Photo courtesy of DBA
The dairy industry could learn a thing or two from motorcycle powerhouse, the Harley Davidson Motor Company. Motorcycles and cows don't have much in common, but when it comes down to image and product promotion, they're surprisingly similar.
"A lot of businesses try to connect quality of product to success," said Ken Schmidt as he addressed the crowd at the Dairy Business Association's Dairy Strong Conference in Madison, Wis., last week. "A great product gets you in the game, maybe helps keep you in the game, but it doesn't make you successful," he said.
"If a business is going to stand for something, it needs a reputation that far withstands the product," he explained. As former director of communications for the Wisconsin-based motorcycle company, Schmidt played an active role in turning around the image of their brand and products.
How did they do it? "We learned how to control the narrative of what people were saying about us," Schmidt said. "The only thing that matters as a business is what people are saying about you, and we who had the most skin in the game allowed other people to control what was being said about us."
His message, that we as industry members should be leading the conversation about how we farm and the value our dairy products provide, was loud and clear. He also emphasized the need to make that message compelling and memorable.
"When we tell people what they expect to hear, they don't repeat it," he said. Customers trust and believe inherently that every business is good enough, he explained. When we believe we can buy from anyone and be satisfied, no products stand out.
"We need to do something that separates us from the realm of everyone else," he said. For Harley Davidson, that meant promoting a lifestyle and rising above lower priced competitors. For dairy, that means standing out on a shelf next to a plethora of milk alternatives and other beverage options.
"A lot of people out there are leading you to believe dairy products are bad," Schmidt said, and he left the audience with one final question: "What do you want people saying about the dairy industry?"
(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2015
January 19, 2015
