Marketing and Communications Strategy: Building Public Trust in Canadian Sustainable Beef
The Challenge (Project Goals): In 2024, the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB), a non-profit, multi-stakeholder organization formed in 2014, found itself at a pivotal moment in its organizational evolution. Having achieved significant milestones in its first decade, CRSB required a comprehensive communications strategy to build on past successes while addressing new challenges.
The challenge presented to our team was to develop enhanced strategies to achieve CRSB’s organizational communications and marketing goals, increase reach and impact, build awareness and public trust in sustainable beef practices, and promote the CRSB Certified program.
A key complexity in this project was navigating the relationship between the corporate entity (CRSB) and its certification program (CRSB Certified) while balancing the diverse needs of producers, processors, retailers, NGOs, and consumers across the entire beef value chain.
Our Solution (Research, Positioning, Creative and Media):
Research Approach
Our methodology employed a six-phase approach beginning with a comprehensive analysis of CRSB’s current communications landscape. We deployed online questionnaires to members and stakeholders, and facilitated strategic planning sessions to gain consensus on questionnaire takeaways.
Key insights revealed that:
1) the organization needed distinct but complementary communications approaches in five communications categories including CRSB as an entity and CRSB Certified as a program,
2) producers were a priority for the next 3 years, including ensuring targeted messaging focused on the value of certification, and
3) trust-building with consumers demanded dedicated attention including consistent, transparent communication about sustainability efforts.
Based on our research findings, we developed a strategic framework centered around five distinct communications categories:
For each category, we established clear prioritization, specific messaging objectives, and targeted audiences. The Consumer Trust and CRSB Certified categories were identified as primary priorities, each receiving approximately 35% of the communications budget, reflecting their critical importance to the organization’s mission.
With the strategic framework established, we developed comprehensive tactics for each communications category: Each tactic was accompanied by clear implementation guidelines, timelines, and measurement frameworks to ensure accountability and effectiveness.
Our Results: The strategic framework ensured an all-encompassing platform for CRSB’s communications efforts and allowed organizational alignment and clarity around communications priorities:
- Established clear differentiation between CRSB, CRSB Certified and other communication categories, and the role of each to carry out the organization’s mandate
- Provided a structured approach to resource allocation across five strategic communications categories
Created targeted messaging frameworks for each stakeholder group - Developed measurement systems to track communications effectiveness
Identified star tactic (priority) and support tactics for each communications group for the next 3 years
In September of 2025, Public Trustworks joined CRSB’s AGM where the communications strategy was presented by the communications committee to the membership. The approval of this 3-years Marketing and Communications Strategy, set the foundation for the upcoming work in 2024-2027.
The inclusive process ensured alignment of diverse stakeholder interests while creating focused, impactful messaging in complex organizational environments.
Our client was fully satisfied with the comprehensive strategic framework, which provided a clear roadmap for the next three years of communications activities while maximizing the impact of limited resources.
