Scotch Beef on the Menu as Lockdown Campaign Delivers Strong Results

A nationwide campaign promoting Scotch Beef PGI during lockdown has delivered strong results by reaching millions of adults across Scotland.

Quality Meat Scotland’s ‘Make It Scotch Beef’ campaign included an integrated mix of out-of-home advertising, media partnerships, social media advertising, radio, influencer marketing and PR focusing on content-led recipe inspiration and kitchen tips and hacks geared towards Scottish consumers.

Activity included a partnership with STV, comprising two content led communications featuring ‘Make It Scotch Beef’ style recipe inspiration as well as two separate channel sponsorships with 70 percent of these placed within peak time viewing hours, covering shows such as Emmerdale and Coronation Street, which attract a viewership of 341,000.

Overall, the STV partnership, which is still ongoing and also features Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork, is set to reach over 2.7 million consumers - four fifths (84%) of adults in Scotland.

The campaign also saw QMS engage with a younger audience through a series of partnerships with TikTok stars The Internet Chef, CookingMummi and The Slimming Foodie, as well as with leading Instagram influencers The Batch Lady, Glasgow Food Geek, The Lifestyle Hunter and BBQ chef Marcus Bawdon, each focusing on a different technique or cut of Scotch Beef. A partnership with Acast to sponsor food writer Jay Rayner’s podcast further engaged with foodies across the country.

With a key element of the campaign encouraging consumers to choose high quality ingredients, experiment with new cuts and opt for local suppliers when cooking at home, QMS also launched an IGTV ‘Chefs’ Specials’ video series with leading Scottish chefs Tom Kitchin, Gary Maclean, Jak O’Donnell and Andrew Doherty.

Combined influencer activity generated an impressive reach of over 1.1million, with the Acast partnership adding an additional reach of 132,312.

In addition to the Scottish activity, QMS also partnered with England’s Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC) in Wales as part of a £1.2m national campaign to generate awareness for high quality British red meat, with eight weeks of a digital joint campaign generating over 187 million opportunities for consumers across the UK to see delicious beef recipe inspiration.

Lesley Cameron, Director of Marketing and Communications at QMS said: “We are delighted with the results of the ‘Make It Scotch Beef’ campaign which have exceeded our initial expectations thanks to the creative mix of content that resonated with consumers cooking from scratch at home during lockdown.

“By profiling Scotch Beef PGI’s provenance, flavour, versatility and integrity the campaign has delivered impressive reach for the Scottish red meat industry. This is particularly significant at a time when people are becoming more attuned to shopping local and learning more about where their ingredients are coming from.

“As we promote the next iteration of the campaign, which focuses on Scotch Lamb, we encourage consumers to continue this momentum and help support Scotland’s rural economy.”

For more Scotch Beef recipe videos and inspiration visit www.scotchkitchen.com or follow Scotch Kitchen on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.