Getting into the food and beverage industry is a challenging task. Your product may be the best, but if your brand doesn’t resonate with consumers, you’re doomed. As a creative agency that works exclusively with food and beverage brands, we’ve seen the good, the bad, and the bland. So, grab a coffee (or kombucha), and let’s dig into the top 10 reasons why food brands fail—and more importantly, how you can avoid becoming just another cautionary tale.
1. Poor Packaging Design: First Impressions Matter
You’ve got five seconds. That’s about how long it takes for someone to decide whether your product makes it into their cart—or stays on the shelf. Packaging isn’t just about looking pretty; it’s about communicating your brand, standing out, and building trust.
Avoid it: Invest properly in packaging that reflects your brand values, appeals to your ideal customer, and meets industry standards. Bonus points for eco-friendly materials and clear nutritional info. Don’t hire a friend of the family graphic designer who has no experience with designing packaging for food and beverage brands, or a designer out of the country how doesn’t have an understanding of the local marketplace, just to save a few dollars.
👉 Action Step: Work with an experienced food branding agency (like us!) to develop packaging that sells.
2. Weak Brand Identity: What’s Your Flavour?
If your brand is trying to be everything to everyone, it’ll end up being nothing to anyone. Food brands need a clear identity—something people can instantly connect with and remember.
Avoid it: Define your mission, tone of voice, brand personality, and visual identity early on. Consistency across all channels is key to making your brand stick.
👉 Action Step: Conduct a brand workshop to clarify your vision and positioning. We offer strategy sessions just for this.
3. Lack of Strategy: Don’t Wing It
Many food entrepreneurs jump in with a great idea and lots of passion, but no plan. Without a roadmap, it’s easy to get lost, overspend, or burn out before you gain traction.
Avoid it: Build a solid go-to-market strategy that covers pricing, promotion, distribution, and scalability. And yes, leave room for dessert (aka innovation).
👉 Action Step: Book a brand strategy consultation to align your goals with a plan that gets results.
4. Poor Website Design: If You Build It… Will They Stay?
Let’s be honest, if your website loads slowly, looks outdated, or is hard to navigate, potential customers will bounce faster than a rubber spatula on tile.
Avoid it: Your site needs to be fast, responsive, mobile-friendly, and visually appealing. Clear product info, easy navigation, and calls to action are essential.
👉 Action Step: Redesign your website with user experience in mind. NOVO MxC builds custom sites that convert.
5. Bad Product Photography: You Eat With Your Eyes First
Grainy phone pics or poorly lit shots do nothing for your truffle oil or vegan brownies. In the food world, visuals are everything.
Avoid it: Invest in professional food photography that showcases your product at its most drool-worthy. Think lighting, styling, and composition.
👉 Action Step: Schedule a photo shoot that captures the essence—and deliciousness—of your brand.
6. No Clear Target Audience: Who Are You Feeding?
Trying to market to “everyone who eats” is like shouting into a fridge. Define your niche and tailor everything—from product design to marketing copy—to that group.
Avoid it: Develop buyer personas and use them to inform decisions from branding to packaging to digital ads.
👉 Action Step: Refine your audience targeting and audit your messaging to ensure it speaks to the right crowd.
7. Inconsistent Messaging: Mixed Signals Spoil the Appetite
One week you’re organic and artisanal. Next week it’s value-pack pricing and “great for families!” Confused customers won’t bite.
Avoid it: Create a messaging guide and stick to it. Your brand story should be unified across your packaging, social media, website, and retailer touchpoints.
👉 Action Step: Develop a brand voice guide to keep all communication on-brand and consistent.
8. Weak Digital Marketing: No One Knows You Exist
Even the tastiest product can flop if nobody knows about it. Lack of online presence means you’re missing out on major exposure and sales.
Avoid it: Use a digital marketing plan that includes SEO, email campaigns, influencer partnerships, and social media engagement.
👉 Action Step: Start with a content calendar and invest in SEO to make sure your brand gets found.
9. Poor Retail Placement and Distribution: Shelf or Bust
You might have the goods, but if they’re stuck in the wrong stores—or the wrong spot on the shelf—sales will suffer.
Avoid it: Develop a smart retail and distribution strategy that gets your products in the right hands (and carts).
👉 Action Step: Partner with experienced food brokers or consultants to identify ideal placement opportunities.
10. Lack of Innovation: Same Old, Same Old Doesn’t Sizzle
Consumer tastes change. Fast. If your brand doesn’t evolve with them, you risk becoming yesterday’s leftovers.
Avoid it: Stay ahead by listening to customer feedback, tracking trends, and launching limited editions or seasonal offerings.
👉 Action Step: Create an innovation roadmap and stay nimble with your product development.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Let Your Brand Be Another “What Could’ve Been”
Building a successful food brand isn’t just about having a great product. It’s about mastering the whole ecosystem—brand strategy, visual identity, packaging, digital presence, and marketing. The good news? You don’t have to cook up success alone.
If you’re serious about taking your food brand from shelf to stardom, we’d love to hear from you. At NOVO MxC, we specialize in helping food and beverage brands stand out and scale through:
- Brand Strategy
- Packaging Design
- Website Design
- Food Photography
- Video Production
- Animation
- And more.
Let’s get your brand cooking.
Please give us a call at 416-892-2471 or reach out to us using the contact form at the bottom of this page.
