Meet Michigan’s apple personas: New campaign puts a face to every variety this season
Add Fresh Fruit Portal to GoogleThe Great Lakes State’s apples are ready for their close-up this harvest season. The Michigan Apple Commission (MAC) and marketing agency FoodMix have joined forces to develop distinct characters, using each apple’s origins, flavor, texture, and growing traits to create full-on personas.
The strategy aims to move beyond traditional produce messaging by giving consumers another way to distinguish varieties as they encounter them online and, eventually, at retail. The lineup includes Paula Red, Ginger Gold, Gala, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Red Delicious, Fuji, Jonagold, Ambrosia, EverCrisp, and Cripps Pink.
FoodMix Director of Communications Sharon Ponti told FreshFruitPortal.com the campaign’s main goal is to make differences between varieties a lot more memorable and approachable.
“Flavor and textures very much matter. And that's still part of the foundation of who these characters are. But personality gives people another way to connect with them and to potentially look out for more information about them,” she explained.
Ponti noted that Instagram is currently generating the strongest response, but that the team is also using TikTok and Facebook, and tailoring content to the characteristics of each platform.
Behind the scenes of the apple personas
To build each apple persona, Ponti said the team held a six-hour brainstorming session to give each variety a backstory and used their physical characteristics as personality traits.
Gala, for example, draws on the variety’s New Zealand origins to become a world traveler. Paula Red, which originated in Michigan in the 1960s, takes on the identity of a Midwestern nature lover. Golden Delicious became a softer character because of the variety’s thinner skin, while Honeycrisp’s reputation among growers for needing extra care helped inspire a pop-star persona.
“We wanted it to be like almost a diva. She has very high expectations, like what her song says, but she delivers,” Ponti said of the creation.
While growers, buyers, and other industry members often use terms such as “texture, crunch, or Brix levels” to describe fruits, consumers often have a harder time differentiating varieties. This is why, Ponti explained, the content also seeks to create a more personal connection.
“We're looking for people to recognize themselves within these apples potentially. It was a fun experience for our team and with MAC staff, trying to figure out which of these group of 12 would we see ourselves in,” she noted.
The campaign's early content introduces each apple through videos modeled in part on reality television confessionals, a popular social media format.
“Our feeds are filled with so many different brands and our own friends and family. Giving the apples personalities creates a reason for individuals to stop and to watch, and then to get to know them,” she stressed.
From the For You page to shopping baskets
The campaign's commercial objective extends beyond views and engagement, Ponti noted. The team wants consumers to remember the personalities when they encounter apple displays at grocery stores.
The personalities are intended to help shoppers associate specific varieties with recognizable characteristics, potentially making the selection process more approachable.
Presently, the strategy is scheduled to continue through November, after which MAC and FootMix plan to review the results. However, Ponti said there’s room for growth.
“We definitely see potential here of expanding beyond the harvest,” she stressed.
The next character scheduled for introduction is McIntosh, an apple originally from Canada whose fictional personality includes an interest in Excel spreadsheets, a marriage to a pear, and an affinity for dinner parties. To address its key eating occasions, planned content will explore applications in charcuterie boards and cocktails.
To date, the campaign has generated more than 164,000 views and nearly 6,600 engagements across Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, achieving an overall engagement rate of four percent, MAC said.
*Images courtesy of Michigan Apple Committee and FoodMix. | Top image created with AI.
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