WENATCHEE, WA - As a devout Instagram fan, anything the app tells me is worthwhile is worthwhile. (The power of social media is real, guys.) Stemilt’s newest apple, Rave®, recently became a First Verified Fruit (FVF) on Instagram, an honor that showcases the apple grower’s social media aplomb.

“Given the world’s current position, we felt this is a fun way to create brand recognition around Rave,” shared Brianna Shales, Senior Marketing Manager. “Like everyone else, we’ve had to pivot many of our marketing efforts due to COVID-19, so we chose a digital campaign that focuses on positive, rave-worthy moments to bring a smile to people’s faces.”

Obviously, the campaign plays into the rave-worthy attributes of the apple, including the name of the variety itself. The social media content will include positive and uplifting stories from communities across the country, while driving community engagement and garnering followers.

“We’ve carefully chosen partners who focus their content on positivity, feel-good stories, amazing recipes, and inspiration to bring some light into people’s lives,” Shales went on to explain. “Influencers like Kyndra Holley of Peace Love and Low Carb, Jocelyn Brown of Hip Mama’s Place, and Katie Lemons of Twist of Lemons have a combined following of nearly 500K followers. They have a tight-knit community that makes them a great fit for celebrating Rave while it’s in season.”

According to a press release, the campaign is live now through September—the length of Rave’s season. Shales noted that the Stemilt team is working hard to build awareness one person at a time through word-of-mouth marketing. The influencers are using various hashtags, including #PassTheRave to share the Rave apple with not only their followers but with friends, family, and neighbors.

Stemilt is also supporting Rave and the First Verified Fruit campaign by tapping into multiple channels, including Spotify, food channel Serious Eats, and social platforms. Rave also partnered with Eugene, of the @World_Record_Egg who almost broke the internet in 2019 by posting an image of an egg that got 18.7 million likes in just 9 days on Instagram. (To date, the photo currently has 54.6m likes).

In addition to being worthy of Instagram fame, Rave is a premium apple in its own right. It comes off the tree a few weeks before most apples and has a sweet-tart flavor and gorgeous fuchsia-color to appeal to multiple apple lovers. It’s a cross between Honeycrisp and MonArk varieties.

“Rave’s early timing sparks the apple category during a non-traditional time for apples,” concluded Shales. “With its premium quality, fun branding and ‘verifiably’ amazing flavor, it will leave any consumer with a delightful eating experience.”

Here’s to an Insta-worthy apple!

Stemilt