While perception of snack nuts has gradually favorably shifted towards an improved “good for you” view, due to a lack of awareness, in 2010 many consumers continued to see pistachios as a “guilty” snack choice, an issue for the $520 million California pistachio industry.  As California’s leading producer of pistachios, the $5billion dollar, privately-owned Wonderful Company needed to change consumer perception for the category while boosting awareness for its flagship brand, Wonderful Pistachios.

On behalf of the Wonderful Company, a PR campaign was strategically developed to position California pistachios as a wise snack choice, drive consumer preference and increase brand awareness for Wonderful Pistachios.  Via a health communications program, and with the support of strategic expert alliances, a commissioned study was published in the journal “Appetite,” demonstrating the positive weight-management aspects of pistachios, showing that pistachio snackers tended to snack slower, consuming less calories but with high levels of satiety.  A campaign, highlighting the “mindful eating” benefits of pistachios, and the trademarked term “Skinny Nut™,” were incorporated into press materials, owned social media platforms, and influencer outreach.  A non-branded  health communications platform, The Pistachio Health Institute, was launched to deliver the health message credibly to influencers, consumers and media.  Communication tools included a website, social media channels, downloadable collateral, dietitian-authored blog and quarterly e-newsletter.  Influencer activities, including tarvest tours, events, and New York deskside tours reached key consumer outlets including NBC’s The Biggest Loser, Fox-TV, Weight Watchers, Spry magazine, Parade, Woman’s World, Self, Glamour Parenting, Vogue, Prevention, Greatist, Health and WebMD among others.

In a five year period, more than 2,500 domestic media placements have been placed to date including top-tier outlets The Today Show, Dr. Oz, NBC’s “The Biggest Loser,” The Food Network, Good Housekeeping, The Doctors, Oprah Magazine, Parade, Prevention Shape, USA Today, US Magazine, National Public Radio, Yahoo! and WebMD among others.  Several outlets, including Men’s Health and Yahoo!, have run multiple mentions;  100% of media placements contained 1+ positive health messages, linking in-shell pistachios to weight management, a key differentiator in the snack nut category.  Blogger campaigns generated 7-million social media impressions with 100% message pull-through; growing Facebook fan growth 193% in a 1-year measured period while monthly traffic to the Pistachio Health Institute website peaked at 32,000 visitors; by comparison, a category competitor’s site averaged 11,000.  Ipsos market research found a 12% shift in consumer perception for the health benefits of pistachios in the first year following the campaign; and internal research conducted by the Wonderful