Meet the Marketers

importantly, everything we do is highly targeted to ensure we reach shoppers with access to Sunkistgrown citrus since it supports our growers and the fruit they carefully grow and handpick.

CHRISTINA WARD Senior Director of Global Marketing Sunkist Growers

Main job responsibilities: I oversee the global brand and retail marketing strategies at Sunkist Growers, a 130-year-old fresh citrus cooperative. Since we work with a legacy brand (Sunkist is the longest-standing agricultural co-op in the nation), our team focus has been on innovation, education and celebration. In recent years, this produce brand has taken a huge leap into the shopper marketing world, extremely focused on reaching consumers where they are.

Winning with shoppers during uncertain economic times: Shopper behaviors are in constant motion, especially when it comes to fresh produce. So, we prioritize a real-time understanding of what the consumer needs and where they want to buy. We stay in lockstep with category data and shopper insights that guide relevant as well as customizable marketing programs to support our retail partners. Overall, reaching our audiences through an omnichannel approach is key to our programming.

Also, eating healthy is still a priority for citrus shoppers. In a recent study, we learned that shoppers’ No. 1 reason for buying citrus was their health and wellness. Most

New marketing tactic that you use: In the past couple of years, we’ve expanded our capabilities in e-commerce with tools to support retail partners focused on capturing the online shopper. According to a recent study, more than half of U.S. households ordered groceries online in December, up 4% versus 2021. We pair our online programming with in-store promotions to capture shoppers in a time and place that is most convenient for them.

Activating at retail: Brand partnerships are a meaningful way to create new experiences for shoppers. During the holidays, citrus is a sweet tradition in many homes across the country and the world. We have had some opportunities to promote California-grown navel oranges in November at the start of the season in conjunction with classic movie titles. We created custom 10-pound holiday cartons — the perfect tool for retailers to meet consumer demand for eating and giving health-centric holiday gifts. According to IRI data, our movie-themed promotions have historically supported a morethan-20% increase in navel orange sales at retail. Finally, Sunkist Growers is celebrating its 130th anniversary this season. We had in-store and online programming to celebrate every bite.

Associate Marketing Manager – Customer Focus

Jack Link’s Protein Snacks

Main job responsibilities: Our team handles several different duties within marketing. These range from normal marketing operations to couponing and partnerships. I was brought on in August 2022 to help revamp our shopper marketing strategy across all Link Snacks brands. I am currently focused on creating processes and baseline strategy for our core products, innovation and emerging brands across all channels.

How you win with shoppers during uncertain economic times: We invest time and resources into learning more about what our shoppers and consumers want and need from our brands, and adjust accordingly. We recently launched a rewards program for Jack Link’s and Lorissa’s Kitchen that provides much-deserved rewards for our loyal consumers.

New marketing tactic that you use: It’s not a new tactic across the board, but in the past year I gained a lot of hands-on experience in the world of experiential marketing. I was tasked with finding unique sampling opportunities at events across the country on a limited budget — a very fun challenge. I was invigorated to see what we could accomplish when we got really strategic with how we would hit our objectives and really squeeze every last drop out of our budget.

Memorable aha moment in your career: I have always had a passion for food and had always worked on food brands throughout my shopper marketing career on the agency side. I took a role with a client that was in skincare and quickly realized that food and beverage is what gets me excited. My “aha” realization was that as long as I believe in and care about the product we are marketing, it makes the hard days easier.