3 Unique Challenges in Food & Farm Business Marketing..and How to Overcome Them
We know there’s a lot more than three challenges to running a food or farm business, but we’re taking a deeper dive into three especially important ones. By tackling the hardest ones first, you’ll set yourself up for success and everything that comes after will feel like a breeze!
Challenge 1: Taking Quality Photos That Show Off Your Products
We all know the power of a good photo! They can be incredibly effective in amping up someone’s appetite or driving visits to your scenic farm for a farm-to-table dinner. However, whether it’s dirty hands from working the field or kitchen, terrible lighting, having an old phone, being too busy, or simply not being great at taking photos, a bad photo can be truly damaging to your brand and business.
Tips to Improve Your Food & Farm Photography
Invest in a Phone With a Good Camera
This sounds simple, but having access to a good camera (that’s almost always with you!) will make a huge difference. If you struggle to capture behind the scenes of your business, making it convenient to do so will go a long way!
Dedicate Time in Your Schedule to Take Photos
Whether it’s five minutes before you take your lunch break every day, or first thing when you begin working (morning light is perfect for capturing great photos!), having dedicated time will help you get into the habit of taking pictures. Add it to your calendar if it will help you stay on track. You’ll be amazed at how many photos you have by the end of your first week!
Develop Your Camera Skills
Not a whiz at taking pictures? Download our Social Media Toolkit, which includes TONS of photography tips and suggestions to help elevate your brand with good photos.
Challenge 2: Distinguishing Your Brand From Competitors
It can be hard to stand out from the crowd when you’re at a farmers market with 20 other farms, or when you’re one of 12 different barbeque sauces on the shelf in a grocery store. In fact, getting your product on a shelf in a grocery store can be quite tricky – it requires great branding and the ability to sell yourself and your unique products to a store manager! Read on for some tips to stand out.
Ideas to Get Your Brand Noticed
Create a Strong Visual Brand Identity
A well-designed logo along with consistent use of brand colors and fonts is the key to a strong visual identity. It makes your products instantly recognizable to existing and potential customers, leading to customer loyalty and trust.
Make sure your website, social, product labels, emails, and any other form of communication are consistently using your branding – this provides a lot of credibility to your business!
We helped Mother Farmer create a strong visual identity with a fun logo and bold colors, making their brand instantly recognizable. Need a logo or product labels designed? We can do that! Get in touch to learn more about our graphic design services.
Develop and Follow a Brand Strategy
Take your visual brand identity a step further with a comprehensive brand strategy. Through the use of photos, graphics, and compelling copywriting that is unique to your brand, your marketing will make a big impact on potential customers leading to more connections and sales.
Download our free guide about the customer experience to advance your brand strategy!
Challenge 3: Managing Your Time and Budget in Challenging Industries
Food and farm businesses can struggle to be profitable, which makes money and time incredibly precious resources. This also limits access to the tools, labor, and services required to market a business effectively. And on top of that, the ebbs and flows of seasonal businesses lead to even more challenges. Luckily, we have some suggestions!
How to Market Your Business on a Budget
Take Advantage of Free Tools
Creating and managing social media profiles is a super cost-effective way to reach a new audience. Try delegating taking photos and posting to one of your current employees to lighten your load.
There are several free options for email marketing, such as Mailchimp, making it a great place to start building your email list and connecting with your audience in their inbox.
Explore a few of our email marketing resources:
Read: Why You Need to Start Automating Your Emails
Download: 4 Ways to Get More Email Subscribers
Watch: Email Marketing for Farmers Markets
Outsource Marketing to Experts in Local Food, like TLD!
We devote all of our energy to building up the local food movement while helping our clients streamline their processes, allowing them to focus on what’s most important to them. Although spending money on a service may seem counterintuitive, if you spend it on someone who knows what they’re doing, you will see a return on investment over time.