Marketing Farm Products: Strategies from Our Small Farm
Recently, I posted an article on the blog titled Location, Location, Location: Setting Your Small Farm Up for Market Success. In that post, I covered key elements of selling and discussed how geographic location can affect where you buy supplies and sell your products.
In my earlier article, Why Do Small Farms Fail?, I pointed out that many small farms struggle because they lack resources to market products effectively. Today, I’d like to share how we approached marketing from the beginning, in hopes of offering practical ideas you can use for your own farm.
Understanding Your Customers
There are countless ways to reach potential customers—Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, blogs, websites, local newspapers, flyers, and more. Each platform works best for specific markets, so start by asking: Who is your customer? What are you selling? When and where will you market it? And how much money can you spend?
As a small farm just getting started, your resources are limited. That’s why it’s essential to target your ideal customer base carefully.
Whatever you’re selling—be it lamb, beef, or vegetables—you need to understand what matters most to your customers. For example, when Beth and I started marketing our lamb, we researched recipes that were easy for people new to lamb. We even cooked them ourselves to fully understand the experience from the customer’s perspective.
For fruits and vegetables, it’s helpful to know their nutritional value and be able to explain how you grew them. This helps customers see why your product is better than what they’d find elsewhere.
Marketing Our Lamb
At first, we considered USDA Organic certification. However, the high cost and regulatory challenges made us reconsider. Instead, we focused on marketing our lamb as 100% grass-fed and grass-finished, emphasizing the sweeter, milder flavor of our pasture-raised lamb compared to commercial lamb, which is often raised quickly on corn or grain feed.
The key lesson: clearly define what makes your product unique, and then figure out the best ways to communicate that to your customers. If everyone else is selling lettuce, make sure your lettuce is the freshest, or offer additional services like delivery if your target market values convenience.
Platforms and Content
We started with Facebook because it was easy to set up and helped us reach customers for the farmers market. But we quickly realized we needed a website to serve as the anchor for our promotions. Our website provides a description of our farm, products, and story—important because storytelling connects customers to your farm.
Once our website was up, we launched a blog to share updates, prices, and product availability more quickly. We used Google’s Blogger platform, which made it easy to update content.
Next, we expanded our social media presence. Beth took photos regularly while working on the farm or on walks, building a library of images. She posted to Instagram, while I shared the same images on Pinterest and used them in blog posts. This helped us showcase the farm visually and connect with customers online.
Over time, maintaining multiple platforms became time-consuming. Pinterest faded out, and blog posts became less frequent. We focused on longer Facebook posts (2–3 paragraphs) to share updates quickly without heavy editing.
We still maintain our website, Facebook page, and occasional blog posts. In hindsight, I wish we had started an email newsletter. Even with a small customer base, a seasonal or monthly newsletter could have helped maintain connections and promote products.
Sampling: Our Most Effective Marketing Strategy
The most profitable strategy for us has been offering samples at our booth. We approached this seasonally, letting customers taste our products along with accompanying recipes.
Examples:
Ground Lamb over Hummus: Beth prepared Mediterranean-style dishes with chickpea hummus, spiced ground lamb, pine nuts, and parsley. Customers sampled the dish with pita or chips. Ground lamb was priced lower than supermarket options to encourage first-time buyers, while premium cuts like legs and ribs offset the cost.
Fall Stews: Beth made hearty stews using lamb shoulders and seasonal vegetables from other vendors. Customers sampled both the meat and the flavorful gravy.
Butterflied Lamb Legs (Summer): We offered small, hot samples of butterflied lamb legs cooked with olive oil, salt, and pepper. The aroma drew people to our booth, and this became our highest-selling product. We sold out every time.
Offering samples is a great way to attract new customers, whether at farmers markets or farm stands. Think creatively about what your customers would enjoy trying.
Word-of-Mouth Marketing
Your best promotion comes from happy customers who tell their friends and family about your products. Word-of-mouth remains the most cost-effective and trustworthy way to grow your customer base. Developing customer “ambassadors” or influencers can also be effective, as they share your farm on social media.
Be adaptable. Different platforms reach different audiences. Younger mothers might be more active on Instagram, while college professors might use Facebook more. Tailor your marketing plan to your audience.
Final Thoughts
Marketing is an ongoing process. As a small farm, your resources and time are limited, so maximize your efforts by focusing on what works. Start developing your market research early, and consider emerging tools like AI to help create content and reach your audience efficiently.
I hope this post gives you ideas for developing your marketing plan. I’ll share more articles in the future on why small farms tend to fail and how to succeed. If you have questions or want to share your experiences, please join the conversation in the comments below!
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