Last week at Fresh Fruit Portal we reported on the steady rise of pistachios in the U.S., with production and demand having increased so much that the nut is approaching almond sales in the snacking category. Wonderful Pistachios vice president of marketing Adam Cooper said export was also a great area for the company, with China, Europe and the Middle East as the leading areas of growth. 

Today we take a look in more detail at what the group is doing to crack one of those markets - China.

"China is one of the largest export markets for California pistachios, and it’s growing year-on-year in the past ten years since I came into China back in 2007," says Anita Lam, Wonderful Company's managing director for greater China.

Like so many horticultural companies exporting to China, an important part of the group's promotion strategy is its Chinese New Year integrated PR campaign, including this humorous commercial where two bachelorettes eat Wonderful Pistachios to escape the nagging of relatives about marriage. 

The company also created "Pistachio-tainment" in the form of a dozen emoji social media stickers featuring popular Chinese New Year phrases for consumers to save and share over the festive season.

These were published on Wonderful's official Weibo account, leveraging KOL (key opinion leader) platforms to spread the word, along with a pistachio-themed interactive ‘fortune prediction’ HTML 5 game.

Wonderful Pistachios also engaged KOLs popular with young moms to raise brand awareness, with teaser posts in different formats including creative long stories, comics, entertainment gossip and other social topics with links to e-commerce sites. 

In addition, Wonderful Pistachios featured on a TV program on health care that is popular amongst middle-aged women in China. Lam said the Director of the Department of Clinical Nutrition was invited  to explain the health benefits of pistachios alongside other nut categories to help position pistachios as a must-have snack during celebrations.

However, while Chinese New Year is significant it is just one part of a year-round deal for Wonderful Pistachios.

"China’s middle class population is growing, and the average income is also increasing. Although pistachio prices have gone up in the recent years, Chinese consumers still love pistachios - “the happy nuts”," said Lam.

"We often promote Wonderful Pistachios in-stores with product tasting, special displays, POSM (point of sale materials) and GWP (gift with purchase) to communicate the brand benefits: Wonderful pistachios are sun ripened, naturally-opened California pistachios; straight from orchard to consumer; the largest size available and rich in nutrition benefits.

"We often educate consumers about the country of origin, quality and food safety of our unbleached California Pistachios versus, the bleached ones. We also do roadshows and special events such as SIAL trade show, the California, Wine Tasting event, Mother’s Taste Event, etcetera, to to make pistachios part of a healthy lifestyle."

She added that as many have seen, e-commerce was booming in China right now and the country's consumers were some of the most tech-savvy in the world. 

"To seize this unique opportunity, we have made Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds available on many major online platforms such as TMall, JD.com and Yihaodian. We also actively engage Chinese consumers via digital platforms such as Weibo, digital TV, and social media chats like WeChat."

Other initiatives include "Wonderful City Walk and Orienteering" in conjunction with a hiking group and sports alliance with branches in eight cities, and sponsoring theater group Mahua FunAge with pistachios appearing in its stage play "Don't be Angry, Shakespeare".

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