Hi, I’m Christine Leung, a graduate student in digital media and advertising. I’m an experienced editor and writing consultant. I look forward to guiding progressive brands at any stage of their communications process.
Thrive Market, an e-commerce and membership-based platform, distributes healthy groceries at a lower cost compared to traditional grocery stores. This start-up brand is innovative and adapts to our digital-first world. Prior to the pandemic, traditional grocery stores were slow to add alternative ways to distribute products, such as shipping. Starting in 2014, the brand filled this e-commerce gap.
Thrive Market effectively uses an “overcoming the monster” storytelling framework to explain how customers can shop for groceries. This up-and-coming brand challenges traditional grocery store giants by bringing groceries to its customers’ doorsteps. With the help of Thrive Market’s convenient online and mobile app, customers gain more agency to choose items based on their dietary needs. For example, the brand’s search filters categorize groceries based on gluten-free, vegan, AIP diet, organic and more. Rather than shop across multiple grocery stores, Thrive Market members can use just one-single platform offering wide-ranging brands and diets.
Thrive Market cuts out the “monstrous” middleman—large grocery retailers—by engaging with customers directly on their mobile and computer screens. This strategy enables customers to purchase items at a lower cost without additional fees to major retailers.
On its main website, concise and easy-to-follow infographics demonstrate how Thrive Market helps members save money. Ultimately, members challenge and disrupt large retailers by shopping elsewhere; Thrive Market’s services are just the vehicle to help with that.
One area for improvement involves clarifying the brand’s purpose-driven goals. While the brand clearly explains its ordering and distribution process, Thrive Market’s sustainability messaging could be more specific and focused.
I propose to incorporate a “quest” narrative framework to target Thrive Market’s sustainability practices and values. Its current sustainability content has potential to send a more cohesive message that aligns with one of several key goals: “We’re building the world’s first climate positive grocery store.”
The brand posts sustainability updates on its Instagram page by detailing zero waste certifications in the captions. Although this copy is concise and simple, several adjustments could more cohesively tie posts together: sustainability posts could incorporate a common icon, background, color or style. Throughout Thrive Market’s Instagram page, there are several posts about sustainability targets and achievements. For example, the captions share some similarities by using the same green recycle emoji. However, this repetition could be more consistent to remind the target audience about its ongoing quest towards zero waste. This target audience on Instagram is digital savvy and likely consumes many advertisements while scrolling the app. I imagine that this audience can lose interest quickly, so the brand can help make its content easier for audiences to remember.
The image’s copy is clear and concise. To take this post further, sustainability posts could incorporate a repeated feature to remind audiences about the brand’s quest.
In the future, I suggest the brand consider ways to synthesize an “overcoming the monster” framework with a “quest” narrative. There could be several identifiable “monsters,” such as climate change and traditional retail.