Fewer Ingredients = MORE Sales? (The Data On This Is Wild...)

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Brain Driven Brands

Host: Sarah Levinger
Episode: Fewer Ingredients = MORE Sales? (The Data On This Is Wild...)
Date: July 2, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this energetic and insight-packed episode, Sarah Levinger and her co-host dig deep into the neuromarketing science behind why simpler, "fewer ingredient" products outperform their complex counterparts – especially in the food and beverage categories. Drawing from academic research and hands-on e-commerce experience, they share actionable advice for how brands can use ingredient transparency and message simplicity to increase conversions, cut ad costs, and win wary modern consumers. The hosts riff on opportunities for health-focused and mainstream brands, debate psychology, and reflect on how "less is more" applies not just to products, but to copywriting, sales calls, and creative strategy.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of Ingredient Simplicity

(03:25 – 06:57)

• Sarah opens with a science-backed finding: Consumers are 21.6% more likely to pick a product when fewer ingredients are listed, even if the product is identical to a competitor.
  • "People are 21.6% more likely to choose your granola bar over a competitor's if you list fewer ingredients." — Sarah (05:57)
• Applies across 19 food and beverage experiments, with other highlights:
  • 16.4% more likely to purchase juice
  • 66.8% more likely to consider peanut butter
• Ads with "fewer ingredients" claims deliver up to 44.2% higher click rates.
• Co-host reflects on seeing this trend in supplements/offers as well, and how technical jargon turns people away when it comes to health (07:15).

2. Psychology & Categories: When Simplicity Sells

(07:45 – 10:07)

• The effect is strongest for health-driven categories (protein bars, juice), not so much for hedonic foods like candy or chocolate.
  • "The research...doesn't apply to products that are for pleasure only. So cookies, chocolate, candy." — Sarah (08:01)
• Discussion on why the big players in candy haven't gone for "clean" or dye-free versions yet.
  • "I think there's massive opportunity right now for candy without all the crap in it." — Nate (08:55)
• Both agree that the next "white space" could be simple-ingredient versions of mainstream snacks.
• Talk about longstanding brands leveraging their trust to launch "simpler" versions that appeal to parents and health-minded adults.

3. Translating “Fewer Ingredients” to E-commerce Messaging

(10:51 – 14:13)

• Sarah’s real-life ad tests confirm the science: calling out just one main ingredient or benefit in creative "crushes" performance.
  • “We have just given one specific benefit on one ad for one of our ingredients, and it crushes.” — Sarah (11:09)
• Tip: If a product has both a core and a bonus benefit, lead hard with the primary; don’t split attention.
  • “…Just stick with the one main ingredient and add this as a bonus. Don't say you have both in there because they compete mentally.” — Sarah (11:32)
• Co-host notes that supplement brands should focus on marketing individual benefits (especially at the front-end), layering in secondary benefits deeper down the funnel.
  • "...the fewer things you put at the front of the funnel, the easier it is to be like, okay, I get it." — Sarah (12:25)

4. Simplicity in Sales, Copywriting, and Brand Strategy

(14:13 – 16:41)

• Both hosts reflect on personal lessons in business: over-explaining/bundling features can confuse and deter buyers.
  • "The more I've tried to explain in depth in sales calls...can confuse people at times. And when I stick to the overall message of like, 'Hey, we're going to write better copy to make more money,' they're like, 'Great, sign. Here's the first invoice.'" — Nate (14:13)
• Simpler, more direct pitches dramatically cut friction for clients/customers.
• They tie this to consumer fatigue with excessive marketing hype post-COVID.
  • "I think the consumer base is also probably pretty open to this right now because they've been oversold way too much since COVID...Just give it to me simple." — Sarah (16:04)
• Warning about “extremism” in marketing—escalating claims and shock value isn’t sustainable and is wearing out buyers.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “People are 21.6% more likely to choose your granola bar over a competitor's if you list fewer ingredients.”
  — Sarah (05:57)

• "I've had a client ... and I was like, you should 100% stick with the one main ingredient and add this as a bonus. Don't say that you have both in there because they compete mentally."
  — Sarah (11:31)

• "Less is very often more in, like, most of what we do."
  — Nate (12:41)

• "Watching client roster is full though. Don't hit me up. I'm booked in August. No, I'm kidding. Get on the waitlist."
  — Nate (14:13)

• “I need to learn to back off a little bit because...I am learning this year. Less is more, simpler is better.”
  — Sarah (14:45)

• "We need to reject extremism in marketing and sales ... people are getting tired with it and I think simplicity can be really refreshing right now, especially in a sales process."
  — Nate (16:19)

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Actionable Takeaways

• For Food/Beverage and Supplement Brands: Emphasize fewer, simple, and familiar ingredients in every touchpoint, especially in ads and packaging.
• For All E-com Sellers: Lead with one single, strong benefit or ingredient in top-of-funnel messaging. Add secondary aspects later in the customer journey.
• For Service Businesses: Limit complexity in your pitch and hold back on explaining every nuance—clarity closes deals.
• Overall Principle: In crowded, skeptical markets, minimalism and clear, familiar offers have never been more persuasive.

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:25 – Key Quiz/Insight Introduced ("21.6% more likely")
• 05:57 – Fewer Ingredients Mechanism Explained
• 08:01 – Psychology: Health vs. Pleasure Categories
• 11:09 – Real-World Ad Test Results
• 12:41 – Less is More in Sales and Copy
• 14:13 – Simplicity in Sales Calls & Personal Lessons
• 16:19 – Rejecting Extremist Marketing Approaches

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Final Thoughts

This episode is a treasure trove for marketers and founders wanting to sell smarter—not harder. Sarah and her co-host not only unpack why “fewer ingredients” is a winning move, but illustrate how the principle applies to brand storytelling, ad creative, product innovation, and even selling yourself. Their playful, practical tone is full of wisdom for those ready to simplify, clarify, and amplify their next big idea.

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Transcript

[A]

Cuz I have tested many, many, many ads where we have just given and it crushes.

[B]

Welcome Back to episode 100 and Something of Rain Driven Brands.

[A]

I don't even know what I'm. Yes. I think we're at like 140something. So like we're super close.

[B]

Look at us.

[A]

I think we do. We. How many do we do every season? I think we do 100 a season.

[B]

I can't remember we have season.

[A]

To me, we have three seasons. So we're. We do 50 a season. Okay.

[B]

I remember. I remember like the first episode and then I remember when we recorded the hundredth episode and we like made a big deal out of number 100 and then you counted and you were like, this is actually 103. And it's like, okay, okay, cool.

[A]

Don't leave it up to Sarah to count things. Okay.

[B]

It's a good start to the podcast on this Friday. Friday morning.

[A]

Oh God.

[B]

Sarah's on east coast time this week. We can blame that. Maybe a little jet lag. How many days ago with your flight can we blame jet lag?

[A]

It was literally three weeks ago. So no, we can't really blame jet. Like, I'm just tired, guys. Like, I'm just. It's one of those weeks where I'm like, I think I've been thinking too much. I've been producing a lot of content for the school. I've been doing a lot of setups, a lot of research. So it's just. I don't know if you've had those weeks where it's like, I've used my brain a lot.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And it's affecting a lot of what I do. So it's Friday. I'm going to get through my calls today and then I might take the afternoon off and just not See, that's what I'm saying.

[B]

Do you know you should do if you're tired.

[A]

I already had my cup of coffee. If I had more. I sponsor the podcast Red Bull. Yeah, you could ask them. You never know. They might be really into it. Yeah. Today though, we be doing a science quiz to get quiz. I love these cuz they really help me improve my skills on all of my science business stuff. But also there's. Every time we do one of these, I find like seven or eight different angles that I can run in ads real quick.

[B]

Yeah, like same.

[A]

They're so good. Okay.

[B]

I've been there. A little inside baseball se secret for everyone. The last like year I've been recording these episodes with a pen in hand and Notebook over here. Because I end up having, like, seven ideas for ads and tactics, and I'm like, I should do that later. And then I hang up from the podcast and I go do that, and we make more money, and it's great.

[A]

More money. I mean, you're very good at hiding it. I never noticed that. You're, like, ready to go.

[B]

It makes me feel good every time my arm's here. That's writing posts, right? That's writing.

[A]

You don't look at it?

[B]

Nope.

[A]

That's amazing. That sounds great. I'm excited for you. Is this your whole pen thing? Because we talked about the last episode.

[B]

Big on pens and notebooks these days. If anyone has a cool pen, let me know. I will buy it. I am racking up AMEX points on pens right now. I'm getting close to four figures spent this month on pens, so you are bonkers.

[A]

And I don't. I can't handle that. Four figures that. Not even, like. Okay, all right.

[B]

We passed triple digits a long time ago.

[A]

You need to get, like, a pen wall where you can just, like, have them all. You need a little.

[B]

I know my desk is out of room because. Because of the usual, you know, whiskey bottles and watches and Red Bull cans, but now there's a pen section on it, too. It's getting a little.

[A]

We need to get you. Yeah, we need to get you, like, a pen case. Does anybody. Is that a thing? Somebody.

[B]

If it has, like, a pen stand where you can put all of them, that'd be great.

[A]

Like a little fountain pen. Okay, we're getting off topic.

[B]

Anyways. All right, what are we talking about today?

[A]

We're doing our science quiz. So this is really interesting, and I think this is honestly very applicable to what you're doing right now. People are 21.6% more likely to choose an identical product when you use this particular tactic. An identical product. I loved this when I found it because I was like, ooh, this is competitor, like, framing. So 21%. 21.6. More likely to choose your product if you do this specific thing, especially if you have products that are pretty similar to somebody else.

[B]

Okay, so this is resulting in, like, they have this product from a competitor, but they don't have yours yet. That's what this is talking about. But it also could be products they buy. Two of ours. Okay.

[A]

Yeah. All right.

[B]

Three guesses. Okay, first guess. I'll. I'll do the obvious one. Some kind of bundle or deal on it.

[A]

No, it's not a bundle or deal. It's what? Okay. I shouldn't give you a hint. Yeah.

[B]

All right.

[A]

I'm gonna give you the.

[B]

Had to guess the obvious one. I've bundled identical product before. It works.

[A]

Yep.

[B]

Is it messaging around, like gift one and keep one?

[A]

No.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

No, I can give you. I can give you more hints if you want.

[B]

Give me a little hint.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Before my third and final gift, Specific

[A]

to food and beverage is what they study. 19 experiments across food and beverage in particular. So that's the category. Think of that. And then secondary to that, it has something to do with what you're listing about the product. What you're listing about the product.

[B]

I'm more confused after this.

[A]

Sorry.

[B]

I thought that was Food and Bev.

[A]

What about.

[B]

I'm trying to think of.

[A]

Now think about the fact that there's two identical products.

[B]

Okay. All right. I would go with like, it's food and Bev. So you're talking about something you're going to eat or drink. And I would list maybe the. The multiple occasions and multiple use cases. That's good for like. I think I just saw a protein bar ad that talked about how, like, it can replace breakfast. It can be post workout, it can be a snack at work, like that kind of thing to get them to buy more.

[A]

So close. But it's. It's a different topic that you're listing.

[B]

All right. Okay, tell me.

[A]

People are 21.6% more likely to choose your granola bar over a competitor's if you list fewer ingredients. Oh, fewer ingredients.

[B]

That makes sense.

[A]

Which I find really interesting. They read 19 experiments across that makes sense. And said people chose an identical granola bar 21.6% more often. And they were 16.4% more likely to buy juice, 66.8% more likely to say they'd buy peanut butter. And it seems to be very food based. Now, this is not our typical dorm. Like, you and I don't work at CPG very much. I've had a few clients. Have you had a few clients?

[B]

You don't know what I'm. Jason.

[A]

Apparently not.

[B]

I don't know. Are you including supplements in this category?

[A]

It. It just says food and beverage.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Just food in particular. And it says that ads with these claims generated up to 44.2% higher clicks.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

With fewer ingredients. I'm like, whoa.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I've seen this now that I know what it is. I've seen it a bunch in Food and Bev. And I think like, maybe some years ago it was more about, like, I saw A couple different brands doing concepts around. Like, you know, the competitor has ingredients you can't pronounce and don't know what they are.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then that is, like, slowly evolved into, like, we only have four ingredients. I. I've seen this in supplements as well, where, like, some of the more, like, technical jargon you throw in, there can be a turn off when it starts sounding like, too scientific because most people actually, like, aren't that research and clinical authority motivated. So, yeah, I like this. Less is more functional health is. Is in right now. I like it.

[A]

Well, that's kind of the reason why the research is saying it worked, which is just like, obviously lots of ingredients typically comes with highly processed foods. But the other things that they were saying was it. It doesn't apply to products that are for pleasure only. So cookies, chocolate.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Candy, which I'm like, that I find bonkers that we are okay with a lot of ingredients if it's for, like, hedonic reason.

[B]

What I've thought about this a lot because, like, all the brands you see doing this are, like, health focused first, and then they try to make it palatable and tasteful. Whatever tastes good. Like, I see this a lot with, like, protein bars where they're like, it's just, you know, granola, honey, nuts and milk or what, whatever. And it's like, all right, like, you're not eating that for the taste. Like, you're not eating that. Like, it's a candy bar. When we choose a Snickers, we don't want to think about the ingredients. We know it's not great, but can I tell you, I think there's massive opportunity right now for candy without all the crap in it.

[A]

I agree. That's. That was my gut feeling. Is that, like, I don't know.

[B]

And I kind of don't know why the big boys haven't done it. Like, I got Skittles the other night because I had a stressful day. So obviously, Skittles just give me diabetes. Don't give me cancer, too. That's. That's all we're looking for.

[A]

It'd be really interesting white space for a brand to come in and sell either. Like a pure white. Like, we give you the candy, we just didn't die. We didn't do anything to it.

[B]

Don't taste the rainbow.

[A]

Colorful. Exactly. Like a gray candy. Now, there's some psychology in here that's like, most humans really prefer things that are brightly colored when it comes to food in particular, for sure. But, like, I think wide open Space.

[B]

Well. And I think when you're as established as Skittles, like, and this is why I think competitors haven't done it, because if you're a no name brand, it's going to be a real uphill battle to sell me on land Looking simple candy. But if Skittles just came out, I was like, hey, like, these are, you know, simple Skittles. Simply Skittles is what they should call it, by the way. Skittles. Call it that. Simply Skittles. And just. Just take out the dyes and. Yeah. Like, the kids might not be as excited about them, but the parents are the one who's actually buying.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

And you have a bunch of lifelong fans that are adults now and are not going to be tricked or motivated by your taste. The rainbow tagline. Yeah, we just want sugar because we're sad and emotionally eating. Okay.

[A]

I don't think you need it because, like, there's companies like Werther's who makes those, like, butterscotch kind of caramelly candy things. They don't dye those. That's just the color sugar turns when you start to cook it. Yeah. So it's just like, do you need it? I don't know. I. Maybe it's a belief that, like, you need to have stuff on it. Gargling.

[B]

I thought about that with Coca Cola too. Like, hey, like, you don't need to color it. I like Coke. I would drink it if it was green. It's already black, by the way. It's not an appetizing color. We're drinking a black liquid here.

[A]

Like, okay, so I want to hear some tips for Ecom because some people are going to be honest.

[B]

Yeah, sorry.

[A]

I went on a tangent about candy only for food. I'm like, I think this could be used anywhere because I have tested many, many ads where we have just given one specific benefit on one ad for one of our ingredients. And it crushes.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

We've only called out the fact that we have collagen and this specific ingredient in there and nothing else. Even if we have a bunch of stuff. I had a client come to me this week and say, we are this really cool kind of blend of these two particular mechanisms, but they're very unrelated. And this is a consumable. It's a drink powder. You put it in there, you drink whatever. And I was like, you should 100% stick with the one main ingredient and add this as a bonus.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Don't say that you have both in there because they compete mentally.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Just Add. Tack it on as bonus. Yeah, Yeah.

[B]

I think people love simplicity, especially when it comes to their health. I think, like, the minute you add complexity, you're going to turn a certain percentage of people off. So, yeah, I love the idea, especially for supplements, especially because a lot of supplements now, like, are, you know, multi ingredient, multifunction, which is great. But, like, I think you should market most of those things individual as individual benefits. It's like, hey, like, this is great for testosterone. This one ingredient is great for testosterone. Buy it. Then you scroll down on the pdp and it's like, it also has this, which helps with this and this, that helps with that. Like, you can get into it, like,

[A]

acute versus chronic problems.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Maybe this kind of wraps into that, which is just like, the fewer things you put at the front of the funnel, the easier it is to be like, okay, I get it. Go ahead and move forward. Then you can introduce all the other cool things that you do afterwards. So, yeah, I mean, this kind of backs that up a little bit, but just less is more.

[B]

I like it.

[A]

This one's interesting.

[B]

Less is very often more in, like, most of what we do. We had an ad that worked at OG my first year there, I think, before you and I even started working together, where we. We did like, a split screen background. The left. The entire background was like, brushed stainless steel. And then the right was whatever wood grain of the watch. And then we overlaid just like an ecom shot of the watch over it. And the ad was just like, stainless steel, Brazilian rosewood. Buy the watch.

[A]

That's so good. Because it's very simple. Two materials coming together.

[B]

Like, this is something cool. That's what it is. Yeah. I like simplicity a lot.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Try this. Honestly, whatever you sell. Like, by the way, this hat that I just put on sale that's ripping so far. Whiskey and Freedom. Does it require any more explanation than that? Like, that's.

[A]

And I love this, especially because they're talking about, obviously, with CBD and beverage, it's very easy because all I have to do is just pull out one specific ingredient and highlight that, and then you can go learn about the rest of them. But for everyone else in here, even for my own work, I'm like, okay. On my own website, when I'm trying to work with all the people that come in for creative strategy work or whatever, it's possible. Maybe I'm just overselling it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, I don't need to have all of this stuff all over the place. Maybe I just say, I fixed this.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

One thing, this is my main core thing.

[B]

I. Yeah, I've learned that from sales calls for my services now that I'm a service guy. By the way, watching client roster is full though. Don't hit me up. I'm booked in August. No, I'm kidding. Get on the waitlist. But like, the more I've tried to explain in depth in sales calls, what I do can confuse people at times. And when I stick to the overall message of like, hey, we're going to write better copy to make more money, they're like, great, sign. Here's the first invoice.

[A]

And it's like, I have to, I need to learn to back off a little bit because I love explaining and teaching and all the work is the mechanism, blah, blah. I am learning this year. Less is more, simpler is better.

[B]

Well, and I think this is true and I think that's probably why this works well in cpg when there is like natural demand for a thing. When there's a natural pain point that people are trying to solve for. I think the less you have to convince them to buy.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And it's like, well, with snacks, protein bars, like, people eat every day. They're always reaching for snacks. You don't need to convince them to eat. You just need them to choose your thing next time. And I think it's like a reason that what, why I filled up my client roster in two weeks.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Is because, like, well, people are struggling with cac. Conversion rates are down, CAC is up. Like ecom's getting harder. So because there's this natural pain point and this natural, like, desire to fix it already, I don't think you need to give them the hard sell of like, this is how we produced our protein bar and this is how my copy testing strategy works. There's 13 steps and we follow all of them. It's just like, no, no, no, listen. It's, you know, raw milk and granola and honey and it's healthy. And it's copywriting that makes more money for your brand. Like, that's it. Just do those two things and you're happy.

[A]

I think the consumer base is also probably pretty open to this right now because they've been oversold way too much since co. They're just like, guys, whoa, back up. So I think they're finally to the point where they're like, just give it to me. Simple. Please don't oversell. Just tell me what you do.

[B]

I posted a thing a while ago about like, we need to like, reject extremism. In marketing and sales because I think so many brands have fallen into that trap and then once you in it, it's a vicious cycle of like, well, you got to keep going bigger and bigger and making more extreme claims and promises and you know, more shock value hooks and everything. I think people are getting tired.

[A]

I'm tired.

[B]

I think people are getting tired with it and I think simplicity can be really refreshing right now, especially in a, in a sales process.

[A]

Bars. I don't have anything to add.

[B]

Thanks so much for listening to Brain Driven Brands. Follow Sarah Levinger on Twitter. Follow me at Nate Lagos if you want to work with us, hit us up. And other than that, we'll see you next week.

[A]

Thank you so much for joining us on the show today. Appreciate you guys listening. If you want to follow me me, I'm Sarah Levenger. Anywhere you can see the content. He is aytelagos. If you like this show and if you like this episode, go ahead and like subscribe. Share with a friend. Drop us a review when you have a minute. We would appreciate it. Otherwise, have a great week. We'll see you next time.