Product Optimization Testing for Freestyle Snacks

Key success metrics

The challenge 

Freestyle Snacks came to Highlight to test their initial product release of their snackable Olives. With a mission to revolutionize snacking on whole foods, the research goal was to understand consumer reactions to the taste and flavors, as well as Freestyle Snacks' packaging. 

The product testing solution

We shipped three Freestyle Snacks flavors to a curated segment of "better for you" snack purchasers within our Highlighter community for agile in-home testing. 

24 samples were sent to 100 Highlight product testers. Within 1 day of product receipt, the Freestyle Snacks team could see the live data start coming in to their live dashboards. In the end, the project achieved a 92% completion rate, delivering both quantitative data in the form of survey results, and qualitative data in the form of rich, in-depth open-ended responses.

"I love that the packaging is resealable and the branding and colors are very eye-catching!" 

- Real Highlighter open-ended response

"I have never seen bagged olives before, but I love that these are packaged this way. They are instantly more portable and accessible!"

- Real Highlighter open-ended response

The business impact

Freestyle Snacks received feedback on all three products and was able to make improvements to their initial product line. 

• The Highlight data provided a deep understanding of sensory insights around flavor and quality, so Freestyle Snacks knew exactly how to optimize product formulas. 
• The Freestyle Snacks team received actionable measures of consumer perception on packaging, purchase intent, and willingness to pay. 
• The team received a ranking of overall enjoyment and product resonance of target consumers.
• Benchmark data within the "better for you" snack category gave the Freestyle Snacks team the information they needed to create compelling retailer decks.