Case Study - Certified Angus Beef LLC

Brand Overview:

• Brand Description: Certified Angust Beef LLC is the original brand of premium Angus Beef. The brand was founded in the 1970's and provides beef from cattle that meets the brand's 10 standards. A liscense is given to ensure these standsards are met.
• Kantar NeedScope Analysis: The brand falls into the 'focused, competent, and controlled' section of the Kanatar NeedScope, because the brand never seems to wavier from their brand position, as evidenced by the fact that they consistently stay focused on the identity of providing high quality beef products (focused), the brand strongly promotes their expertise and superiority in their industry with proven metrics (competent), and the brand presents and overall unified visual aesthetic that never deviates from its central tehemes, as outlined below (controlled).
• Sales Growth: As of 2019, Certified Angus Beef recorded its 15th consecutive year of sales growth. The company sold 1.25 billion pounds of its products in 2019, which was 3.1% higher than the previous year, equating to an incrase of 38 million pounds more pounds of product sold YoY.

Communication Analysis:

• Quality: The brand positions itself as a leader in quality. In reference to a recent year's sales growth, the company's president attributes the company's success to "an entire community of Angus farmers, ranchers and feeders being extremely intentional over several years in the way they breed, raise and care for their cattle with a focus on quality." The president also references the 'brand's table' wherein he states: "There is a lot of room at the brand's table, where integrity, a passion for quality and a desire are shared by everyone who pulls up a chair."
• Exclusivity: The brand communicates itself as one that holds an exclusive type of product. For example, the company's website states "Angus is a breed, not a brand, and there's only one Certified Angus Beef brand. To earn the logo, the very best of all Angus beef must meet 10 exacting standards, making it more selective than USDA Choice and Prime."
• High Standards: The brand often makes reference to their high standards. For example, the brand page of the company's website states: "The Certified Angus Beef brand community is committed to upholding the highest standards. It's good citizenship, built on integrity and respect, and apparent in our actions big and small."

Visual Analysis:

• Images of the Product: The brand most often presents images of their product, in both raw and cooked format, as evidenced by the brand's Instagram page.
• Color Palette: The company relies on a reserved and classic feeling color palette that resonates well with the colors of their product: yellow, black, red and white (as shown in the company logo). These are colors that logically align well with the brand because they are colors found in the beef grilling/cooking process. A look at the brand's Instagram page also shows this color palette prominently throughout the posts.
• Brand Imagery: Aside from images of their products, the brand's other images are very people and farm-to-table centric. For example, the logo contains an image on a cattle cow out to pasture, the Instagram page is scattered with images of people who are connected to the brand in some way and much of the cooking and serving/presentation aspect of the product use (post-purchase product use), while the website provides scenes of farmlands and farmers (pre-purchase supply chain).