“Time is simply what happens between snacks.” Frog & Toad
Snacking is no longer just a quick fix to bridge the gap between meals or a convenient way to stop an embarrassingly loud stomach growling on public transport. It’s a chance to positively influence your emotions and spice up your day.
Rulebreakers is our insight series that aims to identify the critical changes needed to future-proof industries. In this edition, we dive into consumers’ new attitudes to snacking and give you the inside scoop on current developments so you can stay one step ahead.
To get to the heart of the matter, we turned to The Guestlist, our inclusive community of over 2,200 creative minds, and asked them a simple but important question:
What would you change or improve to redefine the future of snacking?
We then followed up with focus group discussions and conducted complementary research and third-party reports, and found that snack brands need to keep up with changing consumer attitudes. Here’s a small selection of three of the changes we found:
1. Mindful Munchies: Snacking as a moment of reboot
We quickly found a common denominator among the participants in our focus group: They view snacking as a personal, solitary activity that helps them escape the madness of everyday life.
Snacks help them relax at home or take a much-needed break at work. In the midst of constant stress, snacks can make a real difference. Snack breaks can turn stress into calm – and that’s a big deal for them.
We noticed that indulgence and pampering were unanimously prioritized over health. As Joanne put it, “I don’t like healthy snacks because it feels like you’re taking away some of the pleasure.”
But that doesn’t mean people don’t care what they eat. They just want to eat mindfully and choose quality over quantity. They’d rather eat a small portion of something they love than a big bag of something healthy that’s just “okay.”
This attitude is in line with the “little treat” culture that is widespread on social media. People use snacks as a small but sweet way to treat themselves and add value to their daily routine – much like the lipstick effect in difficult economic times.
There is a huge opportunity for brands to embrace this mindset and help people make the most of their snacking moments and the emotions associated with them.
2. The journey is the destination: snacking as an experience
Our snack lovers shared nostalgic memories that highlighted the importance of the snacking experience over the end result.
For example, Maria’s fondest childhood memory is of mixing different chips in a giant bowl at the age of nine and creating her own snack mix. She wishes more brands would offer fun and interactive snacking experiences, such as pop-up events or build-your-own products. Spudos, with its simple chips and self-seasoning “spud dust”, is a great example of this.
People want to take control of their snacking experience, like experimenting with flavor combinations or creating their own unique creations. In fact, a whopping 75% of Gen Z are more likely to buy something if they can customize it. Swig Drinks in the US is doing it right with its “Dirty Sodas,” which let you mix popular sodas with purees, fresh fruit, pops, and more. The result is sometimes a gross, Frankenstein-like end product—but the possibility of disaster and the reactions to it are part of the fun.
The group also shared that discovering new snacks is just as exciting as eating them. They find new snacks through social media, exploring different stores, or even experimenting with their own recipes.
Even the way we snack can be part of the experience. Instead of a regular meal, our group had fun having snack picnics on the ground and trying novel snacks like Dairylea Lunchables.
Brands need to realize that it’s not just about taste; it’s about the entire snacking experience.
3. Snack Safari: Snacks as an experiment
For our group, snacking is like an adventure. They are always looking for new and exciting flavors and textures from all over the world. As TJ put it, “I don’t like eating the same thing multiple times in a row – variety is the spice of life.”
Our snack adventurers love trying international treats and mention snacks from India, Nigeria, Korea, Japan and America. American sweets are popular because they have no sugar tax and offer enormous variety. Maria, for example, loves silky gem crystal candies from the USA that are crunchy on the outside and soft like jelly on the inside.
This passion for discovering new snacks from around the world means that when they travel, they always take the time to go on a treasure hunt and explore local supermarkets in search of new and exciting snacks to try.
In addition to global and unique flavors, they are also attracted to snacks with eye-catching packaging and branding. They love brands that create fun collaborations (e.g. Propercorn & KFC) and embrace cultural moments (e.g. Propercorn with Barbie pink).
Brands can leverage this experimental mindset to encourage people to try their products.
Hungry for more?
Do you want to shape the future of snacking? Then we are here for you as your strategic and creative companion.
Contact Dan Saxby from The Elephant Room to book a more in-depth look and find out what this means for your brand.
