how to get a food product on the market

If You Want to Swim with the Sharks, You Have to Play Ball Like the Big Boys

Let’s face it. When you or your broker gets that opportunity to sit across the desk from the category manager or buyer, he doesn’t care if your company is big or small. He expects you to present your product, pricing, promotions, and marketing with the same quality and in-depth analysis of the largest players in your category. And don’t expect him to cut you any slack just because you are small or new. As soon as you have exchanged greetings, he’s already looking at the computer screen to find which SKU he will have to DC (discontinue) to allow room for you. This is an essential part of how to get a food product on the market, so you better study your competition.

You’ll need to make a recommendation about who you are going to replace and why (better product, better price, better marketing program). If you can accept these realities, we can help you. There’s a lot to consider when it comes to getting your new food product from the kitchen to the marketplace. Therefore, it’s important to work alongside an expert food product development consultant throughout the entire process. You’ll need a comprehensive go-to-market strategy that allows you to maintain high sales momentum. In this blog, HSR Associates summarizes just some of the critical go-to-market deliverables involved in how to get a food product on the market.

Detailed Sales Materials

When your food product is ready to go to market, you’ll need to have your sales materials ready so you can hit the ground running. Your consultant will help you develop a Trade PowerPoint, pricing and specification sheet, and electronic sales literature with ordering information.

Beautiful and Functional Website

You’ll need to work with an exceptional web designer to complete a website for your product.  The site copy needs to be written and edited so that it is a valuable source of information to the trade. The website should be easy to navigate, user-friendly, and graphically appealing. It also needs to have a portal for ordering your product through a robust shopping cart.

Experienced Food Brokers

Food brokers negotiate the sales of your products. We work with a network of specialty and natural food brokers throughout the country to…

  • Distribute food samples and sales information
  • Follow-up and evaluate buyers’ interest
  • Negotiate broker contracts with real incentives to sell
  • Conduct a sales forecast to include the costs of entry into the market
  • Review broker proposals from key retailers and distributors

Know the Competition

Another key component of a comprehensive strategy is to study the competition (to the degree that your budget will allow). Not just what it says on their package. Do a deep dive to discover their strengths, weaknesses, sales patterns, promotion patterns, and category share.

These are just a few of the key go-to-market deliverables involved in creating a new food product and getting it on the shelves. It’s a complicated process with many more components, so you need to work with consultants who know how to navigate the entire process. HSR Associates sets your product up for success by working with you from start to finish. We cover everything from creating the best food package design to manning your trade show booths.

How to Get a Food Product on the Market

We’ll be discussing go-to-market deliverables in more detail as our blog series continues. HSR ASSOCIATES specializes in developing new food products and bringing them to market. We provide all the services necessary, from Kitchen To Marketplace. Contact us today at steve@hsrassociates.net.

More great ideas to come from our food product development experts! Stay tuned…………..