International fairs and conferences always offer great opportunities to meet colleagues from other countries and look at different marketing approaches. At Fruit Logistica in February, while enjoying a generous glass of German beer, an American counterpart commented that, whereas most European campaigns talked about product origin, he believed in America much more effective communications were being built around simpler, more powerful branding. Quality is an issue for every producer and every buyer, whether dealing with commodities or with the high-end products in which Europe excels. Quality is also the only argument European producers have left in favour of demanding high prices, despite the availability of much cheaper imported goods, and therefore of ensuring competitiveness and profitability.
The question that follows is: how can we guarantee quality? One can create a sector organisation and implement a quality protocol, or one can apply for a European quality designation such as a pgi or a pdo seal, which imply that certain quality standards will follow. In Europe we are often talking about very fragmented sectors (nothing like the huge farms one sees in the US), so obtaining a pgi or pdo standard is an effective way to implement quality protocols. The problem comes when the proliferation of pgis and pdos is such that consumers are presented with hundreds of them and do not know how to choose between them. This brings us to the point. Having a quality symbol is not sufficient when it comes to marketing – quality origin is not a brand concept in itself. Quality origin should be accompanied by a set of relevant and distinctive values that build a brand universe that is sufficiently appealing for consumers.
Look at lemons, for instance. A few weeks ago, plans to create an appellation of origin for lemons were unveiled in Orihuela, in the Spanish province of Alicante. The strategy seems like a good idea in principle, but when you look at the other quality seals that already exist for Spanish citrus – the Ailimpo ‘Certified for export’ brand for Spanish lemons, the Valencian citrus pgi and so on – one wonders if the Alicantinos can offer a marketing strategy that will really set them apart. Perhaps the best example of a lemon brand linked to origin that retains a powerful marketing base is All Lemon, launched in 2009. During its short existence, the Argentinians have managed to build a strong brand proposition that has caught the attention of importers and retailers worldwide. Yes, they are talking about origin and quality, but they are also conveying their message via an extremely well-orchestrated marketing campaign where every detail counts: visual icons, language, colours, media mix… Everything communicates the same idea – that these are the world’s juiciest lemons.
So, why choose between the American vision of strong branding and the European approach of quality origin, when in fact you can have the best of both worlds? The Argentinians have shown us that this is perfectly possible.
