service provider NOT

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2 Just a quick introduction.mla is a service provider to the red meat industry. We aim to deliver world class research, development & marketing services to the industry. MLA is NOT an industry representative body or lobby group the company cannot undertake any lobbying or agri-political activity. This is the role of peak industry councils. 2

3 We have almost 50,000 members. Many members have mixed enterprises consisting of sheep and cattle, and sometimes goats too. MLA is always looking at new ways to grow its member base by highlighting the range of benefits associated with MLA membership: Free market information Discounted entry into MLA events Free or discounted publications and information tools Free subscription to MLA's regular member magazine Feedback Free weekly e-newsletter Friday feedback The opportunity to get more actively involved in the industry 3

4 Industry approves the Annual Operating Plan and a number of industry task forces approve MLA spending. The Peak Councils guide MLA on industry priorities, underpinning where the focus should be regarding levy investment. And this is set according to the Meat Industry Strategic Plan. 4

5 Our funding comes from animal transaction levies, which are collected by the Federal Department of Agriculture and invested according to priorities as set out in the Meat Industry Strategic Plan (MISP). 5

6 From 2012, it was becoming clear that Australia s red meat industry needed more focused & consistent branding & marketing in order to maximise our opportunities in our key export markets, where we face intensifying competition from other supplier countries & other meat proteins. Australia exports at least 70% of the red meat we produce, so international markets are critical for our industry. We needed a positioning for our product that would leverage our competitive advantages and position us to more effectively capture the higher value opportunities in these markets to deliver more value all the way back through the Australian supply chain, to the farm gate. So in 2013, MLA began gathering consumer+market insights to feed into the crafting a global brand positioning, with key communication messages & a logo design In mid-2014, rollout began In 2015, a number of significant campaign events were run in various markets, including Asian markets, using the new brand So, what I ll share with you today is a bit about how we re using insights to roll out the True Aussie brand in Asia 6

7 One of the approaches we use to help us think about how to use the True Aussie brand in our marketing efforts around the world is to think of a brand as a gift So, what makes a good gift? 7

8 Well.we know intuitively what a NOT-so-good gift is it s mundane, utilitarian, hasn t taken much thought or effort, and is a bit cliched At best, it might prompt a laugh but is quickly forgettable.and then gets hurriedly put away! 8

9 By thinking about a brand as a gift, it helps us understand what that might look like & what it could mean to the people we re offering it to. Normally, and in any culture, a great & memorable gift is one that: Communicates an emotional message that shows you care about them, and touches the recipient, making them feel good It builds a relationship with them, and What you give shows that you understand what s important to them A great gift is not only one they will VALUE but it s one they re will LOVE 9

10 The difference between the 2 gifts - the sock & the perfect gift - is INSIGHT There are so many definitions of insight out there - but the one I think that guides us most is that it is: any piece of information or knowledge that reshapes how we see a situation, so that we can see opportunities that weren t visible before (we could use a more food-relevant image to represent that a fridge because the moment you look into it, a light comes on, and everything inside is illuminated) Insight allows us to build a meaningful connection between consumers & our product adding meaning to their life and adding value to our offer. It has the capacity to turn a commodity into a brand. (Another good one: insight tells you which bait to use to hook the right fish ) 10

11 OK, so we created these wonderful gifts - True Aussie beef, lamb & goat - world class products from the ideal home, produced by trusted partners and offering pure enjoyment But before we present our gift to buyers & consumers in Asian markets (or any market for that matter) we need to make sure we present them with a gift that s desirable, NOT a sock. How do we do that? 11

12 by having good insights that will help us to identify: 1. Who exactly we should present the gift to 2. What the gifted items/products should be 3. When it should be presented to them are there occasions the gift can help to celebrate, for example. And, 4. What the right messages on the gift card should be. ie. knowing how to make our gifts as relevant & appealing as possible ideally so we don t even have to sell it, people will just want it! (if we had more time, we could also talk about other things like: how to package the gift and what channels to use to talk about it) 12

13 Not surprisingly when we market meat, we often aim to talk to the main grocery buyer & cook for the household in mature markets, and add on a upper middle class definition in emerging markets - which is usually women aged But of course, women who fit under this broad definition may have TOTALLY different ideas about food what they value, how they buy it, how they cook it, what their motivations & concerns are, what role they see food playing in their life So, psychographic dimensions can be even more important than the standard socio-economic ones, and this is one realm where insights can help Now, you might think that main household grocery buyers & cooks in Japan & Korea would be fairly similar they both live in comparatively wealthy, sophisticated countries, geographically quite close to each other. From a meat perspective, they both live in mature markets they re 2 of our top 3 export markets and strategically, are maintain markets for us. But insight work revealed some important differences we tested several different expressions of True Aussie with them and found that 13

14 In Japan: consumers are more concerned & focused on genki (physical+spiritual wellbeing). Compared to domestic wagyu product, ours is considered lower in fat. So, True Aussie communications in Japan have strengthened links to personal & family genki benefits, which is also important for our Secondary Target, which is couples over 60 (which comprise 33% of the population). In Korea: consumers are more open & interested in wanting a relaxed + enjoyable lifestyle. Hence True Aussie communications in Korea have strengthened links to the experiential dimensions of taste and lifestyle. 13

15 When we compare them on some food attitudes we find that: Women from both countries equally enjoy grocery shopping & are equally confident cooks, but: Japanese women: have more health concerns and are more likely to say they are eating less meat Korean women: are a more open to trying new foods & other cuisines, more open to new experiences & technologies 14

16 Similarly, when we look at their attitudes to meat proteins we find that: Whilst both associate beef with good taste & is one of their favourite meats, Korean women have comparatively strong perceptions of beef as a nutritious meat which makes it superior and they see it as more versatile These differences help shape how we position & communicate our product 15

17 Now, we also need to think about what form the gift should take. Clearly, we need to take into consideration the food cultures in each market. Despite their proximity, Japanese and Korean food cultures are quite different. Koreans love strongly-flavoured and spicy foods whilst Japanese appreciate more subtlety. And of course we also need to factor in the commercial side. In Japan: Every summer Aussie Beef has a clear advantage in the Japanese market, as the prices of our competitors product increase. So in 2015, MLA decided to focus on bbq cuts like thicker steaks during the summer season. In South Korea: MLA identified the potential to sell more short ribs for use in costeffective/easy/delicious short rib dishes due to an oversupply of the cut. We promoted this cut for use in popular dishes such as Steamed Short Rib, Roasted Boneless Short Rib and Short Rib & Kimchi Spaghetti Next, we need to think about what occasion to present our gift at 16

18 Is there is an opportune time to offer our gift that will help to make it feel more like a special occasion? In Japan: Market insight work identified BBQ as a hot trend in Japan, with Western style & Yakinuku restaurants reporting growing sales, and a spread of outdoor BBQ spaces. This dovetailed well with our price advantage over the summer months and presented Aussie Beef an opportunity to own summer if we worked on building the connection of Aussie steak-eating with summer. In Korea: Chuseok (the Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival, also known as Korean Thanksgiving) is an important national cultural holiday, traditionally celebrated with a beef rib dish. This dovetailed well with our seasonal oversupply of short ribs in that market, so the key goal was to highlight the suitability of Australian beef to celebrate this festival. Short ribs are also considered gifts on this occasion, so we helped promote True Aussie short rib gift packs. Koreans will buy local Hanwoo beef for this event if they can afford it but in 2015, 17

19 Hanwoo prices were particularly high, so it was an opportunity to position Australian as a great alternative. 17

20 We also need to figure out what kind of message to write on the gift card. And this depends a bit on the occasion as well. We need to consider how consumers in each market perceive our product & figure out which of our strengths we could credibly dial up to allow the product/consumption experience to not only meet their needs but to delight them In Japan: Aussie beef had typically been a good choice for value-seekers. It was a trusted, safe & reliable choice but lacked clear attributes to make it desirable it s image was dated & associated with attributes like rough, backward. We found that was most appealing was a message crafted around everyday special, supported by the notion of the product being handled with care for quality and with links to the notion of genki (body & soul wellbeing, vitality, physically/mentally/spiritually/socially) were all well-supported by the story of Australian provenance (both physical & spiritual). In Korea: consumers are quite open & interested in experiencing a relaxed & enjoyable lifestyle which they associate with Australia, based on their positive experiences of Australian powdered milk, vitamins & honey/propolis and tourism campaigns+personal travel experiences. They responded most positively 18

21 to the Taste of Australia True Aussie concept. As a result, True Aussie communications in Korea have strengthened links to the experiential dimensions of taste and lifestyle. 18

22 Ultimately, the only reason to have insights is if they can make a positive difference to the business In some markets like Japan & Korea, which are maintain markets, we are focused on defending our market territory, with further market growth difficult. However: In Japan: True Aussie brand already has almost 60% penetration at retail and in around 11,000 foodservice outlets - despite having to migrate consumers from a pre-existing Aussie beef brand identity & logo. YOY value growth in bbq cuts is over 29%, and 17% on total beef overall. In Korea: there was engagement with over 90,000 consumers through Facebook with an advertising value of around A$90,000; PR campaign with over 50 media articles was valued at A$1.3million; sales have grown around 9% over the year since the campaign. 19

23 That s all I have time for today. But next time we get together, I hope I ll have a great story to share with you about how we used consumer insight to grow high value market opportunities in China 20

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