– Cambell Parrish, Ohio Beef Council Director of Public Relations and Consumer Marketing (Originally published in the Winter 2017 issue of The Ohio Cattleman)
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Communicating with strangers can be a daunting task. The further away our consumer base gets from production agriculture the more like strangers we seem to become. Bringing them back to the table with the people that bring food to it is a challenge that the Ohio Beef Council embraces every day through the use of your beef checkoff dollars. Reflecting on this challenge reminded me of what a mentor of mine once told me. Communicating and public speaking have very little to do with what you actually say. It’s a ratio; 70 percent how you look, 20 percent how you say it and 10 percent of what you actually say. While communicating with consumers is a little bit more balance of a ratio or equation, it is safe to say that there are many components to having a successful message that will impact consumers.
“What” we communicate, “how” we communicate and “where” we communicate are the three major components to this equation. The one thing that remains the least unchanged of this equation is “what” we communicate, beef is delicious, safe, nutritious and enjoyable. The marketing campaigns have changed the words a bit over the past years; Fueling Families in Motion, What’s Your Dinner Made Of and of course… Beef its What’s for Dinner. Regardless of the theme, catch phrase or jingle the “what” remains the same.
The other two parts of the equation “how” and “where” have encountered an unprecedented amount of change. The internet, cell phones, smart TV’s, virtual reality and social media change each and every day. Our world is now more connected than ever before and anyone can join or add to the conversation. On one hand this is an incredible opportunity to connect with consumers, on the other hand there is now more static and content in the marketplace. This leads us to the “how” of the equation. What can we do to break through this clutter?
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Many of us can agree that there are a million different ways to find information if we have a question. Every website and social media post is teeming with the latest information, inviting you to click for more. Facts, figures and statistics are important, that is why the beef checkoff program invests in research and bases all of our actions around it, but what cuts through all of that? Our story of why we farm. This emotional connection to the land, family and animals is the key. Consumers cannot connect with the importance of rotational grazing on a scientific level, but they can connect with that message if we tell them a story. Telling consumers the story of tending to your land and animals that were passed down to you, what you have passed down to your kids and what you hope they will one day pass on to their kids is the story that resonates. Consumers have similar aspirations and this connection allows us the opportunity to answer their questions and help them become more comfortable with cattle on the farm and beef on the table.
Instragram is another important tool utilized by the Ohio Beef Council to promote the virtues of a healthy diet that includes beef!
The last part of the equation is an ever changing landscape, “where”. One thing that we know for sure is that social media is here to stay. Which networks will be most relevant in the future? Now that is the million dollar question. What is critical is that we are where the conversation is taking place and is most relevant for beef. An example from this past year’s beef checkoff marketing program is the Ohio State 4-Miler. This event attracts 15,000 runners to race across Ohio State’s campus and finish on the 50 yard line of Ohio Stadium. Aside from the event itself, OBC took the conversation to where folks were having it, social media, in particular Snapchat.
For those of you who aren’t familiar, Snapchat is a smart phone app that allows users to take pictures and send them with captions to their friends. These pictures are only visible for a short period of time, less than ten seconds. This casual messaging app averages over 60 million daily users in the United States alone and is incredibly popular with millennials, the beef checkoff’s target audience. Knowing that runners are using their phones to share their experience with their social network, OBC took an additional step with the event and added a Snapchat filter. Filters are additional graphics that a Snapchat user can place on their photo based on their GPS location. Filters like the one used at the 4-Miler give a larger reach to the event, extending it beyond the confines of the physical location for little additional cost.
Snapchat filers were also used at the State Fair, in multiple locations across the grounds; the beef barn, steak barn and Taste of Ohio Café. Each area had different filters to encourage use depending on the location. Areas where beef could be purchased featured messages that encourage eating burgers, in the beef barn the ever popular “I heart beef” logo was used. This level of targeting is surprisingly easy to achieve thanks to advances in technology. Giving the beef community a chance for consumers to extend their experience through Snapchat to friends across the globe. While this form of conversation may not be as permanent as a blog post or YouTube video, it does keep beef in the conversation and top of mind with consumers.
Even though the conversation currently resides on these platforms, one thing is certain the way consumers want to communicate will change and evolve. It is the beef council’s job to make sure we are constantly evaluating our current methods and monitoring trends for the newest way to keep beef in the conversation.