Opening Doors Through Advertising

By: Matt Woolfolk, BBU Field Representative and Commercial Marketing Director

Producing high-quality Beefmaster cattle is the goal of every Beefmaster Breeders United (BBU) member.  However, when it comes to marketing their programs the path is not always as clear.  Marketing quality cattle is about finding the best way to expose your offering to the customer.  Advertising is the primary way to help your program be seen. Here are a few points to consider as you build or refine your ranch’s advertising strategy:

1. Have a Plan: Before you start to build the first advertisement, you need to have an idea of what you have to sell, who you aim to sell it to and the resources you have to work with.  Whether your goal is to sell bulls to the commercial cattleman, show heifers to 4-H and FFA members or sell registered females to other breeders; it’s important to research and identify the advertising outlets that will help you reach your target audience.  It’s also important to have a budget in mind when selecting where you want to spend your advertising dollars.
2. Diversify Your Plan: In order to effectively reach the largest number of potential customers, it’s necessary to not put all your advertising eggs in one basket.  Finding a good combination of advertising outlets will stretch your budget farther by expanding your reach.  Smaller advertisements in multiple places may have a better reach than one large ad in a single place.
3. Utilize Social Media: With so many people being on social media these days, it’s a great place to publicize your cattle operation.  With a large audience at your disposal, creating a ranch Facebook page is a great way to keep folks updated on the daily happenings on your farm, as well as publicize sale cattle.  The best part of social media is it is free to use, allowing you to further expand your reach without tapping into your budget.
4. Good Pictures: Livestock photography is a tricky situation.  Yes, you do want people to be able to see what kind of quality is in your program.  However, poor photographs can do much more harm than good.  Getting good quality pictures of your cattle is necessary for advertising.  Taking the time to have cattle conditioned and clean for pictures is just as important as getting the actual shot.  If you need help, there are lots of good cattle photographers out there that can help you shine the best light on your program.
5. Consistency & Simplicity: Across all the advertisements you put together, it’s important to have consistency.  Using the similar color schemes, designs, and layouts to help establish an identity for your operation.  Using a farm logo in your ads can help viewers to recognize and become familiar with your program.  With that said, it’s also important not to try and do too much with your advertising.  Excessive words or distracting designs can take away from your ability to convey your message.  In many of today’s television commercials, the craziness on screen overshadows what is being sold, making the advertisement ineffective in selling the product.  Avoid having that problem in your advertisements.

Whatever the size of your operation is, there’s an advertising outlet available to meet your needs.  Just within our breed we offer multiple media outlets. You can advertise in The Beefmaster Cowman, The Beefmaster Banner and The Beefmaster Pay Weight. All of these publications are available to help you reach your target audience.  One final thought to share on advertising comes from William Bernbach when he said, “The most powerful element in advertising is the truth.”

If you have any questions regarding advertising or the publications within the Beefmaster breed, feel free to contact me at mwoolfolk@beefmasters.org or 210-464-0923.