WASHINGTON, DC - It is amazing what our fresh produce trade can learn from other industries and vice versa. Innovation begets innovation, and when it comes to brand building, United Fresh is bringing together thought-leaders across industries for its sixth annual BrandStorm^™ event taking place online March 9–11, 2021. Heading up a coveted keynote affair is brand strategist Lindsay Pedersen, bestselling author of Forging an Ironclad Brand: A Leader’s Guide. Lindsay brings a scientific, growth-oriented approach to this type of brand messaging and communication.

“Brand is a way to connect with the customer in a way that transcends price and features and meets them on a relationship level. When a business connects on this level, they can be truly different, and therefore insulated from commoditization,” Lindsay shares with me. “Any food, but especially fresh produce, is an inherently, emotionally rich product. We put it into our bodies. We nourish our children with it. We connect with others and find belonging through food.”

Then Lindsay says something that makes me chuckle.

“I believe that if you can brand bottled water, you can brand anything,” she says, before adding, “The fact that this grocery segment has been historically brandless is fascinating, and I find this really exciting. For a fresh produce brand seeking sustainable differentiation, I’ll be showing the audience why brand is so powerful, and how they can build one for their businesses."

Lindsay has a wealth of experience in her portfolio, advising companies from burgeoning startups to national corporations which include Zulily, Starbucks, T-Mobile, Coinstar, and IMDb. As we previously shared, Lindsay’s background as a P&L owner at Clorox fostered in her a deep appreciation for the executive’s charge: increasing the company’s value. There, she led mature, billion-dollar businesses and newly launched categories, from Clorox Bleach to Armor All to Brita.

Taking stock of this 40,000-foot view of brand building, I wonder what the common pitfalls are or where the barrier to entry lies with many. So, I asked Lindsay, as a starting point, what does she believe are some common misconceptions about brand and brand-building?

“The most common misconception about brand is that it belongs solely in marketing. Brand is the North Star for the business,” she tells me. “It is a promise, as well as the delivery of that promise. So, brand comes to life through everything the customer experiences of your business, from the product itself, the packaging, and the way it’s displayed to the merchandising and even customer service. It is not a veneer you apply at the end with a logo and a package, but the very fabric of what you are offering.”

Looking to register for the event? Take a gander here.

With such passion, it is no wonder that Lindsay took her insights and expertise to the page in Forging an Ironclad Brand: A Leader’s Guide.

“I was driven to democratize brand strategy so that companies without the wherewithal to hire a brand strategist could build a brand themselves. Brand strategy is ultimately a technology for leading a business. Any business that wants to be differentiated in its market will benefit from brand strategy. So, I wanted to pull back the covers and show my methodology for building a brand strategy so that anyone could apply this essential leadership tool,” Lindsay reflects.

Are your calendars marked as “busy” for March 9–11, yet? You know mine is. I’ll meet you with a virtual handshake as we sit back to take in the digital stage.

BrandStorm^™