House of Communication urges FMCG brands to prioritise social

House of Communication’s head of social, Tom Sneddon, has urged FMCG brands to give social channels a central role in their retail strategy, citing Little Moons’ tripling of annual revenue to £27m as evidence of the potential commercial return.

Writing in a guest comment published by InternetRetailing on 12 October 2026, Sneddon argues that social activity influences demand before consumers reach a supermarket or an online shop. His recommendations cover product discovery, customer research, content development and the evidence brands can use to support supermarket listings.

What happened

Sneddon’s case rests on a shift away from purchase decisions being concentrated at the shelf. Consumers encounter products through creators, friends and online communities, giving brands opportunities to establish a preference before shoppers compare competing products at the point of sale.

He cites an Emarketer survey of food and beverage buyers from 2025 in which 53.3% of respondents said they had found new products through social media. That finding concerns discovery, rather than completed purchases, but indicates the reach of social channels earlier in the buying process.

Separate research attributed to Greenpark Digital addresses purchasing behaviour. It found that 66% of UK shoppers had bought FMCG products after viewing online recipes, while 43% had purchased FMCG products through social channels. These are distinct measures: recipe-led inspiration does not necessarily mean the transaction itself took place on a social platform.

For suppliers, the argument extends beyond building an online audience. Sneddon says customer interest generated through social can influence retailers’ decisions about which products to stock, making it relevant to distribution as well as marketing.

That focus on discovery is also relevant to the preparations retailers are being urged to make for AI shoppers: brands face questions about how products become visible before a customer reaches a conventional retail storefront.

The background

Sneddon contrasts today’s use of social with the attention-led activity associated with earlier campaigns. He points to Oreo’s response to the power failure at the 2013 Super Bowl as an example of a brand capitalising on a live event, rather than the sustained commercial approach he now advocates.

FMCG products have characteristics that can support experimentation, he argues. Beyond routine grocery purchases, choices are not always settled in advance, and many products represent a relatively small outlay. Cost-of-living pressures still matter, but consumers may be willing to try an unfamiliar treat recommended by someone they follow.

Dubai-style pistachio chocolate and hot honey are among the examples he uses to illustrate that behaviour. In his account, discussion among friends and creators can translate an emerging food trend into a purchase without requiring a large financial commitment.

Little Moons provides the principal business example. Its TikTok approach combined material published through its own account, customer-created content and paid advertising, rather than relying on a single type of post or promotion.

Sneddon says that combination helped the brand reach affluent consumers aged over 30 who could afford to buy a premium product regularly. He links the strategy to revenue reaching £27m after tripling in one year, although the commentary does not identify the financial year concerned.

The distinction between paid distribution and other forms of engagement also matters when considering the growth of UK retail media spending. The Little Moons example presented here involves several sources of exposure, not advertising expenditure alone.

What people are saying

Sneddon argues that social listening can inform what a business develops, not simply how it promotes an existing range. He identifies health and wellness as an area where entrepreneurial brands are responding to conversations about food, drink and lifestyle.

UK rehydration brand Sult is his example of involving customers directly. It uses TikTok and Instagram for founder-led accounts of the business, behind-the-scenes material and interactive content that encourages followers to contribute to new product development.

Borough Broth illustrates a related use of customer research. According to Sneddon, its founder investigated potential demand for bone broth, with that work supporting both product development and retailers’ stocking decisions. The brand subsequently secured distribution through large retailers and specialist food and lifestyle outlets.

His recommendation on content is to give customers something useful while making the brand recognisable and memorable. The objective is not solely an immediate transaction: he argues that brands need to remain familiar to people who are not currently shopping but may buy later.

Reviews, sharing and participation then provide further feedback and advocacy, in his account. This makes the quality of the customer experience important alongside the volume of content produced, a related consideration in the debate over human judgement in AI-generated retail imagery.

What happens next

Sneddon recommends using social data to identify which messages and moments matter most, then adjusting activity continuously. He presents higher basket values and more frequent purchases as intended outcomes of that process, rather than guaranteed results for every brand.

The commentary sets no implementation deadline and announces no new company investment or campaign. Its practical proposal is an ongoing change in approach: maintain relevance, use customer interaction to inform decisions and connect social activity more closely with product development and retail distribution.