2005 News Archive
Joint Advertising Committee Reviews Successes, Plans Ahead
SAN ANTONIO – The beef industry’s Joint Advertising Committee met Friday during the Cattle Industry Annual Convention and Trade Show, to review its 2004 results, discuss specific plans for 2005 and to begin planning its priorities for 2006.
The programs planned by the Joint Advertising Committee are funded by America’s beef producers through the national Beef Checkoff Program. They are coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and state beef councils by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). The NCBA serves as one of the Beef Board’s contractors for checkoff-funded programs.
The committee remains focused on three primary categories of advertising: enjoyment, nutrition, and retail. Enjoyment advertising accounted for about 80 percent of the beef industry’s advertising expenditures in 2004. A similar allocation is expected in 2005, when this figure is projected to be about 78 percent.
Consumer research indicates that enjoyment advertising produced strong, measurable results in 2004, both in terms of reach and affecting consumer attitude. The advertisements reached 93 percent of adults age 25-54 an average of 11.5 times during the year, exceeding the program’s goal of 91 percent. Consumers that saw the enjoyment advertisements also gave more positive responses to attitude survey questions regarding beef. Eighty percent of consumers reached by the ads rated beef as food they would “have a hard time giving up,” compared to 62 percent of consumers not reached by the ads. Sixty-six percent of consumer reached by the ads rated beef as the best source of protein, compared to 57 percent of those not seeing the ads. Sixty-two percent rated beef as “expensive, but worth it” if they saw the ads, compared to 51% if they did not.
“We have outstanding members on the Joint Advertising Committee, who are not afraid to speak their minds, toss around new ideas and really contribute to the planning process.” said committee chairman Jennifer Houston, a Tennessee beef producer. “We find the 2004 results to be very encouraging, and they confirm that our advertising investments are paying off.”
The Beef Checkoff Program will shift away from national television advertising in 2005, in part because of the commitments required to purchase television ads so far in advance. But national print and radio ads will be used to meet the program’s advertising objectives, which include maintaining a strong media presence and continuing to fuel consumer passion for beef.
Having achieved such positive results in 2004, Houston finds that the committee is becoming much more at ease with the recent changes in its media strategy.
“Our members were a little uneasy last year, but are feeling more comfortable now with the emphasis on print and radio. Some of them even suggested that TV will have to earn its way back into our media mix, which is an interesting observation,” she said.
The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. The checkoff assessment became mandatory when the program was approved by 79 percent of producers in a 1988 national referendum vote. Checkoff revenues may be used for promotion, education and research programs to improve the marketing climate for beef.
Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the NCBA is the trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.