3 toolkits to help retailers and brands improve organic messaging

The retail landscape is changing, and thus, consumer values and organic messaging are changing, too.

How to best market the attributes of organic has been difficult for many years and has led to consumer confusion. Research shows consumers have higher levels of trust for the certifications they are most familiar with, further underlining the need for a strong, unified approach to messaging the benefits of USDA Organic products.

Three organic industry trade groups—the Organic Trade Association, the USDA National Organic Program and Organically Grown—have created toolkits aimed at increasing consumer awareness of and trust in the USDA Organic label and products. See how these resources could help your business thrive.

Organic Trade Association Organic Opportunity Communications Toolkit

The OTA’s Organic Opportunity Communications Toolkit was created for brands and retailers to effectively educate on the requirements and attributes of USDA organic. It serves as a resource to help retailers and brands create these new messaging opportunities to reach consumers. Many of the resources in this toolkit are free to the public, while others are only available for OTA members.

The majority of consumers (60%) match the importance of organic with a justification for a higher price.  Consumers are most familiar, and therefore more willing to pay a premium on, products with the attributes that the organic industry has been marketing for years, such as not allowing genetically modified ingredients and being produced without synthetic pesticides. Consumers more easily understand these single-attribute claims than comprehensive certifications like USDA Organic. So, emphasizing the different attributes of USDA Organic products will reach consumers more effectively. With so many new certifications coming onto the scene, longevity matters and USDA Organic still rings relevant with shoppers.

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USDA National Organic Program Organic Consumer Outreach Toolkit 

The USDA National Organic Program’s recently launched Organic Consumer Outreach Toolkit provides content for retailers to use in-store, such as consumer-facing displays, stickers, banners and more, to raise consumer awareness and trust in the USDA Organic label.

The USDA NOP found widespread confusion among consumers about what it means for a product to be organic. This free toolkit is designed to make USDA organic messaging simple for consumers to understand, as it synthesizes the pillars of organic into four, easy-to-understand categories: protected by law, inspected by experts, traced from farm to store and shaped by public input. Marketing materials, which provide different images to resonate with various communities, can be hung on refrigerated and frozen cases’ doors. These assets were designed to mimic in-store merchandising that consumers might be familiar with already, therefore seamlessly incorporating new education around organic.

Organically Grown “Organic is the Answer” Open Source Toolkit

For retailers and brands trying to share the good word about USDA Organic, Organically Grown’s Organic is the Answer toolkit is, quite simply, the answer. Organically Grown makes it easy for people to understand that organic is the original good-for-people, good-for-planet choice, and thus an easy way for consumers to shop their values.

The Organic is the Answer campaign underlines consumers’ need for trusted, easy-to-understand information to prove the added value of organic is worth the cost. By using the simple rallying cry of Organic is the Answer, the toolkit’s main point is clearly and quickly communicated. This free resource provides assets such as social media posts, banners, posters, stickers, information sheets and more for businesses, to use however they see fit.