Building a Flavor Movement

Corto Olive Oil

Corto Olive Co. partnered with GTDR to bring its culinary ethos to life across social, influencer, and digital channels. As a family-owned company rooted in quality and innovation, Corto was ready to evolve from a trade-focused legacy brand into a modern culinary voice that could connect directly with chefs, creators, and home cooks. Through consistent storytelling, influencer activations, and strategic social campaigns, we helped Corto transform its digital presence into a thriving community centered on creativity, education, and taste.

CHALLENGE

Corto’s olive oil is world-class — but its online recognition lagged behind its reputation in professional kitchens. The brand needed to expand awareness among emerging creators, home chefs, and food enthusiasts while preserving its credibility with culinary professionals. The challenge was clear: translate decades of authenticity and agricultural excellence into digital storytelling that sparks engagement and builds loyalty across platforms.

SOLUTIONS

We built a multi-channel strategy that combined influencer partnerships, community management, and seasonal digital campaigns to showcase Corto’s people, process, and purpose.

Influencer Collaborations:
We launched targeted campaigns like the Truly 3L New Packaging and Agrumato Lemongrass & Basil initiatives, cultivating relationships with more than 200 influencers across culinary, lifestyle, and wellness spaces. These partnerships delivered content from respected voices such as @leeksnbeets, @simmerandsauce, and @cookilicious, reaching millions of engaged followers. Engagement rates averaged 1–3.5%, outperforming industry norms, and more than 60% of participants posted organically, continuing to advocate for Corto long after the campaigns ended.

Social Media Growth:
Across 2024 and 2025, Corto’s social presence grew by 15% year-over-year, surpassing 20,000 followers across Instagram and Facebook while maintaining an average engagement rate above 8%. Strategic use of Reels and user-generated content pushed organic reach up 13.5% YoY, proving the power of authentic storytelling over high-production content.

Community Activation:
GTDR implemented an always-on engagement model — responding to followers, amplifying chef and grower stories, and nurturing influencer relationships beyond one-off campaigns. This hands-on approach increased profile actions by 94% and boosted engagements by 64% during dedicated activation periods.

Campaign Highlights:
The #WomensPizzaMonth campaign became a standout success, celebrating female pizza makers and drawing over 30,000 impressions with a 6.9% engagement rate, outperforming benchmark campaigns across the category.

RESULTS

Corto’s digital transformation established the brand as a leader in culinary storytelling — a trusted voice for chefs and food lovers alike. The combination of thoughtful influencer partnerships, consistent brand voice, and authentic community engagement led to measurable gains across every channel:

• +15% total audience growth YoY
• +64% increase in engagements during community activations
• 1–3.5% average influencer engagement rate across campaigns
• 30K+ impressions and 6.9% engagement rate on #WomensPizzaMonth
• Sustained 8%+ Instagram engagement rate across 2024–2025

More importantly, Corto’s channels have evolved into spaces of genuine exchange — where conversations about flavor, craft, and sustainability thrive, and where the Corto ethos of “quality without compromise” finds daily expression through creators and consumers alike.