Great Marketing Advice Part 2: Three Steps That Will Get New Customers to Your Farm

Greg Judy turned On Pasture onto Charlotte Smith, saying hers was the best marketing advice he’d heard. Last week we shared her first article covering six steps for getting started making money from your farm. This week she takes a deeper look at one of those steps: Attract your dream customer.

I work with thousands of farmers weekly, and their number one struggle is they don’t know how to find or get more customers to their farm or place of business, or they can’t get customers who will pay the price they need to be profitable.

They have a great farm product, but reaching more people is a constant challenge. And without customers you don’t have a business and can’t sell. This article will give you the foundation to find more customers, get them to your farm and ultimately buy from you at the end of the day.

Now, let’s get you started!

Step 1: Identify Your Dream Customer

A common misconception I hear a lot is that you want “everyone” to come to your farm and buy your products.

“You do not want or need “everyone” to buy from you.”

Having that mindset will keep your marketing efforts from ever getting off the ground. And this is a huge mistake. Trust me.

We’ve all had our share of crappy customers that don’t get it and only want a discount. If you want more customers to buy from you (on a consistent basis), identify your ideal customer and focus on them: Loyal, repeat customers who love your product are proud to call you their farmer will tell their friends about you.

The #1 way to build a loyal following of customers (that love and adore you) is to get laser specific on who you are selling to.

Think back to the last transaction you had with a customer who purchased your product. It could be a phone conversation, an exchange at a Farmer’s Market, or someone that drove out to your farm. If you don’t have customers yet, that’s ok, create this ideal person in your mind. Visualizing your dream customer has proven to work wonders!

The fancy marketing term for identifying this ONE person is your ‘Ideal Customer Profile’ and I like to call him/her your “Dream Customer.” Once you create your dream customer all of your marketing efforts will fall into place.

Take a minute to imagine and identify 2-3 customers that you LOVE. Your list might include things like this:

• You wish you could clone this dream customer because they value your product.
• Your dream customer is happy to drive to your farm regularly for something specific.
• They’re understanding of your prices and willing to pay without complaining.
• They tell their friends about you and rave about how their life has changed because of you.

Once you’ve identified this person it’s time to have a conversation that will give your marketing the boost it needs.

Step 2: Have a Conversation

If you’re struggling to get customers to your farm, and you want to change that, have real conversations with your dream customer in-person or on the phone. Ideally, you should be talking to customers weekly, but if you’re just starting out, 3 people is your goal here.

This step is critical if you want to increase sales and get new customers to your farm. Most farmers are afraid to do this (because they’re introverted), but if they do, it’s THE MOST POWERFUL STEP in the process.

During the conversation you want to find out:

• What their problems are…
• What they struggle with…
• What their hopes, dreams, aspirations are…
• How your product solves a problem…
• How your product has impacted their life…

This information is marketing gold.

Step 3: Use Their Language

Now that you’ve had a conversation, it’s time to attract your dream customer in your marketing.

Once you discover what they’re struggling with and how you can help them, it’s time to use their EXACT language on your website, emails and on social media.

If they say, “I just turned 40 years old, I want run a ½ marathon this year to celebrate, and your bone broth, organic vegetables and meat has given me so much more energy to train,” you’re going to want to use that feedback to attract more customers just like her to your farm.

The neat thing is, when you get this specific in your marketing, it has the effect of attracting far more people, period! In other words, the way to reach “everyone” is to market to one very specific person.

This can be a difficult concept to grasp and once you experience it, you’ll feel so motivated to dig even deeper into your “dream customer” and how to serve them. The more dream customers you talk to, the more content and language you can use to attract the loyal customer base you need to be sustainable.

You’re not selling “the best meat, at the best price, to everyone.”

Instead, you’re selling the solution your Ideal Customer shared with you in that conversation: “feel more energy at age 40 than ever before and complete that first half marathon!”

This language and mindset shift is massive in your marketing. A potential customer is going to read that on your website or in your marketing posts and see herself, her dreams, her goals in that and want what you’re selling, whatever it is!

When you’re able to identify who you’re talking to, have a conversation with that exact person, and begin using their language in your marketing, you’ll have dream customers lined up, willing to pay your prices.

It Worked For Me

This is the exact practice that I used to build my profitable farm to support me so that, in turn, I’m able to teach others who now report finally being able to become profitable.

Now it’s your turn! In the comments, tell me what step you need to work on most in your marketing and why?