We asked the judging panel for this year’s World Beverage Innovation Awards what they are hoping to see from entrants.
The awards, which will be hosted at BrauBeviale in November, offer brands an exceptional way to enhance the promotion of their latest products and ensure they are recognised at the highest level.
There are 25 trophies to be won in total, and being shortlisted provides a hallmark of success that will prevail long after the awards draw to a close.
The judges’ comments will hopefully offer inspiration and help in crafting the winning entry. The deadline is 27 September.
Geoff Parker CEO, Australian Beverages Council
It’s a great pleasure to be part of the World Beverages Innovation Awards 2018. There is an incredible amount of change in our industry and I am particularly excited to see how brands will tackle these challenges and turn them into opportunities. I am also particularly eager to see how responsive and intuitive brands are using consumer insights to seize some of these new opportunities in our fast-paced industry. This year, here’s what I’m looking for:
Innovative ingredients: New formulas and unique twists on classics will certainly get my attention. A particular focus on natural ingredients, low- and no-sugar varieties and innovations in water are top of my list of things to watch out for.
Powerful packaging: Everyone remembers an impactful brand, and packaging is an integral part of this. I’m looking for creative shapes and beautiful designs that reflect the brand’s credentials. I’m also looking forward to seeing the research that has been put into packaging design as another way to engage with consumers.
Consumer insights: Consumers drive a lot of what our industry does, and we rightly spend a lot of time and money getting to know them. I’m looking out for brands that have developed authentic relationships with consumers and used these relationships to drive innovation across their portfolio.
Sustainability initiatives: Our world is changing, and we have to be more aware of closing the loop on waste throughout the manufacturing and supply chain processes. As such, brands that have a strong social conscience and have taken bold action on waste reduction, particularly by changing packaging design and manufacturing processes, will certainly grab my attention.
Jaclyn Bowen Executive director, Clean Label Project
This is what I will be paying careful attention to when judging the World Beverage Innovation Awards:
Data: Save the marketing puffery for someone else! This girl wants to hear about new innovations backed by data and research. Your claims of superiority should be substantiated using quantitative descriptors, not qualitative, fluffy words.
Science: Substantiate your reason for being by convincing the most cynical consumer why your product is truly innovative.
Transparency: With hundreds of hot products hitting the market, explain why your product deserves to win shelf space with retailers and, ultimately, win with consumers.
Innovation: This is the World Beverage Innovation Awards, isn’t it? I cannot wait to hear from brands who are true ‘pioneers’ – the new and fresh exploring uncontested territories and market space!
Safety and quality: Whether it be heavy metals or glyphosate, the current dialogue around food safety is what is not in your product. Explain how your organisation is committed to food safety and ingredient quality. Tell me how you are measuring and limiting the introduction of industrial and environmental contamination into your supply chain.
Adam Arnold Founder and creative director, Brandality
I’m very much looking forward to seeing the vast array of entries for this year’s World Beverage Innovation Awards. As a branding agency owner, I constantly find myself mentally judging beverage packaging and branding whilst walking around stores, so this seems a natural progression.
When judging the applicants the following factors will be considered:
Design and positioning: For me it’s just not about great design, it needs to be the right kind of great. The packaging needs to be captivating yes, but it also needs to clearly communicate values and USPs.
Need: Is there a space within the market/category and will consumers be engaged by the product and purchase it? It could be the best product in the world, but if no one is going to buy it, it might as well not exist.
Differentiation: How original is the product and will consumers have seen something like it before?
Sustainability: You can’t ignore the fact that consumers are shopping with the environment in mind and this will factor heavily in my criteria – everything from packaging through to the process in which the product is made.
Ooh factor: As someone who crafts brands for a living I’m pretty hard to impress, so anything that makes me go ‘ooh’ will score highly – first impressions are important.
Ultimately these are innovation awards, so those that have looked to create something different and with their consumers in mind will do well from my perspective.
Good luck!
Thea Bourianne Senior data strategies & solutions analyst, Label Insight Inc
As a registered dietitian and expert in food and beverage product data, I will be looking for products which are exciting and nuanced. I look forward to judging the World Beverage Innovation Awards 2018 and I will be paying close attention to products with the following five attributes.
Safe and healthful: The beverage space is one where empty calories are rampant. I am looking for products which innovate with the new perception of healthy in mind. Whether that is achieved through nutritional value with the formulation of whole foods, phytochemicals, probiotics, or others, a product that contributes a beneficial boost is a great value-add.
Sustainable: This is not limited to ingredient or packaging components, but also fair-trade, socially responsible business practices, humane treatment of animal-containing products and so on is critical to any relevant product in the eyes of today’s consumers.
Transparency: Consumers want access to more information now more than ever about what is in the products they are buying for their families. Transparency for me means clear and truthful product labels and communicating information to consumers about sourcing and processing of ingredients throughout the supply chain.
New and relevant ingredients: A cornerstone of my vote will be products that include new and emerging ingredients in categories where they are not prevalent. Ingredients should be thoughtfully added for flavour or functionality and be relevant to today’s consumers.
Authentic: Products that will capture my attention will have a unique voice in their brand identity and have ethical core values that drive corporate decisions and profits.
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