4 Food Brands with Delicious Instagram Videos

On social media, video content is king because of its vast storytelling ability in a short time frame, which is perfect for humans’ ever-shortening attention span. In this article we’ll take a look at four different food brands that are sharing awesome videos across social media. In addition, we’ll down how it’s made and what makes it worthwhile for their respective business. This way, you can apply that knowledge to your own content.

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1. Ralph’s Grocery

Ralph’s is one of the largest grocery store chains in the United States, and their video content has a surprising amount of effort and artistry behind it. This first example is a very simple piece that uses a quick animation technique to connect different wines carried at Ralph’s with things that occur every day for Ralph’s average customer. Baking cookies? Here’s a wine for you. Just put the kids to bed? Here’s a wine for you.

Moms and Dads everywhere can relate to the joy in a glass of wine after a long day of work and household shenanigans, and this piece of content lets them relate that feeling with Ralph’s. Perhaps next time they’ll got to Ralph’s for that wine, rather than the liquor store down the street.

This second example is a perfect showcase of how to capitalize on current events in a dynamic, interesting, and relevant way. The Super Bowl is a massive event in the United States, and there are a few main traditions during the game. Many people that don’t go to their favorite sports bar, host or attend their friends’ Super Bowl Parties.

At those Parties, Super Bowl snacks tend to consist of chicken wings, chips, sliders, pretzels, dip, french fries, and the works. Ralph’s capitalized on these traditions by using animated elements that very recognizably resemble football play diagrams, which every football fan is familiar with.

Then, they use those animations to draw your attention, and highlight ingredients of super bowl food that you can find easily at your local Ralph’s. Simple, relevant content like this is highly effective in engaging the audience you seek to serve.

2. Quest Nutrition

Quest Nutrition is revolutionizing the way we think about the health impacts of dessert. They’ve created cookies, protein bars that taste like candy, chips, and other products with a very low impact on blood sugar. One thing they do routinely on Instagram is create short recipe videos that detail how to make healthier versions of your favorite cheat foods, using Quest products. 

In this particular video, the caption inquires whether or not the viewer has tried microwaving a Quest Bar. It’s a simple yet effective question paired with an enticing video that makes the product appear to have the texture of a very soft dessert, reminiscent of flan. Clearly, protein bars aren’t just on-the-go snacks anymore!

Now anyone looking for a low-carb, mostly guilt-free treat can use Quest products to fulfill that need. The best part is, most of their low-carb food tutorials use the same few products from their lineup, so a customer can feel confident that buying a box of protein bars can have a huge variety of uses to get their money’s worth.

3. McDonald’s

McDonald’s is one of the most recognizable food brands on the planet, with its iconic golden arches and bright red brand color. Everyone has been to a McDonalds, and everyone probably knows their favorite menu items which haven’t changed in years. One way McDonald’s is strategically combating boredom and complacency with their menu, is by making these little videos called “Menu Hacks.”

In this series, the company chooses a couple of different items from the menu, and combines them in a new, mouth wateringly compelling way that makes you want to rush to the nearest restaurant and try it on the spot. In this video, they combine the pancake bun from a McGriddle with crispy chicken tenders to create a fried chicken McGriddle… enticing.

While this approach and the content of the video itself is genius, it’s also very well done from a technical perspective. It is beautifully lit, and loops perfectly because they have matched the beginning and ending frames with the title of the piece. Furthermore, the overhead style and minimal graphics borrow from the aesthetic of outfit grids, which are another type of content which has become very popular.

The cuts are quick, but give you all the information you need. The music matches the pace of the piece, and lends its energy to the overall feeling of watching the video. Overall, if you have a food business, you can get very far by studying this one piece of content and implementing what you learn.

4. Hershey’s

When you’re looking for inspiration for your own content, it’s great to look at what the big brands with big budgets are doing first. That can give you new ideas and a level of polish to aspire to. In this particular ad, a lot of things are done extremely well.

Firstly, we see the full product, logo, and a basic graphic which will later be animated. From the first frame all of the most important elements are visible and recognizable, and after that everything else is for added interest. The graphic opens up, and we see a CGI rendering of Reese’s Pieces falling into swirling, melted chocolate.

This is just another way of illustrating the marriage between these two iconic candies in one product. After that, the animation closes back up, the bar is opened and bitten, just like the viewer wants to do after seeing it, and a message is written out to leave you with a feeling of warmth after the video.

It’s simple, effective, and expertly crafted in what was most likely a very short amount of time. If you learn anything from this piece, it should be to keep things simple. Don’t overcomplicate good ideas and muddy the water.

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