Farm Marketing: Aspects of Direct-to-Consumer Marketing

by John Berry, Extension Educator, Lehigh County

Direct-to-consumer farm marketing enjoys a special space in east coast agriculture.  Not only do we have some of the best land and productive farmers in our midst - we have millions of hungry consumers surrounding our farms.  These ready consumers not only seek farm products, foods and knowledge - they seek a connection to farm experiences.

One of the areas of retail farm marketing and agri-tourism of particular interest for enhanced professional development to many direct-to-consumer farm marketers centers on merchandising concepts.

Merchandising - pricing, product packaging, market facility and fixtures - sums up all the means you can use to sell your product, and encourages the customer to buy as much as possible.

Attractive signage can entice customers to purchase

Signs - product description, consumer awareness and general written communications - are one key element of merchandising.  Signage is your major means of communication with customers.  What you say is important to the customer in choosing what to buy, or whether to buy, so make sure the information on the sign is complete and accurate.  Always make sure your signs are clean and neat - a worn out sign will undo all the effects of an otherwise perfect display.

When you have the room, don't assume that every customer knows everything about even the most basic item.  Don't be afraid to add information like "Best Apple Pie" or "Best Baked Potato."  In any case, all products which are new, unusual, or seasonal, should be adequately signed.

Signs can also be used to promote items that are especially good buys, or tie-ins with other items in your or another department.  Signs can also emphasize nutritional information on particular items.   Signs are provided by many suppliers, trade associations, and organizations like the American Cancer Society.  Use these to best advantage, but don't rely solely on them to do the job.  Good signage can increase your sales, so use your imagination and create your own "best sellers."

Display techniques - what is being done to show farm products in their best light and encourage purchasing - are another key element of merchandising.  Your market layout may be parallel counters with displays in between, or a lateral maze with counters extending into the center.  You may even have chosen a boutique style layout, with displays in clusters.

Jams are displayed using a cluster, boutique style, layout.

Whichever layout you've chosen, the main feature of its design is to control the movement of your customers so they spend the maximum amount of time in your department, and are exposed to all your products.

The manner in which you display your merchandise within this framework can enhance their captivating environment and maximize your sales opportunities.  It would be defeating your purpose, for example, to put all your basic, staple items in one area, when a customer might make his most urgent purchases and then leave your department without seeing what else you have to offer.  To eliminate this problem, scatter your high-demand "power" items throughout your department, next to impulse items.

To further the education of those active in retail farm marketing and agri-tourism (market owners, managers, other personnel, etc.), Penn State Extension is offering a two-day bus tour of twelve premiere farm markets in northern New Jersey and Connecticut with plenty of ideas, education, food and fun for all.

We have something for everyone - seasonal, year-round, produce, food, tourism, value-added, pick-your-own, entertainment and educational farm direct-to-consumer marketing at its finest!  Not to mention the "classroom-on-wheels" as we travel between markets with opportunities to network and learn from each other.

Tour information, details, and registration is available here. 

Savvy Farm Promotion, Made Simple

On a recent farm marketing tour a group of growers were able to experience the gamut of retail farm marketing from large corporations that incorporate small market aesthetics to small markets making full use of the mobile and internet tools available to them. 

Giant Eagle's apple display signage

One large corporation, Giant Eagle Market District in Pittsburgh, is taking marketing back to its roots.  Utilizing hand-painted signage and displays that look like I could put them together in my garage, they were able to take what sounds like a rustic set-up and make it eye-catching and even beautiful. Their store displayed a large variety of national brands, local produce, and locally made value added products such as baked goods and sauces all in one convenient location for the consumer. Cues can be taken from their straightforward signage and grouped display stations that dominated the store, making it easily navigable for customers. 

Peach display at Giant Eagle. Notice the inclusion of pie-baking supplies.

On the flip side we visited a family farm, Covered Bridge Gardens, in Ohio who is utilizing cutting edge technology to get the word out to their CSA and farmers’ market customers. In addition to their slick looking website linking their Facebook page, blog, and e-commerce site, the farm is in the initial development stages of an app for smartphones.  This app will alert their CSA customers to surplus produce or changes in their pickup schedules.  It will help customers find them at area farmers markets, link to their online store on their website and make every part of their business literally available at their finger tips.  With the trend of smartphone users to utilize their devices more for social media and web surfing rather than for simple calling, transitioning to an app is a logical method for Covered Bridge Gardens to reach their customers in the way that is most convenient for both parties.

In discussion after our groups visit to Covered Bridge Gardens, a tour attendee brought up a good point.  If you are unable to be lucky enough or willing to pay the money for the development of your own farm app, a great way to replicate some of the functions is through the use of QR codes.  Many area markets are starting to add these codes to their value added product labels, door stickers and the backs of their business cards.  When incorporated correctly, meaning printed in a clear and easy to identify fashion, these codes can be used as another quick methods to direct customers to your website.  Especially useful if your site offers an e-commerce shopping section allowing customers to make purchases directly on the web. Just think if you pick up a jar of your favorite spicy gooseberry jelly at a market while traveling and was savoring the last bits at the bottom of the jar.  Wouldn’t it be nice to scan a quick code from the back of that jar with your phone as you savored your last mouthful and be instantly directed to a site where you could order more?  I think this sounds downright delightful, and delicious!

For more information on QR codes, straightforward signage and displays for your market, or technology based marketing options for your business check out the Ag Entrepreneurship Team’s past blog posts.  Here are a few of my favorites:

What's that square? Using QR codes for marketing

Best Practices for Farm Market Vendors - signage and display tips

Why Mobile Payment Systems Might Work for Your Business

This post comes from the newest member of Penn State Extension's Ag Entrepreneurship Team, Carla Snyder. Carla is the Ag Entrepreneurship/Marketing educator in Adams County, PA.

Cross Promotion: Partnering With Other Business to Better Serve Your Customers, Part III

In this final installment of discussing cross promoting I've suggested thinking about hosting events with complementary businesses and how this partnership might "cost" businesses involved in such a venture.

Hosting Events Together

Though one business may develop the vision for an event the responsibility of coordinating and implementing it needs to be shared. There are advantages that two or more establishments provide and gain by working together.  For example, if an event’s focus is outdoor entertaining the retailer may be interested in pairing up with a local winery or specialty food retailer. Another complementary business could be a local florist.

Allow time for a series of demonstrations, such as meal preparation using value-added processed foods, home entertaining, and flower arranging. Both businesses should also provide goods that could be included in gift baskets for sale, raffle, or door prize.

             

Considering Your Costs

Cross promotion cannot be implemented without certain “costs.”  Some of which include:

·    how much complementary product should be used in displays,

·    whether or not the shelf or floor space will be provided for free or if the space will be rented,

·    what discounts to apply if customers buy a combination of products offered by both businesses,

·    how advertising and promotional costs will be shared,

·    how many times during a season or year each business will agree to provide information for blogs, newsletters, etc. and the number of feature articles each business will write, and

·    how staff will be allocated for events and activities, if one business provides space for the event what the other business will offer in compensation.

Additionally, staff should be educated about the complementary products, how to use the item, benefits for customers, and related.  Staff should be able to answer basic questions about why the businesses are cross promoting each others’ product and provide customers with at least an introduction on how to use the products. 

These are just a few possibilities for cross promotion and obtaining access to new customers.  Your decision will ultimately depend on the amount of time you and your staff have available, your budget, business goals, and facilities available.  There are tradeoffs to consider; however, working together can provide benefits for your business and customers you serve. 

Cross Promotion: Partnering With Other Business to Better Serve Your Customers, Part I

           With consumers desiring outdoor living spaces, complete with lighting and kitchen components, and baskets filled with wine, assorted cheese, and other food and non-edible items always proving to be popular gift items, how can ag. retailers provide such items when they do not stock and sell all the components?  One idea is to partner with business owners who sell complementary goods and services, thus the two businesses work together to help customers obtain a complete “package.”  

           Promoting goods and services offered by business owners you have an existing and trusted relationship with takes the guess work out of where to direct customers and your recommendation also helps reduce the risk for your customers.  Such a situation, known as cross promotion, is based on two (or more) businesses working together towards a common goal.  

        In this blog posting I’ve presented ideas for cross promoting in the retail space, but over the next couple of posts I’ll provide examples of how retailers can cross promote in other ways.  When cross promoting works, efforts coordinated with a complementary business provides certain benefits:
· expanding your customer base,
· greater reach with promotions and advertising,
· reduced marketing costs, and
· increased profits

Putting Items on Display

        Displaying items produced or sold by complementary businesses is one cross promotion strategy.  You may already have relationships with business owners who produce or sell items that would complement what you offer, but what if you do not?   What goods and services could appeal to your customer based on their demographics, behaviors, and interests?  If you do not already sell items like bath and body products, jewelry, specialty foods, place settings, or the like, search for businesses that do.  Once you have assembled a list, learn about clientele they serve, search for reviews customers post online about their shopping experiences, and investigate as much as you can about their business practices before requesting to meet.  Just as you put thought into developing a relationship with a new vendor the same amount of consideration is required when selecting a business to cross promote products.  

        Signage placed next to items should include a description of the product as well as information about the complementary business (e.g. business history, other available products, contact information) and an explanation as to why the product is so unique that you decided to display it in your store.  Don’t forget to ask the other business to reciprocate by incorporating select products you offer into their displays.

        The possibilities of what type of businesses to cross promote with are endless.  Displaying complementary items together is just one step, in the next few postings I’ll provide examples of how to cross promoting when communicating with customers and when hosting events, as well as the “costs” to consider before committing to this partnership.

Retailers - keep rotating merchandise and rearranging displays

Most every retailer has started decorating for the winter holidays, or at least will choose to do so after Thanksgiving.  Nevertheless, all retailers should understand the importance of changing the “look” of their outlet on a regular basis, whether it is a display, a window, or how customers will walk the floor. 

Why might you want to change or rearrange product placement or how customers must walk to get to key departments or merchandise?  The reason is simple – if you keep products displayed in the same location or do not rotate merchandise in key sales areas it is likely that repeat customers, who are accustomed to purchasing one or two items and then leave the premises, will never notice items other than what is on their list.  By moving “anchor goods” (items that customers purchase often and “draw” consumers to visit the retailer) to other locations, or mixing seasonal goods in with more commonly stocked items (so that customers looking for holiday decorations will notice other products) customers will certainly notice items that they may not have considered or may not even have realized were stocked and sold.

Aside from rotating merchandise, another way to periodically change the look of a display, or draw attention to a particular area, is to set up temporary and portable backdrops that complement product placed in front.  One way to achieve the goal of easily and cost effectively changing a backdrop is to hang fabric.  The numbers of colors and textures available, as well as being relatively easy to store, provide a realistic solution for retailers who may not have a large floor space and are limited in how they can rearrange merchandise.

Now, how often should you rearrange or change the look of your outlet?  It is suggested that retailers change some component of their window or floor display, or other design element, at least once a month; however, if your average customer visits more frequently than consider changing and rearranging more often. Again, it is in not necessary to completely rotate and/or redesign the entire retail space at this frequency, rather find something that you can change easily and that customers will notice.   

Lessons learned from Ag Progress Days

On Thursday, I visited Ag Progress Days for the first time ever. It was an amazing combination of all things agriculture. Most of the vendors had well-designed displays. Unfortunately, a few displays were just not helpful. If you saw Jeff's tweets from APD last week, you may have read about some vendors reading books at their displays and not looking very welcoming to potential customers.

Besides the reading vendors, I think the most lackluster display can be seen above (I waited until someone stood in front of the table to protect the identity of the vendor). As you can see, the "display" consists of banner with the business's name, an employee sitting at the table (behind the standing man), and a few brochures. As a potenial customer, what would bring me to this booth? The banner doesn't even give an idea what kind of business it is.

When setting up a vendor booth, remember that you are there to attract customers. With hundreds of other vendors at Ag Progress Days, attendees have a lot to see. Your display should sell your business without you even having to say a word. In an article by Startup Nation, a website developed to give how-to advice to entrepreneurs, they give tips on creating a vendor booth.

Tip 1: Spend serious time planning. "Create specialized, eye-catching marketing materials...The idea is to get attendees to stop. Think of your marketing materials as 'bait for fishing in the aisles.'"

Tip 2: Put your signage in sharp focus. "Make your booth signage as focused as your overall trade-show approach. Your backdrop should be simple and concise – five or six words to tell your story; something that people cruising by will get quickly. Also, design two-sided business cards for the event. Include contact info and a photo on one side, with a list of benefits in working with you on the other."

Tip 3: Choose your floor location carefully. "Where you park yourself is key...A corner, an island, a peninsula is the most ideal situation because of traffic flow and visibility. And don’t sit. Sitting behind an exhibit booth sends the message that you’re not interested or aggressive. People will just keep on walking."

Startup Nation article

As an ag entrepreneur, have you participated in any fairs or shows? Have you developed a strategy for your display? Do you have any other advice for potential vendors?