source: Farm and Food Report
Out on the Great Plains, the word itself may be more closely associated with the mark on a cow’s hip or shoulder, but “brands” are much more than that, and gaining increasing recognition among purebred livestock operators in Saskatchewan as something that warrants special attention.
“We hope that people associate our name with integrity, honesty and hopefully, some good cattle.”
Carmen Jackson is co-owner of the Jackson Cattle Company, a family owned and operated ranch just north of Sedley that specializes in purebred Red Angus.
“We have been in operation for 18 years. People need to be able to relate to us in how we represent ourselves with our logo and everything. It has to stand for what you believe in,” explains Jackson. “We are a family unit and we believe in the strengths that stem from that. We are just like everybody else, just trying to earn a living at what we like to do.”
Louise Yates is Director of Brand Management at Regina-based Farm Credit Canada.
“In the business world, the brand encompasses everything about a company from the quality of the product itself, to the customer experience, to the way you package and sell your product,” says Yates. “A brand is a personality — an opportunity to explain to your customers how your company and products are different from anyone else’s. It symbolizes your credibility.”
And a brand can be articulated in innumerable ways. Take the Soo Line Land and Cattle Company owned by Roger and Michelle Hardy of Midale.
“We were building a Red Angus herd and we figured we needed a herd name,” says Roger. “The Soo Line railway runs right through the middle of our ranch. The trains are there all the time. We decided to use that name and to visually figure Soo Line trains prominently in our advertising campaigns: Keeping Your Program on Track or Soo Line Genetics to Keep Things on Track. So we use the analogy with railways and moving in a constant line or moving forward, as part of our program.”
Brand development need not be a monumental project to make a difference. Here is what FCC’s Louise Yates suggests:
“Take the time to explore the messages you want your operation to convey. How is your product and operation different from your competitors’? What do you want your brand to stand for? Then make sure you deliver on what you promise. There have been many cases of great products that have failed on the market because of poorly communicated brands, and many examples of not so great products that have been extremely successful on the market because of their attention to branding.”
Kerrie and Warren Girodat of Gull Lake formed the Rocking G Land and Cattle Company last year, literally to create an investment vehicle for the future.
“The Rocking G is a three-generational brand from my husband’s side of the family,” says Kerrie. “His grandfather was the originator of the Rocking G. When we decided to form the company, it was based around the thought of having our children be able to take over the farm and form a company gives the idea that maybe one - or more than one - of our children will be able to buy into shares and make agriculture their life.”
The Rocking G logo is a stylized Hereford bull integrated into a G on a rocker, which is the Girodat’s actual brand, applied on the left hip. The logo is used on business cards, stall displays, the cattle trailer, and it should go up on their pick up truck next. Every time they put it out there, they become more aware of all the meaning a brand carries with it.
For additional information, contact:
Carmen Jackson
Jackson Cattle Company
(306) 885-4418
http://www.jacksoncattle.com
Soo Line Land and Cattle Company
Roger and Michelle Hardy
(306) 458-2359
Rocking G Land & cattle Co.
Warren and Kerri Girodat
(306) 672-3986
Louise Yates
Director, Brand Management
Farm Credit Canada
(306) 780-8612
http://www.fcc-fac.ca/
Out on the Great Plains, the word itself may be more closely associated with the mark on a cow’s hip or shoulder, but “brands” are much more than that, and gaining increasing recognition among purebred livestock operators in Saskatchewan as something that warrants special attention.
“We hope that people associate our name with integrity, honesty and hopefully, some good cattle.”
Carmen Jackson is co-owner of the Jackson Cattle Company, a family owned and operated ranch just north of Sedley that specializes in purebred Red Angus.
“We have been in operation for 18 years. People need to be able to relate to us in how we represent ourselves with our logo and everything. It has to stand for what you believe in,” explains Jackson. “We are a family unit and we believe in the strengths that stem from that. We are just like everybody else, just trying to earn a living at what we like to do.”
Louise Yates is Director of Brand Management at Regina-based Farm Credit Canada.
“In the business world, the brand encompasses everything about a company from the quality of the product itself, to the customer experience, to the way you package and sell your product,” says Yates. “A brand is a personality — an opportunity to explain to your customers how your company and products are different from anyone else’s. It symbolizes your credibility.”
And a brand can be articulated in innumerable ways. Take the Soo Line Land and Cattle Company owned by Roger and Michelle Hardy of Midale.
“We were building a Red Angus herd and we figured we needed a herd name,” says Roger. “The Soo Line railway runs right through the middle of our ranch. The trains are there all the time. We decided to use that name and to visually figure Soo Line trains prominently in our advertising campaigns: Keeping Your Program on Track or Soo Line Genetics to Keep Things on Track. So we use the analogy with railways and moving in a constant line or moving forward, as part of our program.”
Brand development need not be a monumental project to make a difference. Here is what FCC’s Louise Yates suggests:
“Take the time to explore the messages you want your operation to convey. How is your product and operation different from your competitors’? What do you want your brand to stand for? Then make sure you deliver on what you promise. There have been many cases of great products that have failed on the market because of poorly communicated brands, and many examples of not so great products that have been extremely successful on the market because of their attention to branding.”
Kerrie and Warren Girodat of Gull Lake formed the Rocking G Land and Cattle Company last year, literally to create an investment vehicle for the future.
“The Rocking G is a three-generational brand from my husband’s side of the family,” says Kerrie. “His grandfather was the originator of the Rocking G. When we decided to form the company, it was based around the thought of having our children be able to take over the farm and form a company gives the idea that maybe one - or more than one - of our children will be able to buy into shares and make agriculture their life.”
The Rocking G logo is a stylized Hereford bull integrated into a G on a rocker, which is the Girodat’s actual brand, applied on the left hip. The logo is used on business cards, stall displays, the cattle trailer, and it should go up on their pick up truck next. Every time they put it out there, they become more aware of all the meaning a brand carries with it.
For additional information, contact:
Carmen Jackson
Jackson Cattle Company
(306) 885-4418
http://www.jacksoncattle.com
Soo Line Land and Cattle Company
Roger and Michelle Hardy
(306) 458-2359
Rocking G Land & cattle Co.
Warren and Kerri Girodat
(306) 672-3986
Louise Yates
Director, Brand Management
Farm Credit Canada
(306) 780-8612
http://www.fcc-fac.ca/
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