We Have the Meats: Broaden a Familiar Brand Through Its Product Range

Read the campaign story

Arby’s introduced We Have the Meats in 2014. Associated Press reporting that November places the television launch in the summer and describes product close-ups with Ving Rhames’s voiceover. The company had appointed Fallon earlier that year. The appointment date is not treated as the campaign launch, and no exact first broadcast day is asserted.

Taylor Snyder’s creative portfolio describes the intended shift from a roast-beef-only association toward a wider offer, and documents films, posters and local-market material with named creative credits. This study groups those product-led expressions as one platform. Portfolio claims of increased sales are not adopted as causal evidence, and the campaign’s assertive language is not treated as a nutritional, safety or comparative-quality finding.

Editorial interpretation: an established association can be both an asset and a constraint. Being remembered for one product helps recognition, but it may prevent customers from considering other relevant options. A range-led campaign can work from that existing memory rather than discard it. The creative task is to show useful variation while retaining a simple organising idea, so breadth does not become an unstructured list that is harder to remember than the original association.

Editorial interpretation: the campaign puts the offer at the centre of a repeatable presentation. A distinctive voice can give ordinary product information a recognisable tone, but confidence and familiarity should not be mistaken for substantiation. The strategic lesson is to identify what the audience currently overlooks, then make that part of the offer easier to understand. It is not to assume that louder language or more dramatic imagery makes a stronger factual case.

Find the narrow association before trying to expand it

Ask what people already connect with the brand and which relevant options they do not expect it to provide. Distinguish a lack of awareness from a lack of interest or suitability. A small business can test a few task-based descriptions rather than simply asking whether customers know the full catalogue. Use the existing association as an entry point where it remains accurate. Repositioning is more useful when it answers a specific misunderstanding than when it asks an audience to forget everything familiar and learn a broad new claim from scratch.

Choose examples that demonstrate meaningful breadth

Show differences that help someone decide, such as use, format or practical requirements, rather than presenting many nearly identical items. Keep the organising principle visible across the examples. A small team can build a compact range map and ask reviewers which option fits a supplied task. Include situations where the brand has no suitable offer. This checks whether the communication improves understanding instead of merely creating an impression of abundance. The purpose of showing a range is to support a better match, not to imply that one provider is appropriate for every need.

Keep a distinctive voice separate from evidence

A strong delivery style can make a message recognisable without proving the statements it contains. Review factual claims independently of the performance and ensure that useful qualifications survive in shorter versions. Do not rely on an admired voice to validate a technical assertion or make a scripted role look like an unaffiliated recommendation. A small organisation can test the same information in plain text to see whether the proposition remains clear. If confidence disappears when the performance is removed, add relevant evidence rather than simply increasing the intensity of the presentation.

A small test for another brief

Proposed adaptation: a fictional print shop known only for postcards could compare two paper advertisements showing its poster, booklet and card options. One uses a clear recurring headline and the other a neutral catalogue format. Both provide the same specifications and limitations. Ask consenting adults to match options to supplied projects. There is no actual order, food, dietary information or imitation of the historical voiceover.

Measure correct range recall, task matching and unsupported assumptions about quality or universal suitability. Separate recognition of tone from knowledge of the offer. Do not infer sales, preference or product superiority from the paper review.

Stop if breadth implies that every need is covered, a performance substitutes for evidence or the concept disparages people with different preferences.

• Start with one accurately stated existing association.
• Show a few meaningfully different uses and a no-match case.
• Provide equivalent plain-text information without dramatic styling.