Marketing Your Bull Sale
Bull sales are a critical revenue stream for cattle studs, and every bull purchased will influence a herd for generations to come. Buyers are highly motivated to find a good quality, reliable and proven animal, which makes it essential for studs to capture the attention of potential customers.
Standing out from the crowd is no longer as simple as word of mouth or flyers in the local area – studs are now connecting with buyers from all over the country and sometimes overseas thanks to modern technology.
Although we use different tools nowadays, successful marketing still incorporates four key principles (AKA the Four P’s). These are Price, Product, Positioning and Promotion. Here’s what each term represents:
Price – Pricing needs to reflect both the quality of your bulls and what your target audience is prepared to pay. Fast-growing, high-fertility, reliable working bulls will drive a higher price point.
Product – The bulls you’re selling and their genetic profiles are at the core of your marketing strategy. Promoting their statistics (birth weight, growth rates, carcase quality or maternal performance) is vital to draw interest from potential buyers.
Positioning – Clearly identify the industry niche your bulls fit into. Are you selling to elite stud herds? Do your bulls have standout calving ease? Strong growth rate? Answering these questions will help you understand how to reach the buyers most likely to invest in your animals.
Promotion – The most commonly recognised part of marketing and where your careful planning will truly come to life. Bull promotion can include digital ads, social media content, printed materials, or more targeted efforts like email campaigns or sale catalogues via a platform like AuctionsPlus.
In a competitive market with many breeders promoting their own studs and sale events at the same time, you need to find ways to stand out to your customers. A short-term marketing campaign alone is not enough.
By considering the Four P’s and investing in marketing for the long-term (not just when sale season comes around), you can build this presence and drive interest in your offering all year round.
Using Data and Analytics
Driving traffic to your bull sale demands a multi-faceted marketing approach, blending traditional marketing concepts with the best techniques that digital technology offers us. But, how do you know which channels are working best for you?
CoBright leverages tools like Google Analytics, UTM codes, and unique tracking links to see comprehensive data on campaign performance. These tools allow us to track and analyse much more than just views or clicks and understand the real value behind your campaign spend. We can see who engaged with ads, visited your website, and made an inquiry or phone call.
Why does this matter?
Let’s imagine you have an ad that’s receiving a lot of impressions and clicks—sounds great! However, the website analytics reveal that most of the traffic is coming from a region you’re not targeting and users are immediately leaving your website after clicking, suggesting they’re not engaging with the content or your brand. Not so great! Without real analytics, you would keep advertising via that platform and scratching your head as to why it’s not converting to sales.
