The Food and beverage industry is all about consumers… more specifically, it’s about consumption by consumers. Every beer you drink, every chicken you roast, every cookie you crumble, the F&B market is a massive economy all on itself, and within the United States alone, its e-commerce revenue totaled a combined $18.7 billion during the year of the pandemic, 20201. With more stay-at-home living expected as a way of life for many people moving forward, that number is likely to increase to $25.7 billion by 20252. For food and beverage brands this is a very delicious number to salivate over indeed.
As things progress into 2021, and habits, incomes, and consumption behaviors start resembling what they once did before the COVID-19 pandemic, both around the globe and right here at home in the United States, companies are taking advantage of social listening platforms to better position themselves in the eventual post-pandemic world. Whether it’s adopting healthier, greener diets, to imbibing more alcoholic drinks compounded by multiple different elements, consumers have quite a bit to say with their online conversations on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc., and brands need to listen if they wish to carve out a piece of the new food world order pie.