Natural and Organic Industry Turns to Affordable, Online Alternative to Traditional Mass Market Research

Collingswood, NJ, — Sales of organic products reached $146 billion in 2005 according to a natural industry survey; an increase of 17% over the prior year. In turn, 95% of consumers in the United States purchased a natural product and approximately 50% purchased an organic product. These findings confirm what most marketers already know: the natural and organics products sector is no longer a niche market. The "natural living" customer is virtually everyone who shops.

"Given this growth in the natural and organic [N&O] market and the increased costs associated with reaching a broader audience, it is more important than ever for marketers to understand the consumer mindset, where demand is trending, and to know what influences the purchase process," says Matthew A. Saline, CEO of Mambo Sprouts Marketing, a multi-faceted direct marketing company that operates exclusively in the health, natural and organic products arena. "Understanding those purchase drivers will help marketers develop products consumers want and target the right customers at the right time." Saline goes on to say that the development, manufacturing and marketing numbers are so large in the mass market that manufacturers and retailers can no longer afford to "live test" products by making them and simply putting them out in the market place.

Even as N&O sales continue to increase, few retailers or manufacturers have the R&D and marketing budgets to spend the tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars required to conduct traditional product concept testing and consumer research. And while there is general industry and category research available, it can only provide high-level direction at best and hardly helps a retailer or manufacturer make product-specific marketing and branding decisions.

Mambo Sprouts to the Rescue
Mambo Sprouts hosts Mambo Track tm, a proprietary online consumer research platform of 10,000 N&O approving consumers, offering the most timely and actionable research in the industry. Mambo Sprout's surveys and polls are performed "in-house" by professionals with over 20 years experience in grass roots consumer promotion and research and natural product marketing. Mambo Track enables a guerrilla approach to collecting real-time feedback on everything from brand identity and usage to product packaging and label design for new and existing products and line extensions—and at a fraction of the cost of traditional mass market research. One company recently conducted a Mambo Track poll to make a quick decision on hiring a spokesperson for a natural brand.

Mambo Track surveys also reveal shifts, both large and small, in the N&O consumer market as they're happening; thereby enabling retailers and manufacturers to be more proactive, less reactive, in their marketing programs. For example, the natural mass market consumer is always hungry for information and web-savvy – as a result, the online channel plays a bigger role in purchasing decisions than for the regular mass market consumer.

Recent Mambo Track surveys revealed those promotional tactics most effective at driving N&O sales and increasing brand awareness:
· Coupons in the mail (87%)
· Product samples (84%)
· Newspaper coupons (80%)
· In-store coupons (76%)
· Educational literature (72%)

Insights concluded from such quantitative data help N&O retailers and product manufacturers become smarter in their marketing approach. For example, combining educational literature and healthy living tips with a coupon will win the health & food conscious consumer over on not one but two key N&O decision factors: value and information.

Recent Mambo Sprouts research showed that natural and organic consumers spend nearly 50% of their food budgets on health, natural and organic products and that they shop at a variety of retail outlets. Three out of four shop for natural and organic products at natural product food chains including Whole Foods and Wild Oats; seven in ten buy these products at primary supermarkets including Ralphs and Shop Rite; four in ten shop at local health food stores and specialty stores like Trader Joe's and one in four buy their natural and organic products at discount stores. "These findings are important to any business that is spending serious money trying to reach the N&O consumer," says Saline. "They emphasize how important loyalty-driven marketing has become now that the N&O space is crowded with competitors of all shapes and sizes."

Now celebrating its 10th year anniversary, the Company has been an innovator in natural and organic product marketing through several industry growth spurts. "We can predict but prediction without validation is an expensive proposition," observes Saline. "Our clients come to us to confirm they're on the right track with their natural product marketing and promotions and new product introductions. Or not. In the first case, we can help them make a lot of money. In the second, we can save them a lot."

ABOUT MAMBO SPROUTS: Mambo Sprouts Marketing, currently celebrating its 10th year anniversary, is a full service health, natural and organic foods and products marketing and promotions company. Mambo offers manufacturers and retailers a complete range of customized programs including: the industry's first and only natural product co-op mailer featuring an optional custom solo mailing; Mambo Sprouts natural and organic product Messenger newsletter and coupon books distributed quarterly to 385,000 N&O consumers; offline and Web-based market research services; offline and online mail list development; Go Mambo!, Mambo Sprouts' mobile promotions van that travels throughout target regions distributing product samples and coupons at major events and festivals; Web marketing including natural product instant e-coupons, sample offer promotions, and a monthly targeted health e-newsletter. Mambo Sprouts is based in Collingswood, New Jersey. For more information call (856) 833.1933 or visit www.mambosprouts.com

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