“The lean startup” approach : a practical methodology implementation for consumer goods products in the healthy snack industry

Mestrado em Ciências EmpresariaisA metodologia Lean Startup foi utilizada para desenvolver uma solução de negócio no setor da alimentação saudável. Ao recorrer a esta abordagem, foi criado um modelo de negócios que posteriormente foi testado, de forma a obter feedback dos possíveis clientes. Durante o processo inicial de desenvolvimento o plano de negócios sofreu muitas alterações resultantes dos inputs dos clientes. Dado o padrão no feedback recolhido, foram testadas três hipóteses de problema: "Os snacks disponíveis no local de trabalho não satisfazem as necessidades nutricionais e não estão alinhados com os objetivos alimentares", "Comer saudável é demorado e difícil" e "Comer snacks saudáveis diariamente não é financeiramente viável". Todas estas hipóteses foram confirmadas através de uma análise qualitativa e quantitativa, ou seja, através de entrevistas presenciais e de um inquérito online. Para o desenvolvimento da solução, foi apresentado um protótipo do produto aos inquiridos. Os dados recolhidos do inquérito confirmaram o problema e validaram os benefícios apresentados da solução. Apesar da solução encontrada resolver o problema estudado, esta oportunidade de negócio ainda necessita de uma maior maturidade de mercado. Efetivamente, analisando os resultados, a solução encontrada é plausível. No entanto, para provar a viabilidade do projeto, os pressupostos ainda precisam de ser confirmados através de um maior estudo e alcance de mercado.The Lean Startup Methodology was used to develop a business solution in the healthy snacking business sector. While using this approach, a business model was created and then tested against customer feedback. During early customer development process, business model pivoting occurred with initial customer feedback. Given sharp pattern recognition of customers' pain, three new problem statements were tested: "Available snacks in your work place don't fulfill your nutritional needs and aren't aligned with your dietary goals", "Snacking healthy is really time consuming and hard to come by", and "Snacking healthy daily isn't financially viable". All problem hypothesis was confirmed by qualitative and quantitative analysis of all interview results. For product development, an initial product prototype was rendered and displayed to customers through an online survey. Collected data from the online questionnaire further confirmed the problem hypothesis and validated both solution benefits and features. Despite problem and solution fit, the pursued business opportunity is still shot from market maturity. In fact, by showing early promising validation results and sparking customer interest, this business solution is plausible, but many assumptions are yet to be confirmed to achieve product-market fit and project viability.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The extent, nature and effects of food promotion to children: a review of the evidence to December 2008

This document reviews evidence to December 2008 on the global extent and nature of food promotion to children, and its effects on their food knowledge, preferences, behaviour and diet related health outcomes. The review was commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) and updates a systematic review of the evidence conducted on behalf of WHO in 2006. Studies examining the extent and nature of food promotion to children consistently conclude that food promotion is the most prevalent marketing category targeting children and young people. Content analysis research finds that the majority of foods and food products promoted are energy dense, high fat, sugar and/or high salt, and in sharp contrast to national and international dietary guidelines. Sugar-sweetened breakfast cereals, soft-drinks, confectionary and savoury snacks are the most frequently advertised categories, with fast-food promotion continuing to gain marketing share. Promotion of unprocessed foods, such as fruit and vegetables, wholegrain and milk is found to be almost zero

Food and Beverage Marketing to Children and Adolescents: What Changes Are Needed to Promote Healthy Eating Habits?

Provides an overview of research on media use by children and youth, the channels and marketing techniques food and beverage companies use to market to them, and the influence on their diets. Outlines recommendations for improving marketing regulations

How does health policy affect practice at a sport mega event? A study of policy, food and drink at Euro 2016

From a public health perspective, there are growing concerns about the commercial arrangements between sports events and companies which sell ultra-processed food and drink. In particular, companies are accused of connecting products that are perceived as unhealthy with sport and physical activity that is perceived as healthy. This study examined the tensions and conflicts between health promotion policy and the marketing and consumption reality at the 2016 European Championship football tournament in France. This study is informed theoretically by a critical, political economy lens. Discourse analysis, semiotic analysis, venue analysis and participant observation were employed to gather data from relevant policy and event management plans, sponsor advertisements, site architecture, food and drink offerings and displays at stadia and fan zones. These sources were assessed for the way they encouraged healthy or unhealthy consumption behaviours. The analysis found that the health advice promoted by the French government and the tournament owners (UEFA) differed markedly from the reality at the points of consumption. Unhealthy products dominated inside the stadia and fan zones sampled. In many instances there were little or no healthy foods on display for customers. Despite a self-proclaimed status as having ‘healthy stadia’, a limited vision of health at Euro 2016 was promoted, which was largely restricted to the attempted provision of smoke-free spaces. This raises questions for sport mega-events which are in receipt of public funding and which claim to promote health. This study encourages policy makers, sports funders and consumers to critically evaluate health claims made by sport events and sponsors

Creating Brand for CoreFinland Ltd

The research aims to build brand for a small-sized company namely CoreFinland Ltd. Herein, the main objective of this research is to create CoreFinland as a brand in b-to-b customers’ context. This broader milestone is achieved by studying the case company’s brand identity and brand image issues. The first part of this research makes a comparative study of varieties of relevant litera-ture from different writers. The theories discuss b-to-b brand relevance and extend to the major study areas: brand identity and brand image. This is a qualitative research, carried out by using semi-structured interviews with the company personnel in order to find out the brand identity and with the business customers to reveal the current com-pany image. The revealed image is contrasted with the identity and, finally, a suitable identity for the company is suggested. The study reveals that the company’s brand image among the customers corresponds only moderately with the company’s brand identity because of lack of brand communi-cation, an insufficient product range and insufficient customer care. Further, the re-search suggests a suitable brand identity by considering customers’ perceptions and the company objectives. The study reveals that CoreFinland’s core identity needs to be related to its organizational associations of being healthy and environmentally friendly, and service associations of having professional and friendly customer care, and quick and effective delivery. In addition, its extended identity needs to be a young and dy-namic Finnish company with healthy and luxurious products, passionate workers and having a good contact with retailers and wholesalers. The findings of this study allow CoreFinland to understand its current company image and provide valuable insights to the company to create a suitable brand identity

Who's Feeding the Kids Online? Digital food marketing to children in Ireland: Advertisers’ tactics, children’s exposure and parents’ awareness

Obesity in children and young people is a global health challenge. The widespread marketing of unhealthy foods (food and non-alcoholic drinks high in fat, sugar and salt, or HFSS) plays a causal role in unhealthy eating and obesity. Food and eating is typically presented as an issue of ‘choice’. However, this disregards the fact that current obesogenic environments use many tactics to promote unhealthy foods, interfering with people’s ability to make good choices. This study examined: 1. Content appealing to children and young people on websites of top food and drink retail brands in Ireland 2. Marketing techniques on Facebook: Pages of food brands that have the highest reach among young teens, the first such study of which we are aware 3. Parents’ awareness of digital food marketing to their children in an online, two-stage survey with digital marketing examples and open-ended response options

Hidden Florence revealed? Critical insights from the operation of an augmented reality app in a World Heritage City

This is the final version. Available on open access from Routledge via the DOI in this recordData availability statement: The data on which this paper is based are available in aggregate form in an unpublished report compiled by Cristina Mosconi entitled Hidden Florence Analytics Report, 2017–18 which is deposited at https://ore.exeter.ac.uk/repository/handle/10871/125232Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, overtourism was a major topic in global tourism management discourse. The continued growth of international tourism placed pressure on many high-profile urban destinations containing some of the world's most important intrinsic cultural heritage. This paper critically examines the operation of Hidden Florence, a heritage tourism augmented reality (AR) application (app) for the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Florence in Italy. Since 2016, the city management plan has actively promoted digital and smart solutions to address the issues induced by mass heritage tourism. Through user engagement data from 2013 to 2018, this paper investigates the nature and extent of app use, both in and away from the city. The paper makes two main contributions. First, from a managerial perspective, the empirical analysis points to several major practical and methodological challenges if AR apps, and the data they generate, are to be employed effectively as part of the management of established heritage destinations. Second, the use of AR apps in, and smart approaches to, tourism management have been recently theorised and advocated. Evidence from Hidden Florence demonstrates that translating conceptual possibilities into longer-term management practices and beneficial change is more challenging than existing discourse concedes.Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)University of Exeter Innovation, Impact and Business Directorate Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF