Checking it Twice: Audit your Farm Store!
Overview
Ahead of your initial launch and prior to each season, it is important to review your Farm store to ensure you have implemented best practices that will attract Buyers and be simple to maintain. Keep your product inventory limited to make it easy for customers to shop, with convenient fulfillments to access your goods. Make your Farm shopping experience consistent, so Buyers know what to expect, trust making a purchase from you and are encouraged to continue shopping with you.
Barn2Door builds Farms an easy-to-shop and customizable Farm storefront that Buyers can access online and in-person, 24/7, meaning you will never miss out on a sale (online or in-person). Serve Wholesale, Retail and Private Buyers and sell on your own terms with various fulfillment, payment and bundling options.
Customer-Facing Farm Store
Your Farm store should provide an experience that is smooth and simple to ensure Buyers will return in the future. Do not overwhelm Buyers with too many product pages or confusing titles and Subscriptions. Your Farm store may be the first experience local customers have with your Brand.
Listen: Farm Storefront Best Practices
Among the most successful Farmers, 80% of purchases come from pages in your Farm store. It is ideal to have less than 100 items in your store (preferably less than 50). Buyers do not want to search through multiple pages to find what they want to buy. If your shop is overwhelming, customers may abandon shopping altogether. “Pin” your Top 5-10 best-selling, high-value items at the top of your Farm store so it is the first thing a Buyer sees when accessing your shop. Up to 60% of your purchases will come from the Top 3-5 items pinned to the top of your store. These products attract Buyers, and make it simple for loyal customers to shop.
When choosing inventory pictures for your items, make sure they are appealing and professional. Do not choose blurry photos, or shots of raw butchered animals that are not presentable, as this may drive away potential Buyers. Consider using photos of packaged cuts, cooked products or staged imagery of any raw items being prepped to cook. Photos of produce, dairy products or pantry goods should also be enticing to Buyers, while still showing them what they can expect to receive from a purchase (packaging, size, mix, etc.).
To increase sales, incrementally run live promotions on “specific products” in your store and use your newsletter and a banner to share the code, any seasonal deals or important announcements. Providing various incentives to your products will increase your ability to market in a way that will attract local Buyers and make it enticing to shop your products. Ensure each product is correctly labeled and has an accurate description to minimize the amount of questions a customer may have, making it easier for them to self-serve purchase.
2. Farm Product Fulfillments
Product fulfillments should be consistently offered and conveniently accessible. Buyers should know what to expect from your Farm, whether they place a one-time order or purchase a recurring Subscription. Have set schedules for your fulfillments of your products. This will make it easier to keep track of what orders need to be delivered or picked up on a given day, and you can market these dates on social media and newsletters for potential Buyers who will gauge if your available fulfillment options fit into their routine. Subscriptions and bulk items are typically fulfilled on a bi-weekly or monthly basis, while one time purchases may be more frequent, such as weekly pick-ups.
If Buyers are expected to pick up their order, you should offer times and days that are convenient for their schedule. Many Buyers may have full-time jobs, so only having a pick-up at 1-3pm on Mondays and Wednesdays may deter them from making a purchase. Consider surveying your local Buyers to find what days, times and locations best suit their schedules for a pick-up. When setting up a pick-up location, consider local landmarks that are a part of your community’s local loop, such as churches, schools or popular neighborhood businesses. This will make it even easier for Buyers to access your products.
The most successful Farms will offer deliveries to the doorstep for a fee (that busy Buyers are willing to pay!). However, you will want to set a geographical limit to the number of zip codes in which you are willing to deliver your products. It may not be worthwhile to drive 4 hours to deliver two orders. Instead, create delivery zones by zip code so you can set expectations for Buyers. Many Farms will initially offer 2-5 zip codes that are eligible for delivery (and expand over time), which will auto-populate for customers when they choose a fulfillment. Ensure you are making delivery profitable, and offer this as a convenience that 80% of Buyers are willing to pay for!
3. Farm Inventory
Decision fatigue can lead a potential Buyer to exit your store if there are too many products to view. Keep your inventory counted limited (<100 items) and focus on those items that drive 80%+ of your revenue. There is a balance between offering a variety of products to suit multiple customers’ needs, but not overwhelming them with too many options. Consider that new Buyers may want a one-time Bundle purchase to try your products, while loyal customers may want a recurring Subscription to consistently receive an order.
Farms typically offer a variety of product sizes to serve a range of household sizes. When offering Bundle Boxes or Subscriptions, give Buyers the option to choose a size that best fits their needs. Boxes can come in small (1 person), medium (2-3 people) and large formats (4+ people), so customers can choose exactly what their household needs without wasting product (or worrying about receiving too many or too few items).
‘Pin’ your Top 5-10 best-sellers and seasonal products to the top of your store front to immediately catch Buyers’ attention. Successful Farms will pin their Bundle Boxes and Subscriptions to the top of their store to attract valuable purchases first from Buyers. Make good use of this space since it is the first thing customers will see when they access your store. You can make it even easier to shop by using custom categories for your products, so Buyers can filter through your inventory (e.g. Pantry Items, Dairy, Beef, etc.). The easier (and faster!) it is to make a purchase, the happier you can make your customers!
4. Customer Management Center
Stay organized when managing your customers’ orders and contact information. This is crucial for both your sales and marketing. With a customer management center that is built just for Farmers, you can access Buyer emails, past orders and payments (with filters by Buyer type, group, etc.). This streamlines the process of organizing your orders and ensuring every detail is correct for new and returning customers.
To spur repeat purchases in your Farm store be sure to configure standing Order Reminders. You can toggle these on and off in your store, and have various reminders with segmented groups depending on their actions (e.g. abandoning a cart, frequent Buyers). Use FOMO (fear-of-missing-out) language (e.g. Last Chance!) and order cut-off days and times to ensure you are securing every possible order, and so Buyers do not forget about your products.
Conclusion
Maintaining a Farm store that is easy to shop and attractive to Buyers is crucial to create a sustainable business. Consistently review your store to ensure best practices are in place each season (and prior to your initial launch!). Other best practices can include linking your store on social media profiles and in newsletters, and synchronizing online and in-person sales (with a Point-of-Sale) and surveying Buyers routinely to know what they want from your Farm.
Barn2Door offers software for Independent Farmers to create and promote their brand, sell online and in-person, and save time managing their business. If you’re curious to learn more, watch this 5-minute video.