How protein-forward marketing, communications can boost business

Many trends originate on the coasts and migrate toward the middle of the country. It’s a demographic marketing fact.

Over the summer I was shopping on Abbott Kinney Boulevard in Venice, California, on a gorgeous, sunny Saturday. The stores were busy. The streets had lots of sidewalk vendors, and even moving trucks were pulled up with their duck planks out and it was possible to shop inside their storage compartment for all sorts of interesting finds.

A quick-service restaurant had great signs in the window advertising “Protein Forward Bowls.” It was so California. The photos portrayed delectable veggies and grains topped with rich, lean proteins and sauces. Talk about inviting! And we could also wash this down with a $20 smoothie packed with goodness at Erewon, the ridiculously popular health food grocery that boasts high prices and celebrity devotion.

Confession, we did wait in that long line to try a smoothie and see if it made a difference in our lives. It didn’t. But I’m certain our purchase made a difference in their revenue stream. The promise of nourishment seemed like the baseline command throughout the neighborhood. It was fun to bob around in this health-conscious realm and uncover its vitality secrets.

Protein forward. What a fantastic phrase. What a good idea. For our bodies, yes, protein is nourishing and essential to keep ourselves healthy and metabolically balanced. Do it, go lean and heavy on the protein and the high fiber and veggies and reap the benefits.

Add high protein communications to your health mix. You know what these are. These are the messages that companies and organizations present that feel like a gift. Consider your personal social media scrolls. What resonates with you as you scroll? What stops you and makes you pause and think?

When organizations publish meaningful, educational, inspirational or just plain awesome content you know it. It is possible to learn something in a quick take. It also is possible to be inspired to try something by a message.

Make your content high protein. Use indelible images. Share real insights or tips. Educate your stakeholders and tell them why what you do matters more than what the competition is doing. In this way you create value for your reader, you really do.

Doomscrolling is an activity people fall into when their brains need a break from other work or focus. Most of what we see is flotsam and jetsam, but sometimes information or visuals are so good we emerge from the randomness of it all a little smarter, or motivated to take a certain action or get better at something we are working on. Therein lies the protein.

High protein content is memorable, shareable and invites comment or praise. Go for this when you publish anything to your social channels. You’ll know you’re serving up protein forward content when people are engaged with it and when they are sharing it and commenting. Cheers to your good health in life and in your communications.

• Rebecca Hoffman is the founder and principal of Good Egg Concepts, a strategic communication and brand marketing consulting practice serving clients around the Chicago area and nationally.