Created by: Barbara Ruhs, MS, RD, LDN Email: bruhs@bashas.com PH: (480) 216-6848

Help Supermarket Dietitians be Health Ambassadors for Your Brand

By Barbara Ruhs, MS, RD – Supermarket RD

Please provide information in an electronic format (zip drive, or web portal) to help supermarket dietitians learn more

about your product and to be more effective at promoting your healthy brand to our customers. In general, we need 3

to 4 months advanced-notice to promote in our supermarket publications.

FOR PRINT PUBLICATIONS/NEWSLETTERS/AD/TRADE

• Promotional campaign calendar that identifies (national) product promotions – FSI’s, any Media/PR or Social Networking

campaigns, cooking contests, POP programs…basically anything interesting that your brand is doing that we can use to get

customers excited about your product. It’s helpful to know what you’re doing to promote your brand as well (in-store

marketing programs, etc.)

• Provide any recent or relevant compelling research evidence or studies or otherwise that supports any health claims or

nutritional attributes of your product. (ie. Importance of probiotics for digestive health)

• Listing of your products with key information* – UPC, sizes, nutrition facts panel, ingredient list, nutrition label claims.

*It is even MORE helpful if you tell us exactly which SKUs are carried at our retailer!

• High Resolution artwork of your brands – products, logos (or reference as to where they can be found, ie. Kwikee)

Provide a contact sheet (1-2 pager) with thumbnails so that we can quickly see what’s available.

• Healthy Recipes (fresh, new, catchy) with high resolution artwork, nutrition facts, and health attributes (low sodium; heart

healthy). Please provide an FTP site or mail a zip drive annually with updated information and artwork.

• Guidelines for recipe and image usage and how you want information and images communicated and credited.

• Guidelines for in-AD manufacturer coupon placement (contact, lead time, etc).

We are happy to supply circulation and projected redemption rates!

GENERAL HELPFUL INFORMATION

• Provide contact information for brand team; marketing contacts; as well as provide local/regional sales personnel to

coordinate trade promotions. Make sure that your local sales people say hello to the in-house Registered Dietitian when

they make a sales call! We can help you!

• Listing of supermarkets where you can find your brands/products.

• Please provide a listing of FDA-approved nutrition labeling claims for products (ie. Gluten free).

• Nutrition Tag Ratings: How does your product SCORE with Healthy Aisles™? NuVal? Guiding Stars?

• Best Practices Retail Examples: Share detailed information on successful retail promotions for your product – tell us what

you know about the best way to promote your brand. Any data on ROI that you can share is helpful. Nielson reports, etc.

SOCIAL NETWORKING & TECHNOLOGY

• Provide Details: Websites; Twitter handles; Facebook; Pinterest – Where can we link together to build brand synergy?

• Provide Twitter Handles to follow, example: @EatSmartAZ (Bashas’ Dietitian – Barbara Ruhs, RD)

• Provide Top 10-20 “tweets” for Twitter for your brand(s) connecting to health, nutrition, healthy recipes and any relevant

timing/calendar information.

• Does your brand host Twitter or FB “parties?” Many Supermarket RDs would love to host an online party with your brand!

• Affiliated Food Bloggers – Please use some Supermarket RD or Dietitian bloggers. Host an event so that RDs and bloggers

(and local media contacts) can network and share ideas.

• Webinars: We do not want a sales pitch but rather, useful, pertinent health and nutrition information that can help us

promote your brand. Have an RD host the webinar or a respected scientist or marketing guru. Our time is limited so the info

that you want us to listen to better be a win-win!

MEDIA & PUBLIC RELATIONS

• Poignant and timely media releases that can be shared with local media contacts.

• Brand Promotional Calendar –contests; promotions, media campaigns; health events; conferences, harvest tours.

• Provide PDF or information on any AD campaigns in popular magazines (Eating Well, Today’s Dietitian, etc.)

Created by: Barbara Ruhs, MS, RD, LDN Email: bruhs@bashas.com PH: (480) 216-6848

COMMUNITY EVENTS, FOOD DEMOS & CULINARY

• Provide details on how your brand can support demo sampling in-store or at community events (contacts, VIP coupons).

• Celebrity Chef recipes or any other “featured” or timely recipes.

• ORDER FORM: To obtain samples, coupons, brochures, recipe cards, collateral to promote your brand

Help supermarket dietitians help you build local (healthy) buzz about your brands!

Barbara Ruhs, M.S., R.D., L.D.N. is a Phoenix,AZ -based Registered Dietitian and Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist

specializing in nutrition education, marketing communications and healthy brand strategy for retail supermarkets and

food industry partners. She is a supermarket dietitian for Bashas' Family of Stores, a family-owned supermarket chain

based in Chandler, Arizona, that operates 128 stores in 3 unique store formats (Bashas’, AJ’s Fine Foods, Food City)

throughout Arizona.

Barb is a passionate public health advocate and is on the cutting edge of exploring, developing, and testing effective

strategies to inspire Americans to improve health while shopping at their local grocery store. She has collaborated on

research and has partnered with non-profit public health agencies throughout the country to increase knowledge about

public-private partnerships that support nutrition education in retail supermarkets.

Since 2010, she has led the mission to provide one-of-a-kind educational opportunities for supermarket dietitians

(sponsored by industry partners). The goal of these events is to highlight and share best practices in retail nutrition &

health promotion and to identify innovative strategies to improve public health. Supermarket dietitians are a highly

influential group - they reach millions of customers with their messages and are uniquely positioned in the crossroads

between food manufacturer, retail grocer and the consumer. Since 2010, Barb has co-planned (3) annual events

specifically geared towards educating supermarket dietitians. Currently she is planning (2) events for 2013 and is

collaborating with Phil Lempert, The Supermarket Guru.

Barbara graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in Nutrition and Dietetics and has an M.S. in Nutrition from Boston

University. Prior to taking on supermarket dietetics, Barb was a Dietitian for Harvard University. Barb is a former

collegiate tennis player and rower, who enjoys taking on new challenges while maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle.

Join me on LinkedIn to learn more about what I’ve been up to!