Plant-Based Branding That Hits Home With Vegans: Dos and Don'ts
The rise of plant-based foods and vegan products has been unprecedented. Some estimates believe that nearly 5% of the UK population is vegan which equates to approximately 2.5 million people. If brands choose to ignore this market segment, they’ll be missing out a huge yet growing number of consumers.
As a result, more and more brands are turning to plant-based products but with that, comes the challenge of plant-based branding. Gone are the days of being able to just slap a vegan label on your product packaging. Plant-based branding approaches of today need to be far more strategic.
Whether you’re launching a new vegan product to the world or you're bringing a non-vegan brand into the world of plant-based, here are some simple dos and don'ts to consider when aiming to create plant-based branding that leaves a lasting impression.
Do Understand Your Audience
Understanding your audience is important for every brand, but it becomes even more important when targeting a group such as vegans. A vegan audience can be tricky to attract; they have very specific expectations but it’s also important to understand that vegans aren’t all the same, and your target audience will have many different concerns and motivations.
It’s also important to note that veganism goes beyond ingredients. It’s not enough to simply communicate that you’ll be using plant-based materials and assume that vegans will flock to your plant-based brand.
Vegans are also likely to be far stronger in their beliefs compared to more traditional audiences. Meat brands for example have a far higher chance of stealing consumers through price promotions and new product launches while plant-based consumers will show more loyalty if you give them a reason to.
It’s important to get to know what makes your audience tick and ensure your plant-based branding efforts are aligned with the reasons why people are buying your product.
Do Pick A Fight With Non-Vegan Brands
Plant based branding is often some of the most humorous and, if it works for your brand, picking a fight with non-vegan alternatives can be a great way to incorporate humour, creativity and sarcasm into your plant based branding efforts.
Some of the best examples of plant based brands cutting through in what is now a saturated market comes from brands that have positioned meat as the enemy.
Plant based meat brand, THIS, even went to the effort to launch a funeral for bacon to mark the launch of their new plant based streaky bacon product.
Do Position Your Brand As The Healthy Option
Most vegan brands don’t think of themselves as health brands, but health is one of the main driving forces for buying vegan products. Therefore, it’s perfectly acceptable for your brand packaging and messaging to scream health.
This doesn’t mean painting your whole brand green. You’ll notice a lot of the leading health brands opt for simple, stripped-back, colourless packaging to signify the purity of the product inside the packaging.
Don’t Assume That Being Plant-Based Is Enough
20 years ago, simply launching a vegan product might have been enough due to a lack of competitors. Nowadays, it’s a competitive—possibly even saturated—market that demands you must go beyond being plant based.
As a result, while the focus of your branding may be to convey your product’s vegan qualities, don’t discount other factors that consumers consider when making a purchase. If you're branding a food product, your plant based branding must also convey the idea that the product tastes delicious. If it's a skincare product, how will it leave the consumer’s face feeling? Factors like these must not be forgotten about when trying to differentiate a plant based brand.
Don’t Be Afraid To Make Your Product Look Non-Vegan
It may sound like terrible advice to make a plant based product look non-vegan, but many meat brands have chosen to brand their plant based products in exactly the same packaging including the same colour, size and language.
The first vegan products on the market weren’t known for their great quality which has left plant based brands still fighting stereotypes today. Positioning a plant based product as a direct substitute can help eliminate these preconceived ideas of poor taste or quality which helps plant based brands tap into the non-vegan market who are often put off if products look too plant based.
Don’t Forget What Has Always Worked
When it comes to plant based branding, it’s also important to consider the bigger picture. As mentioned already, being plant based alone isn’t enough. While these products are considered modern, brands must consider branding strategies that have stood the test of time.
Making your brand different and hard-hitting can often be the easy part when designing plant based branding but ensuring it is consistent and that messaging is delivered to the right people at the right time could potentially be the tricky part.
If you have a great idea for a vegan brand but need assistance executing it, our team here at BGN would be all too happy to assist in designing and rolling out your plant based branding to the world.
