Putting Beef in Online Shopping Carts
Online grocery and meal ordering grew tremendously throughout the 2020 pandemic, and this trend is only expected to continue growing in 2021 and beyond. Today, 67 percent of consumers are buying groceries online for delivery or pickup 1. In a retail space that is advancing at such a high speed, the Beef Checkoff implements e-commerce advertising campaigns with major retailers like Target, Sam’s Club, Kroger and Chicory to accelerate sales of fresh beef.
These e-commerce campaigns feature Checkoff-funded Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. digital advertisements that run on retailers’ websites and apps. During the 2020 holiday season, the Checkoff partnered with Chicory, a digital shopper marketing platform, to boost beef sales. Chicory is famous for its signature “Get Ingredients” button that can be found on more than 1,500 recipe websites. The Beef Checkoff used Chicory technology with top national retailers – Kroger and Target. The holiday-focused beef content for Kroger was served to an audience of 27 million hungry consumers, and for every Checkoff dollar invested $4.45 in beef was sold. Target’s beef content was served to an audience of 29 million, and for every Checkoff dollar invested, $5.19 in beef was sold. Several state beef councils also partnered with this effort to boost their own campaigns and extend reach and impact.
After such a successful exploratory holiday e-commerce campaign, the Beef Checkoff ran a “kick-off to summer grilling” digital e-commerce campaign with Sam’s Club in April and May. This campaign featured Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. summer-focused content across Sam’s Club digital platforms. When a consumer is shopping on the Sam’s Club’s website or app, they’ll see a Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. banner, pop-up or other digital advertisements. The link in those advertisements takes consumers directly to Sam’s Club’s beef page, where it encourages members to buy high-quality beef online and try their Club Pickup format.
The Checkoff-funded Veal – Discover Delicious brand also implements e-commerce campaigns with Chicory and notable retailers to increase veal sales. In February and March, a Chicory campaign gave consumers the opportunity to add veal directly to their virtual shopping carts with the click of a button. Veal saw great success with its content being delivered to more than one million people and 2,531 veal orders were added to baskets.
The Beef Checkoff is already finalizing more digital marketing and e-commerce summer grilling campaigns with three additional national retail partners. Overall, online grocery ordering is here to stay, and the Beef Checkoff is committed to getting beef messaging in front of consumers, whether online or in-person.
The Beef Checkoff program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States may retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.
