Two news clippings caught my eye last week. One, in the Times, told us that French gastronomes have selected Aberdeen-Angus beef for La Bocuse d'Or, apparently the world's most prestigious cooking competition. The director of the competition said "We need to have very great quality for our competitors and Aberdeen-Angus is a dream product". It's difficult to imagine a higher accolade. The other clipping announced that the Aberdeen-Angus Cattle Society has appointed a brand development manager whose task is to "enhance the society's current press, pr, and marketing programme", and grow brand awareness and market share.
Marketing textbooks define a brand as a distinctive product offering, differentiated from its competitors. And what is so good about strong brands is that their specialness means they generally command premium prices, which in turn leads to higher profits.
Aberdeen-Angus is a great example of branding. It is a recognised, top quality, premium priced product from farm to fork.
Headlines such as "Record 30,000 guineas hit for AA female at Perth" (October 2007), and an even more eye popping 32,000 guineas paid for Penguin Mr. Elevate in February indicate that fine AA breeding stock regularly commands very high prices in the auction ring.
When it comes to selling the finished animal, beef processors are willing pay a premium, and at the final, and probably most important stage in the chain, those shops and restaurants who sell Aberdeen-Angus always charge more for it because consumers feel that when they buy Aberdeen-Angus they are buying the best.
There are many branding lessons to be learnt from the Aberdeen-Angus story. If branding is all about distinctiveness, then Aberdeen-Angus gets off to a flying start with its instantly recognisable black-coated cattle.
To that can be added its distinctive marbled meat, it's taste and tender texture. The meat's excellent eating qualities are not just in the imagination but have been confirmed in blind product taste tests. (See DEFRA report Is0102)
Branding is also about having a good reputation, and Aberdeen-Angus meat enjoys a reputation which has been built over decades, and is still being reinforced by stores such as Waitrose and Marks and Spencer who feature it in their shops, and restaurants such as Burger King with their heavily advertised Angus burger.
Finally, the strength of the brand means that it can be sold for that bit more. Both Marks and Waitrose sell their Aberdeen-Angus meat at a premium to the rest of their range, and the Angus sells at 50p more than the standard Whopper. And premiums are always useful.
Footnote
There are of course some downsides to farming the Aberdeen-Angus breed. They tend to finish lighter than continental cattle, and can run to fat. Both can reduce the return that finishing farmers get for their stock. A trade off has to be made between these issues and any price premiums achieved.
Marketing textbooks define a brand as a distinctive product offering, differentiated from its competitors. And what is so good about strong brands is that their specialness means they generally command premium prices, which in turn leads to higher profits.
Aberdeen-Angus is a great example of branding. It is a recognised, top quality, premium priced product from farm to fork.
Headlines such as "Record 30,000 guineas hit for AA female at Perth" (October 2007), and an even more eye popping 32,000 guineas paid for Penguin Mr. Elevate in February indicate that fine AA breeding stock regularly commands very high prices in the auction ring.
When it comes to selling the finished animal, beef processors are willing pay a premium, and at the final, and probably most important stage in the chain, those shops and restaurants who sell Aberdeen-Angus always charge more for it because consumers feel that when they buy Aberdeen-Angus they are buying the best.
There are many branding lessons to be learnt from the Aberdeen-Angus story. If branding is all about distinctiveness, then Aberdeen-Angus gets off to a flying start with its instantly recognisable black-coated cattle.
To that can be added its distinctive marbled meat, it's taste and tender texture. The meat's excellent eating qualities are not just in the imagination but have been confirmed in blind product taste tests. (See DEFRA report Is0102)
Branding is also about having a good reputation, and Aberdeen-Angus meat enjoys a reputation which has been built over decades, and is still being reinforced by stores such as Waitrose and Marks and Spencer who feature it in their shops, and restaurants such as Burger King with their heavily advertised Angus burger.
Finally, the strength of the brand means that it can be sold for that bit more. Both Marks and Waitrose sell their Aberdeen-Angus meat at a premium to the rest of their range, and the Angus sells at 50p more than the standard Whopper. And premiums are always useful.
Footnote
There are of course some downsides to farming the Aberdeen-Angus breed. They tend to finish lighter than continental cattle, and can run to fat. Both can reduce the return that finishing farmers get for their stock. A trade off has to be made between these issues and any price premiums achieved.
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