Very nice Branding from The Cornish Seaweed Company
The use of photography and the story it tells is wonderful. There is a really nice mix here of professional high quality photos as well as informal Instagram and documentary style stuff. The rugged coastline, the people harvesting the seaweed, the drying and the selling of the product are all beautifully captured and really parachute you into the heart of the brand. You feel immersed in the company’s values, the product, its creation and the place it’s from, just from the photography. Most brands out there don’t even come close to this level of connection, even with multi million dollar marketing budgets.
The importance of where a Brand/Product is from can’t be underestimate. When you are competing with giant global conglomerates, who are sourcing their products from the cheapest global supplier, single origin provides a unique point of difference that big Brands struggle to own. You really feel the connection with Cornwall here and because of that, the landscape, the history, the people and the climate all become part of the brand’s unique broader narratives.
What a pair of lovely softly spoken people! Caro’s story reads like a Hollywood movie, a global adventure with twists and disaster. Tim’s profile adds a genuine conservation element to the mix. I love how it highlights how he was born below sea level. We are attracted to brands that share our beliefs and here we can see the company’s values on full display. “A high quality product and sustainability, in our eyes one does not come without the other.” People who connect with this message will bond with this brand immediately and deeply. Joe, Jen & Blinky all round up the team nicely with complementary background stories.
Years ago I worked on a milk brand. The research we commissioned came back conclusively that customers responded best to narratives about the product coming from nature, not the narratives about it coming from cows or other functional benefits. I call it the Clean & Green narrative, the idea of the product being from nature is its a biggest attraction. The Cornish Seaweed Company have absolutely nailed this, leaving us in no doubt we are consuming something very natural.
The whole harvesting from the sea story has this wonderful, adventurous feel to it. I’m sure the reality is not nearly so romantic, swimming in Cornwall is a bracing experience at the best of times, but the web site makes it look fun. The drying process and techniques on view enhance the natural and unprocessed feel of the product.
Seaweed has never before looked and sounded so interesting to me. They have done such a good job making the product, a ‘weed’, into the hero here. Some of the images on the gallery page are works of art. Who would have known there are 1500 different species of seaweed in Cornwall? Boasting more Vitamins & Minerals than ANY other food! I also feel there is an underdog story here with seaweed too which makes it all the more compelling.
When you put all the above items together you have an incredibly authentic brand. From the people to the product, you very much feel they are going their own way on this and that is central to an authentic brand. The narratives all fit together and there is a feeling of rebellion about what they are doing. When I read this quote on the web site, I didn’t feel that it’s there just for effect, it’s what they truly believe. ‘In one drop of water are found all the secrets of the ocean’ – Kahlil Gibran
Sea for yourself here: https://www.cornishseaweed.co.uk/