By Haley Herzog
TFB Communications Intern
The National Cattleman’s Beef Association (NCBA) is relaunching the iconic “Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner” brand to a new generation of consumers through digital media outreach efforts.
America was first introduced to the famous tagline and the sweet sound of Aaron Copeland rodeo music playing in the background more than two decades ago.
In an effort to recreate the iconic brand and campaign, NCBA and the national beef checkoff launched a new campaign in October 2017.
“What we are really trying to do is reintroduce the brand to a new generation of consumers, and recognize that consumers’ tastes and what they need from different brands is constantly changing,” Season Solorio, NCBA senior executive director for Brand Marketing, said.
The brand relaunch targets consumers, channel partners and food influencers.
“We coupled all of that with new creative assets and tried to really showcase the pleasure that beef brings to meals, the people that raise it and the nutritional benefits, such as protein that beef provides,” Solorio said in an interview with the Texas Farm Bureau Radio Network. “Really, what we’re trying to do is relaunch that iconic brand and really position beef as the number one protein out there.”
For 25 years, Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner, funded by the national beef checkoff, has been paving the way for beef and the hardworking individuals behind it.
“We believe that we produce a high quality protein, we are very proud of that. Obviously, our producers are very proud about that, and we really want that swagger and that confidence to show through to those millennials through all of our promotional and our outreach efforts,” Solorio said.
As millennials continue to dominate the market, NCBA is helping position beef to evolve and to extend the campaign’s content and features.
“We want to make sure we’re targeting those older millennial parents as they become parents for the first time, and make sure that we’re hitting that next generation of children and that they continue to eat beef,” Solorio said.
The new campaign is geared toward informing consumers about the many benefits beef provides.
“We started out this past October with actually consolidating eight different websites that had been previously managed by NCBA on behalf of the beef checkoff, and consolidated them into one general platform, www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com, which is now a single comprehensive location that provides interactive experiences about everything you want to know about beef,” Solorio said.
The new campaign efforts will allow for more transparency through its programs to give consumers the opportunity to connect with the farmers and ranchers who raise their beef products.
The campaign began with the launch of a series of videos called “Rethink the Ranch.”
“We started focusing on the people who raise beef and trying to bring their story forward,” Solorio said. “We launched a series of videos called ‘Rethink the Ranch’ that featured a handful of different producers representing different sectors from the beef industry around the country.”
“Rethink the Ranch” travels across the United States and captures an anthem that tells the story of how beef gets from the pasture to the plates of consumers and puts a face with the producers behind the beef.
Another series of videos, called “Nicely Done, Beef,” premiered this summer. They focus more on beef’s tasty characteristics.
“We started out with people, and now as we head into the summer grilling season, we’re focused on showcasing the pleasure that beef brings to meals and how it brings people together,” Solorio said.
The fresh look at the campaign can also be viewed on television and other digital media platforms such as Hulu and Pandora.
“We really want to make sure that we’re using those producer dollars to their best benefit and looking for those ways through digital media where we can just be a little more nimble and get a larger return on investment,” Solorio said.
The new campaign videos have reached more than 2.5 million views, and continue to steadily increase.
“We’re really excited about all of the different technology and the digital platforms t