate to or support in any way you can. Pick one, two or more; that's your choice. We also ask our readers to share these groups--and their good deeds--with family and friends via email. Below are the four groups we would like you to learn more about:

America's Second Harvest Food Banks: The Shelves are Empty

America's Second Harvest Food Banks are the procurement and distribution arm for thousands of community-based food pantry programs in all 50 states in the U.S.

Second Harvest raises funds and obtains donations of food and grocery products from the food and grocery industry, individuals, non-profit groups, churches, business entities, and other sources. The organization warehouses and distributes these goods to food pantry programs, who in-turn assist millions of Americans who are homeless, hungry, or are having problems making ends meet.

This year, food programs across America have reported that demand for food has increased by 5 to 20%, depending on the region of the country. In fact, Second Harvest's warehouses were so empty a week before Christmas, that the group sent out an SOS call to its food industry partners and individuals, asking for emergency donations of food and money because it couldn't meet the requests for basic foods from the food pantries it supplies.

The food and grocery industry responded rapidly--and generously. Wal-Mart, in partnership with a number of it's vendors, donated 50, 18-foot truckloads of food and grocery products to Second Harvest; enough to feed 3 million people, according to the non-profit food bank network. Other grocery retailers like Kroger Co., Safeway Stores (and others) also responded with food donations, as well as launching food drives in their stores.

Food marketing giant ConAgra Foods also responded in a huge way. The company donated 35 truckloads of food, estimated to be worth $1 million. ConAgra also has set up a matching funds donation program. And THIS is where individuals can have a big impact if you make a donation today or tomorrow.

ConAgra has established a $200,000 matching fund program for Second Harvest. The company will match any individual donation made in the next few days dollar-for-dollar, up to $200,000. In other words, if you donate just $10 today, ConAgra will match your ten bucks, so your total donation will actually be $20

Individual donations of even five or ten dollars are critical for Second Harvest right now. Their warehouses are again depleted because of all the food they provided to the pantry's for Christmas Day food giveaways. Additionally, many of their major food industry partners--like those mentioned above--have just given huge donations and aren't likely to be able to do so again this week. The situation is crucial.

According to Second Harvest, every dollar you donate provides 20 pounds of food to men, woman and children facing hunger in the U.S. That's a huge value!

You can make am online donation here (including getting the ConAgra matching donation), or get more information on how to donate via snail mail

My New Red Shoes: Helping the Poor and Homeless Get Back on Their Feet

Heather Hopkins, a 30-year-old Princeton University graduate and mother of a 3-year old daughter, is the founder and director of My New Red Shoes, a non-profit organization that provides new school clothes to homeless children, and children of low-income families in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Heather Hopkins, founder and director of My New Red Shoes, with some of the brand new shoes the organization gives to schoolchildren (they give clothes and school suppliers as well) in need. (Photo: courtesy San Francisco Chronicle.)

Ms. Hopkins came up with the idea for the organization after the birth of her daughter Annie three years ago. Heather's mother shared a story with her that when she was growing up the family fell on some hard times, and she often found it hard to be able to buy Heather new clothes and supplies for the new school year. Her mother always managed to find a way to get Ms. Hopkins some clothes though, so she would feel proud about how she looked on the first day of school.

After hearing that story from her mother, Ms. Hopkins decided to gather a bunch of friends and help some school children who needed clothing for school, but who's parents couldn't afford to buy it for them. She named the organization My New Red Shoes. Ironically, she later learned for the first time from her mother that she dressed Heather in a brand new pair of red shoes for her first day of Kindergarten.

In its very first year, My New Red Shoes provided brand new clothes, shoes and school supplies for 354 kids. Last year they clothed 600 kids for the new school year. And in 2008, Ms. Hopkins says the organization's goal is to provide new clothes, shoes and related supplies for 1,500 children, who otherwise would not be able to wear new clothes they can feel proud in to school.

The children's self-esteem--and quality of schoolwork--has soared. For the first time ever for many of them they are able to wear something brand new to school. Ms. Hopkins, the children's parents and teachers, and others, have all noticed a marked improvement in the kids' self-esteem and social interaction at school.

You can help My New Red Shoes provide those 1,500 kids with new clothes--and be a part of their soaring self-esteem--by making a donation of any size. Additionally, Ms. Hopkins and her friends would love to see individuals who want to make a difference in the lives of children replicate the program in other parts of the U.S.

You can learn all about My New Red Shoes on their website here. You also can make a donation of any size on the website. Lastly, if you want to replicate the program in your area, send Ms. Hopkins an email.

This is a great program, and even though you might not live in the Bay Area region, helping a child anywhere with a small donation will pay dividends for you regardless of where you live.

One Laptop Per Child: Connecting Poor Children to the Wider-World

The One Laptop per Child program, founded by The Media Lab Program at MIT, the famed technology university in Massachusetts, is bringing the world of personal computing and the world-wide web to children in impoverished countries one donation at a time and one laptop computer at a time.

Erik (left) and Fernando use their new laptops to work on a project during a nature class at their primary school in Arhuay, Peru. (Photo: courtesy AP.)

The sleek, innovative laptop computers created by the group, cost just $188 each, but bring millions of dollars worth of life to the kids who receive them. For the first time in their lives these children are able to access the world-wide web, and learn vocabulary, write, draw and more thanks to having a small computer of their own.

And the children who have thus far received the laptops, like those living in a rural village in Peru talked about in this article published today by the Associated Press, are taking to the machines just like kids in the west do--like it's completely natural to them. The parents of these children in Peru make about the same amount per year as the laptops cost, $188. Therefore, they would never in their wildest dreams be able to purchase one for their children. However, the One Laptop per Child program is making that dream possible; but only if the non-profit organization gets donations from you.

Kevin, 11, studies at a table in his family's modest home in Arahuay, a tiny hilltop village in the Andean Mountains. He is one of 50 schoolchildren who recently received free laptop computers from the one Laptop per Child project. (Photo: courtesy AP.)

And right now, until December 31, for every $188 you donate to buy a laptop computer for a child in a third world country, corporate donors to the program will match your donation 100%. This means that for your donation of $188, One Laptop per Child will be able to donate two computers instead of just one. It's a huge by-one-get-one-free (BOGO) opportunity,which is something those of you in the food and grocery industry know much about.

Also, since a donation of $188 can be a bit high for many of us, One Laptop per Child accepts donations of any size from individuals and companies towards the goal of providing one laptop at a time to kids in impoverished countries.

The project also is a great opportunity for businesses and other groups to get involved collectively. For example, a food or grocery company can make a donation, earmarking it to purchase whatever amount of laptops the value of the donation will buy. If you do so before December 31, your corporate donation also will qualify for the BOGO laptop promotion. Imagine this: if your company donates just under $2,000 (value of 10 laptops), with the buy-one-get-one-free promotion, that means the organization can donate 20 computers to 20 children.

The free laptop computer program is not only innovative, it's preventative. Just imagine how many of these children, once they get their own laptop computer, will be able to go on in their lives to productive careers. Not only will they be helping themselves and their families, but global society will gain the benefits as well. After all, the best social program is a good, well paying job, and these laptops could mean the difference between that job and poverty for these kids when they reach adulthood.

You can learn more about the One Laptop per Child program at the group's website here. You also can learn about the BOGO promotion on the website, and make a donation of any size. Also, you can read more about the program and the positive effects the recent donation of laptop computers is having on 50 primary school children in Peru, here.

FreeRice.com: Play the Vocabulary Game and Feed Hungry People

We first wrote about FreeRice.com on October 24. (You can read that story here.)

The premise of FreeRice is simple: Go on the website here. Play the vocabulary game, and for every word/answer you get right, FreeRice will donate 20 grains of rice through the United Nations World Food Programme to help end world hunger. It costs you nothing. All the rice is paid for by corporate sponsors, who's small advertisements you see flashing at the bottom of the game screen on the FreeRice.com website.

When we wrote about the program and game on October 24, (the vocabulary game/project began on October 7, 2007) a total of 195,074,730 grains of rice had been donated to date. As of today, the total is up to 11,470,275,730 grains of rice that have donated through the United Nations to help end world hunger.

It's easy to push that total up even more. Just go to the website and play the game for a bit. It's simple, and everything you need to know to play the vocabulary game is right on the website. It costs you nothing out of your pocket, just a little time. And that time is well spent, since we can all use some vocabulary improvement.

In addition to playing the FreeRice.com vocabulary game and feeding the hungry with free rice, you also can make a donation of any size to the United Nations World Food Programme.

You can learn more about what the UN food program does, and make a donation if you choose on their website. World hunger is something we all have a stake in reducing. Playing the vocabulary game is a simple, free way to help. Making a donation to the UN food program is another way you can do your part.

Happy Boxing Day, and thanks for giving back