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Know how. Know now.
From border to border in Nebraska, UNL Extension is making an incredible impact on the success of our state — its youth, its families, its farms and ranches, its communities, its economy. Please check these websites for more "know how, know now" information.
Marketing Tips, Options, Opportunities
Marketing Options for Local Produce
Direct marketing enables you to become a price maker in the market, not a price taker. It’s about networking and relationship building. You will need:
- A business plan
- A brand
- Printed materials providing information about your farm and products.
- Understanding of the direct marketing avenue you want to use
- Types of insurance you will need (permits, packaging, labeling, pricing, supply, storage, temperature control, delivery and invoicing system)
- Honest communication
- Professional appearance
- Consistency in quality (no seconds)
- Reliability of service
- Risk taking outlook
- Pride in your product
- Willingness to plan, research and experiment
- Flexible independence & Creative thriftiness
Online Marketing Challenges for Food Products-Online Curriculum
Do you produce a specialty food product? Do you have fresh produce for sale? Do you attend Farmer’s Markets? Are you interested in expanding your sales to consumers through online marketing?
“Direct Marketing of Specialty Food Products” is designed to provide business owners with strategies and tools to help sell directly to consumers. This online curriculum can be utilized by business owners 24/7 by logging in at http://go.unl.edu/directmarketingfood. The program was made possible through the support of North Dakota State University and University of Nebraska - Lincoln Extension, and grants from the Southern Rural Development Center’s National eCommerce Initiative and the Sustainable Agriculture and Research Education program.
The self-directed program allows business owners to:
- Evaluate the role of technology in the business
- Examine how to weigh the costs and benefits of technology
- Understand online marketing tools
- Learn how to build an online presence
- Understand how online marketing fits into an overall marketing plan
“Food products present a unique challenge in marketing online - you have to capture the touch and smell senses in a unique way,” indicates Jay Jenkins, UNL Extension Educator. The program includes video interviews of food entrepreneurs who are using social media tools to market and sell their product online. The program exposes business owners to developing a website, the core of online marketing. It also discusses other social media tools, such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. According to Connie Hancock, UNL Extension, “The goal is to help the business owners make wise decisions in developing an integrated marketing program that capitalizes on the new social media tools. The online world changes rapidly and we need to be flexible to take advantage of the tools available to us.”
Keeping current is a challenge in today’s busy world, to help small business owners, a weekly newsletter, “Direct Marketing” curates up to date information related to online marketing. The newspaper, represents an online marketing tool and can be found at http://paper.li/UNLeShip/1319999929. Jenny Nixon, UNL Extension is announcing the “Direct Marketing” newsletter. “This online newsletter comes out weekly and provides an opportunity for the value-added food product community to collaborate.” To be a curator of online marketing information, add the Twitter hashtag #foodpreneur to your tweets.
“Adding value to agricultural products is of great interest to many farmers, and it supports local economic growth and development,” says Glenn Muske, the NDSU Extension Service’s rural and agribusiness enterprise development specialist. “Yet the old adage ‘build it and they will come’ regretfully often brings only a few customers to the door. Businesses today must establish a brand, and they must keep that brand in front of the consumer. Direct Marketing of Specialty Food Products Online is designed to help the business owner in that effort.”
For more ideas and assistance on marketing for your small business, contact your local Extension Service office, or go to NDSU’s Small Business Support website atwww.ag.ndsu.edu/smallbusiness or UNL Extension Entrepreneurship website at http://etraining.unl.edu.
Marketing Resources
Marketing Publications & Websites Direct Marketing Channels & Strategy for Organic Products UNL Extension, eOrganic author: Garry Stephenson, Oregan State University AgriMarketing Resources: Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) website and online toolboxFunded by the USDA, the national Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program supports and promotes sustainable farming and ranching. They offer competitive grants and educational opportunities for producers, scientists, educators, institutions, organizations and others exploring sustainable agriculture. Local Marketing Calculator by UNL Agricultural EconomicsLocalMarketCALC helps producers to estimate all associated costs and allocate them between markets and enterprises. | Getting Started Examples Videos: Farmstead First, LLC owners Krista Dittman &Charuth Loth |
How to Create an Effective Brochure UNL NebGuide that will help you create a professional eye-catching and valuable brochure.
Online Transportation Cost Resource The Land Stewardship Project posted transportation worksheets, online calculators, and other resources on their website, for farmers who are seeking more efficient ways of transporting the food they produce to market.
Direct Marketing Channels &Strategy for Organic Products UNL Extension