Folgers Extends from Cup to Screen with Good News Hubs
The coffee brand has created The Best Part, a news community focused on positive content on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The coffee brand has created The Best Part, a news community focused on positive content on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Coffee brand Folgers is no longer satisfied to simply be the “best part of waking up,” and instead wants to add “spreading optimism, one share at a time.”
To this end, Folgers has launched The Best Part, or what it calls “a new interactive way to read and share positive news through social news feeds.”
According to the brand, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram users can like and/or follow The Best Part to receive “positive, fun and optimistic content,” like, “Optimism is not the destination, it’s the journey,” and, “A smile can go a mile.”
“The aroma of good news is sure to become the best part of each and every day,” Folgers says.
In addition, the brand is asking fans to share their own inspirational content, like a meaningful story or a photo of an act of kindness. Folgers says it will share some of these inspiring fan posts to motivate others.
The Best Part community can be found on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
As of October 9, The Best Part had 86,000 likes on Facebook, 1,700 Twitter followers and 92 followers on Instagram.
A YouTube video posted September 20 about the effort has 7,000 views:
“The Best Part community is an opportunity for those who share the Folgers optimistic outlook to join together and brighten days everywhere,” said Maribeth Burns, vice president of corporate communications at The J.M. Smucker Company, in a prepared statement. “We hope to see this community grow and have a positive impact on people’s lives.”
Folgers is a J.M. Smucker Company brand.
Folgers did not respond to requests for comment.
However, according to John Lee, manager of brand and social marketing at analytics firm Webtrends, The Best Part is “indicative of a larger trend in social, which is using creativity to build brand affinity away from a particular sales message.”
That means brands are using social to connect with users on a human level rather than to drive immediate purchases. The challenge then becomes quantifying the impact of these social initiatives, he adds.
“The good thing is [brands are] creating a concept that isn’t so branded that people get turned off, but the problem of doing that in social is that it’s easy to create experiences that look and feel good, but it’s hard to keep the momentum going,” Lee says. “The challenge for marketers at Folgers and in general is to create a concept that’s sustainable beyond the experience.”
According to Folgers, The Best Part is also introducing a Folgers Wakin’ Up alarm app that greets fans with “upbeat tunes, positive pieces of good news and inspiring comments from The Best Part community,” that can be shared via social channels and email.