We’re excited that Anne-Claire Monde, Marketing Manager for John West, was able to take the time to talk with us about her job and the challenges she encounters while doing it. John West has been a Recipe Lab client for many years and one that we love working with.
What does your day-to-day job entail?
My day-to-day is about managing the John West brand as head of Marketing. So my job really is to make the John West brand as relevant as possible to our audiences. We are talking to busy young professionals looking for a quick healthy lunch option, to busy mums looking to feed the family with healthy and tasty meal options, to sports enthusiasts looking to refuel after training, and to audience that is looking to maintain an active healthy lifestyle: the over 50 years old.
We’re trying to be relevant by promoting our health credentials, like omega-3 and protein, and by talking about usage, like how to eat fish in a convenient manner. It is all about enabling people to bring more great quality fish into their lives.
What are some of the challenges you’ve encountered in bringing a global brand to an Irish market?
The John west name is synonymous with authenticity, fishing expertise and quality, globally. John West is a brand that is present in several markets, but it has a strong resonance with the Irish consumers where it is a household name.
For me the real challenge is to make the brand relevant to the Irish consumers, by showing them why and how they should consume fish more regularly.
If the Irish consumers are very familiar with the John West name, they are less aware of the new innovations that we have launched recently, like Infusions or Creations, and why or how to use them. So it’s about understanding the Irish consumers, first and foremost, and understanding what’s relevant to them to bring that global brand proposition to life, and truly engage with our audience.
How has ZMG (and Recipe Lab specifically) helped you to accomplish your goals?
Inspiring my consumers and demonstrating how easy it is to cook with fish is one of my key challenges and missions. ZMG has helped by developing a set of videos that demonstrate how you can cook with fish. It’s a big challenge for the Irish consumer to cook with fish because people are afraid to try. A lot of people don’t know what to do with fish. They know fish is healthy but they lack the knowledge to cook it confidently at home.
We are here to demonstrate that not only is fish from John West as good as fresh fish, nutrition-wise, but it’s much easier and affordable to cook with. ZMG has helped by taking our latest innovative products, creating really tasty recipes and showing how easy it is for the consumer to cook with our products.
Any tips for those brands looking to improve their food marketing?
Inspiring is the key word. It’s all about being inspiring the consumer. Taste obviously, is of the utmost importance. Showing taste is difficult but critical, which is why the visuals are important.
Also, brands must also stress the ease of cooking. Consumers now are under a lot of pressure and don’t have much time to spend in the kitchen, so its’ all about making it easy and showing how simple cooking can be.
