Digital marketing is not optional anymore for food manufacturers. It's how people discover, evaluate, and decide what to eat. Whether it's pasta sauce, snacks, ready meals, or specialty condiments, customers are looking online first. And brands that aren't actively visible or engaging in the right way are losing market share. Fast.
Let's break down how this actually works, what food brands like Marry Me Marinara and Carbone Foods are doing about it, and what smaller producers need to understand right now — before they fall behind.
Customers Are Looking Online Before They Buy — Even for Food
Start with this. Over 70% of shoppers, according to industry estimates, are using platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube for food ideas. Not just recipes, but also product reviews, behind-the-scenes content, and sourcing info. If your product isn't part of that discovery process, someone else's is.
This behavior isn't limited to snacks and influencer-endorsed energy bars. It extends to sauces, frozen meals, specialty groceries — all of it. And not just Gen Z. Millennials and Gen X parents rely on social media for weeknight meal inspiration and brand research too.
Marry Me Marinara: Building a Dating Brand Around Pasta Sauce
Take Marry Me Marinara. It's a jarred pasta sauce brand, but they don't market it like a grocery item. Their messaging leans heavily into emotional storytelling and visual branding. The name alone makes the product social-media friendly. It's specific, emotionally charged, and designed to be talked about.
But here's where it gets interesting: they didn't just create a good sauce and hope for attention. They identified an underserved niche — couples looking for date night solutions at home. Instead of competing in the crowded "Italian sauce" category, they carved out a position in the romantic dining and date night gift space.
The Content Strategy That Actually Works
Marry Me Marinara invested heavily in SEO-optimized content targeting specific searches people were already making. Their comprehensive guide to romantic dinner ideas for two at home doesn't just mention their sauce — it provides genuine value around meal planning, timing strategies, and mood-setting tips. This is content marketing done right.
They also created targeted content around choosing the best gourmet pasta sauce for date nights and gift baskets, directly addressing purchase intent from people shopping for date night supplies or romantic gifts. This isn't random blogging — it's strategic keyword targeting based on actual search volume.
From Sauce to Solution: The Product Positioning Shift
Most sauce brands sell jars. Marry Me Marinara sells complete date night gift baskets that include sauce, pasta, candles, and even a romance guide. This is product bundling meets niche marketing. They're not competing on sauce quality alone (though theirs is excellent) — they're competing on the complete experience.
This matters because the average order value of a gift basket is 3-4x higher than a single jar of sauce. The margins are better, the customer intent is clearer, and the brand positioning is stronger. They've effectively moved from the commodity sauce aisle to the gift and experience category.
Website and SEO Execution
Their website is clean, modern, and optimized for search. When you Google "romantic pasta sauce," "date night gift basket," or "gourmet marinara for couples," they show up. That's not by accident. They've built content around low-competition, high-intent keywords that larger brands ignore.
Their team integrates product content with lifestyle content. Recipes, date-night setups, curated playlists — this gives the sauce a place in people's lives beyond the pantry. That's what strong digital marketing does. It makes the product part of a larger narrative that's easy to share, repost, and talk about.
Key Takeaway for Food Brands:
Marry Me Marinara shows that niche positioning beats broad positioning in digital marketing. Rather than competing for "best pasta sauce" (dominated by Rao's and Barilla), they own "romantic dinner sauce" and "date night food gifts" — categories they essentially created.
Carbone: Making Restaurant Brands Work in the Grocery Aisle
Carbone Foods — offshoot of the NYC restaurant — is another good example. Carbone's restaurant is known for its high-end red sauce experience. When they bottled their marinara and made it available nationwide, they didn't rely on packaging alone. They brought the whole brand experience online.
They built a polished, premium-feeling e-commerce site. They shot video content that mirrors the vibe of the restaurant. And they got their jars into curated influencer content — not via random TikTokers, but people whose audiences expect food that feels aspirational but real. Their digital content looks intentional. Nothing generic. That's key.
Also important: They're on Amazon, but their direct website experience doesn't feel like an afterthought. It's clear they invest in both. Food brands that only lean on Amazon or Instacart listings, without brand storytelling, get commodified quickly.
<You Need to Be Searchable, Scrollable, and Shoppable
That's the core of it. For a food brand to succeed today, you need:
- Searchability: Your website and content need to show up when people look for your category. That means SEO-optimized product pages, recipe content, brand story pages, and image tags. This is basic, but most small manufacturers skip it. Marry Me Marinara ranks for over 200 keywords related to romantic dinners, date nights, and gourmet sauces — that didn't happen by accident.
- Scrollability: Your social media presence has to be built for the feed. Content should feel native to the platform — short, visual, clear. Packaging photos alone won't cut it. You need context: food styling, home use, even user-generated content.
- Shoppability: Once a customer lands on your page or sees your content, buying should be frictionless. Direct-to-consumer checkout options, clear pricing, visible ingredients, and mobile-first design are not optional anymore.
Common Mistakes That Kill Digital Momentum
A few things food manufacturers get wrong — repeatedly:
- They think digital is just Instagram. It's not. Social media is part of it. But if your website is slow, or your product pages aren't indexed correctly, or your Google Business Profile is empty, people drop off. No conversions, no brand growth.
- They ignore content marketing. One blog post per month about recipes, ingredient sourcing, or product comparisons can bring in long-term traffic. Most brands don't invest in that. The few that do? Build authority over time. It's slow, but it works. Look at how Marry Me Marinara's blog drives consistent organic traffic to their product pages.
- They treat influencers like a luxury. Collaborating with micro-influencers in your food category isn't about being trendy — it's about relevance. A gluten-free pasta brand should be in front of gluten-free eaters. The fastest path is borrowing the audience of someone who already has their attention.
- They don't retarget. Running ads once isn't enough. Brands like Fly By Jing, Truff, and Brightland retarget people who visited their site or engaged on social. This builds familiarity and drives actual sales.
- They compete on product alone. The sauce market is saturated. But the "romantic dinner solution" market? The "date night gift" market? Much less crowded. Finding your niche is often more valuable than having the absolute best product.
What Happens When Food Manufacturers Get It Right
When food manufacturers commit to a smart, grounded digital marketing strategy, a few things happen:
- Brand loyalty improves. Even if your product is more expensive than the store brand, customers who connect with your values, visuals, or story will pay more. Especially for specialty items. Marry Me Marinara's date night positioning commands premium pricing because they're not just selling sauce — they're selling an experience.
- You gain more control. If you rely only on distributors and grocery shelves, you're at the mercy of shelf space and buyer decisions. Digital allows you to build direct relationships with customers — via email lists, SMS, or subscriptions.
- You can test and pivot faster. Digital campaigns give real-time feedback. If a message doesn't land, you change it. If a certain audience clicks but doesn't buy, you adjust your funnel. This kind of data is impossible to get from in-store only strategies.
- You create new revenue streams. Gift baskets, subscription boxes, seasonal bundles — these are all easier to launch and test online than in retail. The direct-to-consumer channel gives you flexibility that retail simply doesn't allow.
It's Not Just for Gourmet Brands Anymore
This isn't just something for high-end or hip food brands. Even traditional or regional producers are seeing results from smart digital work. Small-batch salsa brands, local BBQ sauces, vegan cookie dough — they're all competing online for attention. And the ones that win aren't the biggest, they're the ones that communicate clearly and often.
It's not about going viral. It's about being present where the customer already is. And making sure your message, your product, and your buying process are clear when they land.
Final Thought: Start With What You Can Control
A lot of food manufacturers hesitate to invest in digital because they think it's expensive or time-consuming. It can be. But the basics are manageable:
- Get your website fast, functional, and mobile-friendly.
- Post real content on social — not just product shots.
- Answer common questions on your website (what's in it, how's it made, who's it for).
- Work with 2–3 influencers in your space.
- Run a small budget on Google or Meta ads and track what converts.
- Find your niche. Don't try to be everything to everyone. Marry Me Marinara succeeded by owning "romantic dinner sauce" rather than fighting for "best marinara."
You don't need a flashy agency. You just need consistency, clarity, and a willingness to put your brand where your buyers already are.
If companies like Marry Me Marinara can turn a jar of sauce into a lifestyle product and build a business around date nights and romantic gifting, there's room for smart digital marketing at every level of the food industry. The question is: what's your niche? can turn a jar of sauce into a lifestyle product and build a business around date nights and romantic gifting, there's room for smart digital marketing at every level of the food industry. The question is: what's your niche?
