Fresh and Local: Building the Brand

The message is simple; the call to action is embedded right there in the logo – Buy Fresh Buy Local Central Texas. Chances are good that you’ll begin spotting this image printed on banners and cards, shared through social media and even popping up on your mobile device very soon. The Buy Fresh Buy Local Central Texas local food branding campaign kicks off this October with the purpose of connecting new customers with farms and markets in our area.

The logo, a regionally customized nationally recognized brand, is the centerpiece of the campaign. The image is designed intentionally to resemble a label from an old produce crate, invoking visions of seasonal fruits and vegetables straight from the farm. The affiliated website, buylocalcentex.org, provides an interactive map and listing of members that include farmers’ markets, farm stands, CSA farms, and other farms and ranches. Banners, posters, and cards featuring the logo were produced for these members to display and distribute to help build awareness of the brand. Key to this campaign, though, is the mobile marketing approach.

Open your web browser or other app on your mobile device in proximity to one of the chapter members, and you are likely to see the logo and its straight forward message. Clicking the ad brings viewers to the navigable website, where they can find the market nearest them. This mobile marketing effort is somewhat new territory for many local food promotors. The development of the campaign has benefited greatly from the involvement of a steering committee of farmers, farmers’ market managers, and other local food advocates (listed on the website), and from expert guidance provided by Susan Seale of Mindful Marketing, a media strategy and ad buying firm.

Buy Fresh Buy Local Central Texas is part of the FoodRoutes Network (FoodRoutes.org), a national nonprofit organization that provides technical support to community-based groups that are working to strengthen regional markets for locally grown foods. The establishment of the Buy Fresh Buy Local Central Texas Chapter was made possible in part by a Farmers’ Market Promotions Program grant from the Agricultural Marketing Service of the USDA.

The launch of the ad campaign plus the availability of posters and other printed materials marks a major milestone for the chapter. The message is clear, so look for the logo and help us spread the word, to Buy Fresh Buy Local Central Texas!

Farms and farmers’ markets within 150 miles of Austin are encouraged to become members. Membership is free. More info here: http://www.buylocalcentex.org/how-to