4/17/2009
Marketing Ideas and
Covering today:
Marketing Ideas and Tactics
1. Why marketing 2. Your pitch 3. Tactics 4. Free Ideas
Your Business Key start up Activities
• • • • • • Business Planning w/ Financial Planning Market Research Marketing Pricing Strategies Rules and Regulation Investigation Liability Protection and Planning
Market Research and Feasibility
Market Research is essential and can be simple. First steps: • Internet searching • Call producers in other states for ideas • Go where you want to sell • Interviews and questionnaires • May want to conduct formal feasibility study
Why Marketing is Important: What customers buy
• Customers don’t just buy ‘meat’! • Customers buy the brand and the image you present in your area • Customers buy from you for your story • Customers buy because they have trust in your products • Customers buy because they know you
Your One Minute Pitch or Story
Marketing is succinct. It is a quick image or statement that a potential buyer remembers. remembers
Create your one minute pitch right now!
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Marketing Tactics
“Tactics” simply imply measures, means or avenues you’ll use: • Registering your business name in state • Website, now essential for most business • Regular email correspondence • Paper goods (biz cards, letterhead, etc.) • Logo wear and items • Participating in a branding program
Managing Marketing Tactics
Be conservative and cost effective Website: Set up and manage your own: godaddy.com,homestead.com,costco.com • Emails usually come with these • Logos and paper goods; start w/ biz cards and branch out • Grants and branding programs can help pay
Combo Marketing
How to Combo Market
• Be in the public when selling and marketing: farmers markets • Be at the point of sale for restaurant sales • Conduct demos in stores for retail sales • Offer your products in a variety of venues, visit the venues regularly (Don’t just be at one) • Enlist ‘quasi distributors’ and incent them
The act of combining marketing and selling for maximum cost, time management and impact
Marketing Ideas that are Free
• • • • Use media, be interviewed Flyers and emails y Start a customer or a prospect newsletter Announce yourself
Using Media
Contact magazines, newspapers, websites, TV and radio-ask them to interview you! • Have your 1 minute story ready • Find the right person in your organization to do the talking • Ask for review • Post these positive stories/podcasts
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Flyers and Emails
Create simple flyer Word ™ or PowerPoint ™ • B i t create a customer list, sign Begin to t t li t i people up • Send regularly, establish a pattern • Send only useful, interesting or ‘deals’ • Don’t abuse your email list
Customer Newsletter
Start a customer or a prospect newsletter • Use the customer email list you’ve built y • Use the a simple format like Word ™, “constant contact”, or your web provider • Keep an archive, publish older newsletters • Ask for feedback, give incentives for it
Announce Yourself
When you have a message, tell people you know! • Groups and organizations • Sign up to speak and represent in the community • Inform centers of influence (tourism boards, etc)
Bottom Line
Value Added Products = Relationship Building with general public
*If you don’t like dealing with the public, consider wholesale instead
Questions?
Get it today!!
See me for a copy of:
Starting and Running Your Own Small Farm Business $19.95
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4/17/2009
Contact information
Sarah Aubrey, Prosperity Ag Resources and Communications sarah@ndwave.com 765-621-8501 Blog:www.prosperityagresources.wordpress. com Website: www.prosperityagresources.com
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