Using a “be everywhere” approach, officials at Yes! Apples are doing all they can to build consumer awareness of apples and New York state apples, in particular.

Under the auspices of Tenley Fitzgerald, the network of more than 50 New York-based family farms that sells 10-plus high-quality apple varieties is cozying up to all sorts of businesses to get consumers in the northeast to experiment with apples and, hopefully, get them to start consuming more of the fruit.

“Since I started here five years ago (when New York Apples Sales launched Yes! Apples), I have made it my mission to unlock as many marketing opportunities as possible to build awareness of apples and our network,” said Fitzgerald, vice president of marketing for the Albany, NY-based organization that has its roots in the apple business since 1919. “We want to drive traffic to retailers and, right now, we are working on a ton of brand partnerships that has us collaborating with all kinds of restaurants, bakeries, ice cream parlors and even pizza parlors to get people to learn more about the different kinds of apples available and conduct some taste tests with them.

“Apples are a ubiquitous item that has been around since the dawn of time, going back to Adam and Eve days, so we find that many people who love them just take the category for granted,” continued Fitzgerald. “Now, our goal is to get more people exposed to the apple category and the Yes! Apples brand and get them to buy them from retail shelves.”

That might mean convincing a bakery to put a different variety inside a muffin or donut or working with an ice cream parlor to place apple chunks inside something like goat cheese ice cream. “It is a very interesting strategy where we believe consumers will get extremely excited about and get them to pivot their buying patterns to try a new apple,” she said. “We are working with three different ice cream businesses to develop approaches that will taste great and get the consumer thinking about apples.”

In-store marketing is vital to the plan, Fitzgerald added. “We work very hard with our retailer partners to develop loyalty programs and create endcap displays for apples,” she said. “Together, we want to think outside the box and generate the right amount of innovation to help our category. It definitely seems to be working.”

Emphasizing the health benefits of apples is crucial as well. “We have found that many consumers think of blueberries or watermelon when they are looking at the health benefits of what they consume,” Fitzgerald added. “Apples have significant health benefits as well, particularly with the skin and with fiber and iron and potassium intake. Our job, working with our retail partners, is to get the information out to the consumer and get them to start to compare the various fruits and their health benefits. Apples will stack up very well.”

Convincing retailers to place materials on store shelves is on Fitzgerald’s to-do list.

“Right now, many merchants do not want to have signs on shelves because they can clutter up the look,” she said. “But, we are working with them to find ways to solve this issue and get the information out to the public on varieties, recipe ideas and health benefits. On top of that, we need to show the consumer who the growers are behind the apple category and how they responsibly grow their product. A lot of Gen Z and Millennials want to purchase brands that align with their values. We want to make sure they know we are onboard. Our goal is to ignite interest in apples, especially our apples, and to show the long-term benefits of our fruit.”