THE INTERNATIONAL MINIATURE CATTLE
BREEDERS SOCIETY AND REGISTRY ®
a division of Happy Mountain® Farm Inc.
FINDING CUSTOMERS FOR MINIATURE CATTLE
THIS IS PART SIX OF A SIX PART SERIES

WHAT BUSINESS ARE WE REALLY IN?

BY PROFESSOR RICHARD GRADWOHL


In part one of this six part series I asked you to define what business we are in? I wrote, "By the way in a future issue I will help you define what business we are really in". Some of you hit the nail on the head while others have yet to find the hammer. Do you think Baskin & Robbins is in the business of selling ice cream? The answer to this question is really no. Baskin & Robbins is in the business of selling "pleasure". Do you think you and I are in the business of selling miniature cattle? The answer again is really a no. Another word that denotes pleasure is self-gratification. Pleasure is the game and miniature cattle is the aim. From a marketing point of view the product is really the means to an end. It goes by many other words, fun, excitement, enjoyment, gratifying, pride of ownership, delightful, its all a lot of pleasure. Have you ever been to an antique car show and seen the pride of ownership, the attention to detail, the overwhelming delight owners get from working with these older cars. What's it all about? Pleasure.

People who are buying miniature cattle are anticipating a pleasurable experience. It's what we can do with them and how the mind perceives how we are going to use them that make us want the pleasure of owning them. I've had customers tell me that they have just fallen in love with their particular cow or heifer. Isn't love based on pleasure? You bet. We can develop loving relationships with animals. It's said that a dog is mans best friend. Can't the same feelings of pleasurable affection be given to a cow or steer or a bull or a heifer? Yes, because their love can be unconditional too. Those eyes, that cute little face, I love my heifer, is a common statement you hear when people are talking about their miniature cattle. We are truly in the business of providing opportunities for pleasure to a segment of people that have the physical facilities, the finances and the want to satisfy their need for pleasure through owning miniature cattle. Or put another way you can't have a cow in an apartment and you're broke, even if you do like miniature cattle.

The emotion of pleasure is complex. It consists of varying intensity levels of the emotion of elation and love. We human beings have five basic emotions, fear, anger, love, elation and grief. We experience these emotions through sight, taste, smell, hearing and touch. There is a lot of psychology here. I've always said the study of marketing was really a study in psychology. Levels of pleasure are dependent on how we perceive an environment within which pleasure is to be derived. This is perception. Baskin & Robbins for example hired a consultant to find out why sales were slowing or lagging. The consultant told them to change their image to reach a younger target market. The result was new interior colors, pictures of balloons, a lively friendly atmosphere. This was all aimed at developing a store environment that promoted a pleasurable experience. B & R provides pleasure through sight, taste, smell and selections (31 Flavors), The comparison to the 2l breeds of miniature cattle is obvious.

If we are in the business of selling pleasure using miniature cattle as the product how do we define the customers that have the need, want, desire, facilities and finances? How do we project an image that promotes the idea of pleasure to these potential customers? How about pictures of little kids with little cattle, and a picture of a big kid (adult) with little cattle. Take a look again at the front cover of this newsletter. There I am, next to the little PandaTM heifer. It's a rather poor picture of me. My drooping stomach shows my mature age. At one time I was considered fairly good-looking. What it does show is that any idiot can have a good time with miniature cattle. You don't have to be smart because you just enjoy the relationship. I've shown this picture to several potential buyers. Most people can relate to this image projection. A fact of salesmanship is if you can close one-third of your prospects you're doing very well. If you can project an appealing image you will do better, perhaps up to 60%.

The American public is into image projection and symbolism. This applies to miniature cattle marketing as it does to all products. Look at the pictures on the following page. My grandson Justin is having a conversation with his new friend "Precious". What an appealing site. This picture conjures up fond memories of good times, healthy times, and younger times. This image projection promotes the anticipation of a pleasurable experience. The picture of the young boy in a squatting position looking at the heifer with the heifer apparently listening and looking back becomes a symbol of these pleasurable experiences. Our perception flows from the image projection to the symbolism. When this occurs it's called successful marketing. This is what marketers try to make happen through advertising, jingles and slogans.

The picture of me holding the calf is also a successful way to show size and weight comparison, which conjures up all kinds of positive comparisons. We as humans tend to learn best by contrast and comparisons. Our minds seem to grasp ideas better if we can compare the known (old knowledge) to the new. The projection of ourselves into the situation becomes clearer and more acceptable. Decisions are made in three stages, fantasy, tentative and commitment. People with the need, want, desire, facilities and finances will gradually decide to purchase miniature cattle as they "see themselves" in the picture having a pleasurable experience, They go through the fantasy, tentative, and commitment stages of the decision making process. If they can clearly identify with the anticipated pleasure of owning miniature cattle the decision to purchase can take place.

I recently bought some Dexters from a gal who was extremely glad to get rid of them. She had anticipated a soft, cuddly, loving relationship with these animals. Most people who have Dexters do have such a relationship, they all had very pointed sharp horns and were all very wild. She had had several close calls. In fact when I picked them up one of them went after her when we were loading them in the trailer. I've never seen a grown woman climb on top of a cattle trailer so fast. No ladder - Just leap. What a site! The point I'm making here is that the reality must match the image and symbolism. If it doesn't, someone was sold a bilI of goods and that is not good for our industry or anyone else. Make sure what you say your cattle are is what they are. If your cattle are a little wild you need to educate buyers on how to tame them down. Incidentally I dehorned these Dexters and there was a significant personality change. No horns no threat no fight. I don't like horns but that's just my opinion.

This is the last of this six part series. Hope you've enjoyed these six articles. They are, I think a little easier to grasp as a whole than one at a time. Most of you have said you've enjoyed them and that's good enough for me. If I have batted around 60% it's been worth the effort, I think I have. Now what do I do for an encore? Maybe you can give me some ideas.




Here's a rather interesting picture depicting size relationship. Dick is 5'9", Precious is only 14". Although she will of course grow taller we expect her to stay in the very low height range.

From a marketing point of view a picture like this projects the image of a positive relationship and the good time anyone can have with miniature cattle. Most people can identify and project themselves into this picture. The picture becomes the symbol of an expected pleasurable experience and therefore can influence the buying decision. When our perception flows from image projection to symbolism it's called successful marketing. This applies to the marketing of all products including miniature cattle.
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