Getting closer to consumers in very different cultures has become increasingly important for Silver Fern Farms.
Marketing general manager Sharon Angus, who recently spent time in Shanghai, Riyadh and Dubai, said it was about ''getting inside their head'' and really understanding them.
Earlier this year, the company launched a branded retail range of lamb into Shanghai, and it has recently launched Silere Alpine Origin Merino in the United Arab Emirates and a new line of chilled lamb and beef products in Saudi Arabia.
It also planned to introduce Silere and its Premier Selection Reserve beef to Saudi Arabian consumers.
Talking to consumers was nothing new but while a lot of research had been done in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Germany, it was the first time the company had been getting close to consumers in very different cultures, Ms Angus said.
In China, consumers were not just concerned about food safety; they were scared of contamination.
While halal was very important in the Middle East, it was the process they wanted to know about.
They wanted to know every step along the way, from the farm to it being delivered to them.
It was all about working out what resonated with the consumer, Ms Angus said.
Focus groups, involving getting groups of women together and finding out what made them buy premium products, were very valuable.
As a marketer, it was about working out not what the consumer was thinking now, but what they would be thinking in the future.
The changing world included the growth of social media and the advent of online shopping, which was a ''whole different way of thinking'', she said.
''You can't be scared of change. It's about recognising the changing trends and making sure you have the right insights to make them work and make them work with the right people. You've got to try things to see what really works,'' she said.
What was exciting was Silver Fern Farms was ''trying different stuff'' and while it took time to see returns, it was now starting to come to some fruition.
''We've got a brand that means something,'' she said.
Silver Fern Farms was focusing on five key markets for its premium products - China, the Middle East, the United States (for grass-fed beef), a small part of Europe, and New Zealand.
There were a lot of opportunities. China was exciting: The market had ''exploded'' and it was going to be a fascinating one, she said.
While Silver Fern Farms had a huge presence as a commodity product exporter to China, it wanted to target the country's growing middle class with its premium products.
The Chinese were increasingly interested in the story of Silere - a joint-venture meat brand between Silver Fern Farms and The New Zealand Merino Company.
Consumers increasingly cared about the source of their products and Silere had a ''unique story'', Ms Angus said.
It came from merino sheep that roamed free-range in the high country, with ''endless landscapes under a vast and silent sky, plenty of fresh air and pure water''.
That combined to produce a very distinctive product with a ''real point of difference'', Ms Angus said.
At the launch in Dubai, a chef cooked Silere three different ways and ''raved'' about the product, along with the story, she said.
Chefs in New Zealand were ''clearly catching on'' to the quality and consistency of the Premier Selection Reserve beef, Ms Angus said.
More than a third of chefs entered in the second annual Silver Fern Farms Premier Selection awards were using it in their dish and she believed that was partly due to the company's new Eating Quality System.
In the competition, chefs create a dish using Silver Fern Farms cuts. The dishes can be tasted at participating restaurants from September 22 to October 31.
At the same time, a team of food experts, overseen by judging co-ordinator Kerry Tyack, will assess the chefs' entries. The winner will be announced on February 3.
Southern entrants in this year's competition are Luna Bar and Restaurant, Pier 24 and Two Chefs Bistro in Dunedin, The Thomas Green in Gore, and Wild Earth, Gantleys, Wakatipu Grill, Pier 19, Carrick Winery and True South Restaurant in Queenstown.