How This Farm Increased Sales by Focusing on Fewer Farmer’s Markets
As 1 in 3 Americans have ordered Food online, Farmers are using their attendance at markets to spread awareness of their brand and convert buyers to loyal online customers.
Traditional in-person channels, such as farmer’s markets, are a great way to spread awareness about your products and build relationships. They are also an excellent avenue to redirect customers to your Webstore, where you can increase your average order size, build a more loyal network of customers, and drive more consistent, recurring orders from your Farm. As 99% of Americans don’t regularly attend a farmer’s market, it’s critical for Farmers to invest in an online presence to ensure long-term success.
When Bennett Farms (MI) opened their online store in 2019, they attracted more customers and experienced steady sales growth. By prioritizing convenience and understanding buyers' expectations, Tom converted farmer’s market attendees into loyal customers by informing them of their online store. As a result, Tom has become more strategic about which farmer’s markets to attend to increase his visibility, yet attend fewer markets and fuel sales growth simultaneously.
Here’s are Tom’s tactics to success (doubling his sales year-over-year):
Leveraging Farm Handouts
To increase conversions and meet buyers' expectations of convenience, it’s essential to inform potential buyers on what they’re missing – other high-quality products from your Farm! When most buyers discover a new product or brand for the first time, they don’t often buy on the spot. By driving awareness of his online store, Tom can share how to access his products anytime (beyond the market):
Orders don’t magically happen. You have to go out and tell people about it! You need to put in the leg work to make it happen, and it will.
Tom created flyers with information about his Farm. Buyers could view a flyer at the farmer’s market (or posted in a coffee shop) and quickly know how to order from the Bennett Farms Webstore. Using flyers has allowed Tom to increase brand awareness, promote seasonal products, and announce special deals. Adding a QR code to his flyers allows potential customers to quickly sign up for Tom’s newsletter and gain access to other specialty products, too.
If there is a slow day at the market and you don't make very many sales, you better have talked to 100 people about purchasing from your online store. Make flyers - pass those out!
Eliminate Barriers to Purchasing by Offering More Convenience
Tom has created a loyal network of customers through his online store. Buyers can order from the convenience of their own home anytime, anywhere, without attending the weekly market. His online store offers the ability to subscribe to products every week, including direct delivery.
Having a self-serve store is great. In the middle of the night, people are still buying stuff! It’s awesome that my Farm store never closes. We’ve never found ourselves sitting on products we couldn’t sell.
Coupled with convenient pick-up locations (at the farmer’s market) and including options for direct delivery, Bennett Farms continues to double their revenue year-over-year. Buyers enjoy the same convenience from Bennett Farms as they do from billion-dollar companies like Amazon or Target – however, they enjoy fresh Farm products from their local Farm instead.
An Investment in Growing a Loyal Customer Base
In less than 12 months, Bennett Farms has grown their customer base by more than 150%. How? With continued investment in capturing customers’ contact information at the markets. As 90% of buyers prefer to receive updates about the Farm in the form of a Newsletter, we know that Farms who send weekly emails can grow their revenue by up to +28%! Tom pays every employee at the market $1 for every verified email collected, knowing that this will pay dividends:
Sending emails to my contact list is like collecting gold from an ATM for my business.
With each newsletter Tom sends, he includes recommended products and directs subscribers to shop his Webstore to access the latest items. Email keeps his Farm top of mind and drives consistent monthly sales for his business.
Read: Tactics that 3 Farms Implemented to Grow to $100k in 1 Year
Listen: Tom’s Tactics to Doubling Sales
The Result
By focusing his attention on converting farmer’s market customers to online customers, Bennett Farms has tripled their average order size online, delighting more customers with convenient access to their products! With Barn2Door, Tom creates a seamless shopping experience where buyers have access to all of his products, multiple fulfillment options that meet a variety of needs, and the ability to subscribe to the Farm anytime.
Barn2Door provides an all-in-one solution for Farmers to grow and manage their business. If you’re curious to learn why successful Farms run on Barn2Door, watch this 5-minute video.