The Employer:

Berkeley Bowl Marketplace, a family-owned, gourmet grocer in Berkeley Califonia.

 

Objective: 

The objectives here were multi-layered - firstly, there was a need to convince the powers that be at Berkeley Bowl that my experience in marketing and communications could be advantageous to the company in a role beyond the cashier position I had been hired to do.

 

Secondly to demonstrate, with little to no investment or support that social media has changed the landscape, and that marketing is now a necessary function that can help to drive awareness and elevate brand visibility.

 

Third, introduce customers to the eCommerce platform in an effort to improve sales in the middle of a global pandemic.

 

Fourth, to curate external-facing messaging thru social media and PR channels to re-introduce Berkeley Bowl to new customer segments, particularly during the pandemic.

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Fifth to activate and manage previously unexplored revenue channels to aid in recovery from the fiscal impact of the COVID 19 pandemic.

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Primary Challenges: 

• Marketing efforts on any level are unfamiliar at the company, there is significant skepticism regarding the value of marketing programs.

• A Global Pandemic.

• Limited resources, no additional staff - any projects and executions need to be done without budget or staff support. 

• No budget - due to the lack of familiarity with marketing as a business function, the challenge was to do the most with the very least.

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Successes to date:

Though there is a formidable list of deliverables that need to be addressed, there have been some key successes that have happened so far;​

• Launch of the new Berkeley Bowl website - the new site has custom content, updated regularly, and has been re-tooled to drive visitors to transactional pages. 

• Launch of the Berkeley Bowl Gift Shop, selling gift cards and Berkeley Bowl branded items that can be purchased and shipped to recipients.

• Organic growth of the social media following by creating original content including videos and recipes

• Monetized social promotion 

• Original content including editorial and photography

• New video content creation

• Increased engagement - new posts garner more than 10X the engagements over previous posts

• Recipe development for paid promotion

• Food styling and photography for branded promotion​

• Reestablishing and developing relationships with external partners including local media partnerships which lead to high visibility organic coverage including the couple who took their engagement photos at Berkeley Bowl

• Development of new promotional opportunities for brands to promote their products to customers

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Next up: Expansion of the marketing team, exploration of new platforms, growth, and development of the audience.

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