The Art of Coffee: Appealing to a Cultured Consumer [INSIGHT]

By Alejandra Londoño / Vice President of International Expansion at Juan Valdez

No matter your brand, your client or your industry, everyone is looking to get noticed. In order to make this happen, it’s important to have a solid PR strategy in place. The world of PR is drastically changing, and in order to get in the spotlight you need to be innovative and forward-thinking. Companies and their PR agencies have become increasingly savvy in an attempt to stay relevant and to increase brand awareness. Catching the attention of the masses is not always as simple as just distributing a press release.

I can tell you from first-hand experience that navigating this world and its sea of opportunities can be a challenge at times; it’s easy to become inundated with different offers for your brand and choosing the right one is a discerning task. However, when you do come across the one that is a good fit for your brand, I believe you’ll have a hunch.

As the Vice President of International Expansion for Juan Valdez, I not only oversee our brand’s global footprint, but I also help ensure that we strategically align ourselves with the right events that cater to the right audiences in order to create positive buzz. Those of us in the communications world understand the importance of brand image and the lengths we must take in order to create, protect and publicize that desired image.

Juan Valdez® Café is a globally-recognized brand that has recently made significant expansion efforts in the US market, focusing on a more sophisticated coffee consumer. As the brand reaches new markets, and hence new consumers, we must ensure our brand’s values and messages are being communicated and heard. In order to achieve this objective, we decided to participate in several key events that would help us reach our target demographic and that are aligned with the principles of our brand – authenticity, craftsmanship, hard work and dedication.

Art Basel Miami Beach presented  the right platform to showcase our portfolio of different Premium Colombian Single coffee origins, several different methods of preparation, as well as some unique, artistic components such as the increasingly popular “latte art”. We determined that Art Basel would be the perfect vehicle to introduce our brand to the sophisticated and cultured crowd who flocks to Miami for this much-awaited annual event.

We worked hand in hand with our public relations agency, Newlink America, to conceptualize activations for two events, Pinta Miami and the Art Nexus Closing Reception, that would resonate with the brand’s core values, showcase and educate consumers about our product, and create a relevant tie-in with the art scene that would be in attendance.

The next step after finding the right opportunity for your brand is making sure you truly seize the opportunity and make the most out of what your platform offers.

Along with our team at Newlink America, we incorporated a variety of eye-catching and interactive elements into our activations. For example, we created a massive photo exhibition that provided relevant and visually appealing information for consumers to learn more about the different Colombian coffee origins they would be sampling during the event and the coffee growers behind them. It is important for consumers to understand that, similar to wine, coffee has different flavor profiles that appeal to different palates; whether you prefer a bolder or a sweeter coffee, Colombia’s regions offer something for everyone.

We also worked with two Colombian artists to paint a six-foot coffee cup with images reminiscent of the coffee growing region in Colombia. Lastly, we had an award-winning barista from Colombia, Ronald Valero, entertain consumers with his impressive latte art. We felt that these were crucial elements that would not only bring our activations to life but also create buzz for consumers and media alike.

Juan Valdez Café’s participation in these Art Basel events was strategic and could serve as a useful reference for other brands and agencies who are aiming to creatively capture the attention of consumers. Our activations allowed us to captivate our audience; telling them the story of the brand of the Colombian Coffee growers while allowing them to experience the richness of its origins and the expertise of our baristas.

In order for people to truly understand it, we wanted to provide them with an interactive and emotive experience that would garner a greater appreciation for both the art of coffee and the Juan Valdez brand. Working alongside our PR team to create activations that showcased our brand with an educational yet consumer-friendly approach helped to not only create brand awareness, but also brand love. We’re not simply trying to pitch our story to the media; rather, we’re aiming to create an authentic experience that can resonate with consumers and media on a deeper level.

Regardless of your industry, if you can find a way to have consumers connect with your brand at an emotional level, then you’re truly winning…and that is something I believe we accomplished through Juan Valdez Cafe’s participation in Art Basel.