For years it has been my belief that to successfully introduce new ideas and products there are four concepts that must be followed: different, better, better value and trusted. They are most easily epitomized by the concept of branding. My four-concept mantra has been repeated to the many audiences worldwide to whom I have spoken as well as those domestic and international meat and poultry companies for whom I have worked or consulted.

As I now think about these concepts, which I postulated pre-Internet, cell phones and certainly COVID more than 30 years ago, their applicability to today’s environment and much younger, more sophisticated consumers is even more important. My four-concept refrain defined:

Different — There is little consumer patience for “me too” products and certainly little or no profits accruing to the developer and/or marketer to the “copier.” History is replete with the singular lack of success of such attempts to replicate a breakthrough product’s achievement by simply copying it. Unless it is demonstrably cheaper — which will soon force the originator to lower prices — differentiation is the marketing key and should be remembered by those marketers sifting through their stable of potential new products.
Better — There must be some aspect of a new product or brand idea that is better than what is currently comparable and available. Again, a simple replication is not viable nor sustainable. The measure of “betterness” is always in the eye of the beholder/consumer, however.
Better value — Notwithstanding the two concepts above, any new product must be a better value in terms of its value for consumers as well as those conduits to consumers, i.e., the retailers or food service operators and others who distribute to them. For food consumers, it must solve a problem arbited first by taste and second by health efficacy. For distributors and retailers/food service operators, that better value is often more than just a lower price, but it may also be efficiency features incorporated in the products.
Trusted — And here we have the most important concept. The first three culminate in trust, which we explore further below.

Specialty proteins in the form of “faux” beef, poultry and, most recently, fish sales — albeit miniscule in comparison — continue to grow whilst conventional beef sales have stagnated even with a recent upward bump. The “faux” protein sales have been driven by branding that I unashamedly say utilizes my four concepts. Think what the conventional beef sales could be if they would only adopt some branding messages to further their sales using my four concepts.

There are legitimate marketing disputes with my four concepts. However, rather than jousting with other marketing gurus or devotees, let’s stick with application of my four — especially the last one — to today’s real meat marketing. Trust means that your meat product has performed to the expectations upon which you and your customers have agreed. Evidence of such trust is verified by repeat purchase and consumption of your product. As you think about the marketing strategies and tactics you may use for your meat products, please recognize that you can apply my four concepts universally to achieve your sales goals.

My four concepts are not parochial to the meat industry, however. The misapplication of “trust” is fodder for a broader societal discussion. These four concepts may apply or at least ameliorate society’s current and growing systemic lack of trust in authority, as evidenced by questions surrounding any legitimate medical breakthrough.

The poster child for today’s societal reforms is the plea for COVID vaccination even with its attendant vitriol. Such a vaccination meets my four-concept mantra: It is different ,as there is nothing else like it; it is better than any alternative such as ivermectin, fluoroquinolone or probably even prayer; it is a better value because it is free; and it should be trusted as evidenced by the support of all the peer-reviewed science to develop it.

Why can’t we convince our fellow citizens to avoid hospitalization or death by taking the COVID vaccination?

We can, but in my opinion, it will take my four-concept mantra culminating in trust.

Trust

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