How do you get someone to buy your product? Well, it all starts with a "good offer." What does that mean? "Crafting the offer" gets its own module in marketing school, because it's THAT important. There are strategies for what goes into an offer that makes people convert. And in today's episode, we dissect those elements in details. My guest is Michael Kilpatrick, host of the Thriving Farmer podcast, and he is a MASTER at creating offers. He's interviewed hundreds of farmers and consulted with dozens of farms in his lifetime -- he's seen so many examples of irresistible offers at work. He's also in the process of building out his own micro-enterprises on his own new-ish farm, Farm on Central. I ask him to break down his marketing strategy, and you'll learn a lot of cutting-edge ideas he's using right now to grow his own new farm business to $1 million in revenue. This podcast was sponsored by Local Line, the leading e-commerce platform for the local food system. Try Local Line for your farm today! Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: DIGITALFARMER2022. Head to this special affiliate link to get started: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/localline Join me December 1-4, for Thriving Farmer's FREE annual Online Farm Summit. Every year, Michael Kilpatrick's team at GrowingFarmers.com puts together an awesome lineup of guests for a 3-day summit. This year's topic focus is all about "Adding Income to your Farm" -- creative ways to bring in more revenue -- including a focus on Value-Added products. You’ll learn from 37+ different speakers innovative ways of working less and profiting more from your farm enterprise! This virtual conference is free, as long as you watch it live. (You'll be given a chance to pre-purchase an all-access pass which gives you "forever access" to the recording of the whole event for a low price!) Reserve your free pass to this virtual event here: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/summit    

Every year, I run an "early renewal" promotion to my CSA members, to try and get as many of them as possible to sign up for next summer's CSA season. Getting them locked in early gives me a sense of security and peace of mind -- not to mention enough cash flow for the spring. But how do I do it?  In this week's podcast, I perform an audit of this year's CSA Early Renewal Campaign that I launched this fall. It ran for 8 days from October 15-22, 2022, and got 85% of my members to renew (and pay) for 2023. I'm sharing the marketing principles that were at play in making this one of my most successful promotions to date. You'll learn why I'm now so confident that I can generate these sales -- even with an $80 price increase! Whether you're a CSA farmer or not, there are some gems hiding inside this episode, that can help you get your customer to buy when you want them to. This podcast was sponsored by Local Line, the leading e-commerce platform for the local food system. Try Local Line for your farm today! Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: DIGITALFARMER2022. Head to this special affiliate link to get started: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/localline

A few months ago, I made a HUGE leap and decided to invest in a leadership coach. I had gotten to a point in my business where I felt like what was holding me back most was my mindset. I kept hearing my mentors say things like, "Mindset is everything." But how do you find a life coach who will actually get results, when I'm not even sure what results I want? Enter Rebekah Zimmerman. Rebekah is the coach at TrailBlazersgrowth.com. I got on a discovery call with her, and 2 days later, I hired her. In the last 4 months since I started working with her, I have manifested so many impossible goals. I'm now a big believer in "mindset coaching." In this episode today, you get to be a fly on the wall and listen in on one of my coaching sessions with Rebekah. If you've ever wondered what goes on in a coaching call, this is your chance to see one in action. You'll see what fears I struggle with in a real-life scenario I am working on in my business. Afterwards, I also interview Rebekah, and we talk through what coaching is, how it's structured, and how the coach-client relationship works to get results. Learn more about Rebekah or book a discovery call at www.trailblazersgrowth.com Listen to Rebekah's podcast: Trailblazing Growth This podcast was sponsored by Local Line, the leading e-commerce platform for the local food system. Try Local Line for your farm today! Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: DIGITALFARMER2022. Head to this special affiliate link to get started: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/localline

Here's a powerful marketing principle: The more you say something, the more likely your customer will remember it (and believe it). For example: What is GEICO known for?... If you've ever seen one of their commercials, you know the answer: it's car insurance. But interestingly, GEICO also sells all kinds of other insurance too. But it only promotes the car insurance messaging. It keeps things simple and clear. And it beats that drum so we associate them with car insurance. The next time I'm shopping for car insurance, I'll think of GEICO... and that's the goal. Repetition is a very popular (and powerful) marketing technique. Brands use it all the time because it's based on psychology and brain science, and because it works. In today's episode, we're going to talk about how to use repetitive messages to guide your customer to where you want them to go and what you want them to believe. What if it's just as simple as being a broken record for a few key messages?... What would yours be?

Does your website need a makeover? Or maybe you don't have one at all?! Then this episode is for you! If you own a farm business, you need a website. But many farmers feel overwhelmed when it comes to building one from scratch. What do you need to think about before you start the process of writing, rewriting or restructuring the messaging and look? Where do you start? My guest today is Tricia Phelps from Taste the Local Difference. She is the CEO of a marketing agency for farmers, and her staff builds websites all the time. She is sharing her 3 best tips for building a better website. How do you choose the platform? Should you do it yourself? How much does it cost if you outsource it? What elements should be on your website? How do you write the words on the page? What do you say? How do you make it beautiful? And how do you keep the tech from overwhelming you? We cover these questions in more! Take a listen!

I love interviewing other CSA farmers and learning their sales secrets. Today I introduce you to Karin Velez from Wolf Creek Family Farm. Karin has been farming for 15 years as a CSA farm, and she somehow manages to keep her members coming back over and over -- so much so that she doesn't even offer open enrollment anymore. You can only get in if you're on a wait list. What are her secrets to finding these kinds of loyal clients and making them superfans? Her story is inspiring, and you'll hear tried-and-true principles that you can use for your own business. What if we're making our marketing more complicated than it needs to be? Tune in for her wisdom!

In this episode, I announce the release of my new Small Group Coaching program for farmers called Acclerator. Think of it like "marketing school meets group coaching." I'm taking 5-15 growth-mindset farmers who are ready to build their marketing assets one by one, one month at a time. This experience will last for 3 months this winter (Nov, Jan, Feb). It's made up of virtual teaching workshops, group coaching hot seats, resource drops, incredible farmers, and mastermind sessions... I made this podcast to explain how it works, so I can send future interested parties here. If you want to join this incredible group of farmers and work closely with me this winter to upgrade your marketing assets, listen to this episode. I walk through it ALL. Enroll now at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/coaching -- while there's still room. Enrollment closes October 15.

I get this question a lot from farmers... "What should I focus on first in my marketing strategy?" After 15 years of running a farm business (and learning this stuff the hard way), I feel like I can offer a pretty solid "list" of the marketing "assets" that pack the biggest punch.  In this episode, I share what they are. It's not a short list. The goal of this episode is not to intimidate you or overwhelm you. (I didn't make all these in one year either!) But having the checklist will give you clarity and direction! You'll know what things to start working on.  Remember: Slow and steady wins the race. Build these a few at a time, and one day you'll wake up and notice that your sales system is humming like a well-oiled machine.  I share a LOT of links to past episodes in this podcast too, so you can follow up on the marketing asset of your choice and go dive in deep.  Get your checklist and marching order in this episode! Ready?... Let's go!

What if there were a Farm Marketing "Bible" that spelled out all the best practices to help market to your customers online? Farmers are expected to know everything about how to run a business - including sales and marketing. But knowing where to start can be overwhelming -- especially if you're not trained in this skill set. Enter Nina Galle from Local Line. In her role as the Content Creator at the leading e-commerce platform for farmers, she began to see common themes among the 'successful' farm accounts using their software system. She began to ask the question, "What if I could take the lessons from these successful farms and put them into a marketing handbook?" The result was an amazing new book called Ready Farmer One -- a comprehensive A to Z guide on how farmers should market to their customers. I call it the Farm Marketing Bible. In this podcast, I interview the co-author of Ready Farmer One: The Farmer's Guide to create, Design, and Market an Online Farm Store. This is a resource that farmers can pick up any time to learn the different key  marketing elements that need to be optimized in your farm marketing machine. Rather than reading it from front to back, it's actually designed to be more of a "pick and choose" guide. Need help on how to master email marketing?... find the chapter about how to do email marketing the right way. The best part of the book are the transcripts of actual interviews with the farmers that were interviewed during the research phase. These stories will inspire you to see how you can take the principles of the book and put them into practice in a real-world business. I HIGHLY recommend this book for every farmer doing direct marketing. Grab it here!

What is the secret behind my CSA's incredibly loyal fan base? How are we scoring a 93% retention rate every year? What if it's not about the vegetables? In today's episode, I interview my MVP, Cadie Jardin. Cadie is a member of my farm team. We call her our "CSA Coach," and her job is to make sure my CSA members feel supported in their quest to become successful foodies and local eaters. She also manages our CSA's private Facebook group, and creates weekly video training content for my tribe, as well as recipes. In this interview, we peel back the layers of customer support in our CSA. We talk through the challenges that new CSA rookies face and how we guide them through the 3-year journey to mastery. We talk about the power of the membership community in helping them along. And we give specifics on what kind of content will move the needle forward for your customers. This conversation will give you a new perspective on what your customer is thinking, what they NEED, and what they actually WANT from you.  Want some help building your CSA Early Renewal Sign-Up Promotion so that your members renew their share when you want them to?... Sign up for my online course: "CSA Early Bird Campaigns that Convert" I'll teach you how to build an irresistible offer for your members that gets them running to the online store to renew their membership when you want them to....

Somebody buys your product. Then what happens?...  Many business owners think that the work of sales and marketing is now over. The customer bought the product, and now we're done. Wrong. In today's episode, I talk about the VERY important phase of the sales process called "product fulfillment." I share lots of examples of what this can look like, and why spending just a few hours optimizing your workflow in this area can lead to WAY more profits. Sometimes it can take a while for your product to deliver its promise. You need to be there guiding the way, to make sure it happens. If your product consistently delivers quality results, your customers will come back again and again... AND they'll refer new clients to you. That translates to more profits. Sometimes the fastest way to grow your revenue is just to make sure you're delivering a quality result every time. This episode will help you think through this process. WORTH EVERY SECOND. Listen now.

Before your potential new client decides to buy your stuff, they're looking for ONE thing... Proof. You need to show that you're the real deal -- your product delivers results! Customers often don't even realize they're looking for this, but they are. That's why it's important for you to build these "credibility moments" into your buying process somewhere. In today's episode, we talk about 10 different ways brands can show authority and give their potential clients the social proof they need to feel ready to buy. See how many of these you already use in your business! And maybe add on a few more to your pipeline. Often, it's THIS element that unlocks the floodgates of sales.  Can you say "Quick win"?...

As an entrepreneur and small business owner, I am constantly chasing "the next big thing." I set ambitious goals. I build execution plans to get there. And I base my sense of success and value on whether or not I hit them. The problem is, I almost NEVER hit them exactly the way I planned. Or I compare myself to  other businesses, Instagram accounts, and parents -- some made-up ideal that I think I "should be" -- and I come up short. I end up feeling like I'm "not good enough." Not successful enough. All I see is the gap. In today's episode, I want to walk around the dark side of goal-setting. I want to offer another way of looking at your progress, so that you stop seeing the gap, appreciate your gains, and redefine "what is success." I share lots of examples from my own life to help you see how easy it is to fall into this trap. What if crossing your horizon line isn't the way to define success? What if there's INCREDIBLE value in the journey itself. What if you're right where you are supposed to be? And how can we learn to be present in the moment and appreciate all the value of what has come before?  

Tired of trying to share long, ugly URL links with leads and customers in your marketing channels? There's another way. They're called "redirects," and when I first discovered them, I was ecstatic. I use them ALL the time. This is like bitly link shorteners, but where you get to decide what the actual link itself will say. The formula is always: yourwebsiteurl.com/shortcutword Using redirects gives you the ability to share things like: popular product pages your favorite lead magnets YouTube videos and hotsted PDF resources website pages you always reference your online store link In this episode, I give you some case studies of where I use redirects the most, how they work, and how to set them up. You can even go watch a demo of me making a "pretty link" here on YouTube. Ditch the bitly links and start using these easy-to-set up shortcut links through redirects! You're gonna love this quick tip!

Every now and then, I run into a fantastic sales funnel example in the real world in another industry. When it happens, I take notes, so I can share it with you. This week, I'm breaking down the sales funnel of my son's orthodontist. You see, in a matter of 7 days, Kurt and I decided to write a big fat check for $6000 to this Downey Orthodontics in Bowling Green. How did he pull that off so fast? That's no small feat! Looking back, I can see SO MANY small steps that were engineered by their sales team. They had a PROCESS they were executing like a machine! I was impressed. So even though the example I'm sharing today isn't a farming product, I think this story will have massive impact as it shows you how a small business can take a marketing framework and turn it into practical steps. You'll see what attraction strategy they relied on, how they used SEO to their advantage, how they set up their offer to get me to convert, how they coached testimonials and reviews for social proof, how they overcame my objections and questions, and what they did to surprise and delight me. I also share application questions along the way, to help you take this sales funnel and apply it to YOUR business. Sales funnels are necessary if you want to move clients through a high-ticket offer like a CSA. Sometimes the best way to learn the framework is to see it in action in another business!

Vacation in July for a farmer? Is it possible? What if it were?... In today's episode, I share my story of how Kurt and I successfully planned and executed a 5-day vacation to Oshkosh, Wisconsin in the middle of July. How did our farm survive without us? What did we have to do to make it happen? And was it worth it? In this episode, I share some observations and take-aways from this experiment that will be helpful if you want to make this dream a reality. It is possible. It all starts in your mind.

Writing the weekly CSA Newsletter.... do you love it? Or hate it? This used to feel like a CHORE! In my early years, I would start from scratch every week, and it felt like I was back in Yearbook class -- not only trying to write engaging "newspaper-style" articles, but worrying about layout and images so it all fit!! It would take me around 6-7 hours every weekend. Ugh. After 14 years, I've learned a few things about how to make this important resource a whole lot faster (and better!) In this episode, I share 5 time-saving hacks I use now that help me knock this out in about 3 hours a week. So when the well runs dry... you have some back-up systems that keep you moving forward. You can check out my latest CSA newsletter here: www.sharedlegacyfarms.com/blog.

Subscribe to my free 5-Day Instagram Reels Challenge here. You'll get a daily video tutorial on Reels and a quick homework assignment to practice the skill you learned. Each day builds on the next, as you experiment and play in the sandbox. By the end of the challenge, you'll know your way around the Reels platform and know how to take it deeper if you want! Do you need to be doing Instagram Reels? And if you ARE ready to take the dive, where do you get started? Well, in today's episode, I walk you through some of my "beginner's tips" for getting started with Reels. At first, I was overwhelmed and intimidated by all the professional-looking, high production value Reel videos in my feed.  So I avoided it for the longest time. But then I began researching IG Reels back in early 2022 -- experimenting, following other accounts, trying to figure out the mechanics of how to do it. Finally, I decided to take the plunge and play in the platform -- "just as an experiment." Along the way, I became more confident, and every month I feel myself getting better. In this podcast, I share some of my take-aways for "Reels-Rookies" or "Reels-Wanna-be's" for what to expect when you get started, what to keep in mind as you develop your skills, and shortcut hacks that helped me overcome my imposter syndrome. I also talk about how you can take my free Instagram Reels Challenge with me this August! In this challenge, I teach you the mechanics of how to make your first reels confidently, so you can take this platform and run with it! NO MORE FEAR. Subscribe to my free 5-Day Instagram Reels Challenge here. You'll get a daily video tutorial on Reels and a quick homework assignment to practice the skill you learned. Each day builds on the next, as you experiment and play in the sandbox. By the end of the challenge, you'll know your way around the Reels platform and know how to take it deeper if you want! I wish someone had shared the ropes of reels with me like this when I was trying to learn the platform.  

Check out my workshop "How to Optimize your Google Business Profile" here. Are you using the power of search engines to help you find new customers? Here's the truth: people are going to Google to find your farm. What is Google showing them? Are you showing up in the #1 position? And if not, what can you do to get there? In this episode, I invite local SEO expert Jesse Dolan from LocalSeoTactics.com onto the show, to share his short checklist for how to create a basic SEO strategy for your business, so you can get found online. Jesse is an expert at LOCAL SEO, and has helped hundreds of businesses increase their visibility and revenue. 

What is it that your product actually delivers to your customer? I'm not talking about the thing itself. I'm talking about the long-term life transformation? How does their life get better because of your vegetable box or grass-fed beef?... What is the product's promise? If you want to sell more of your products, you MUST know how to answer this question. In this episode, I talk about how to find this information, why it's so powerful, and how to talk about it in more your marketing.

Do you track any sales or marketing metrics for your farm?... Because here's a fact: You can't manage what you aren't measuring. And for the first 9 years of my business, I'm embarrassed to admit that I didn't track ANY of these numbers. I was just "doing farm sales" and asking people to buy every week, hoping the numbers would work out. I wonder sometimes if this is one of the reasons we were treading water all those years. In today's episode, I talk about the importance of knowing your sales and marketing data, so you can be strategic and get your business to actually scale. What information should you be tracking? What stats matter the most when it comes to building strategy for your business? Once you start measuring the right data, you can set goals and track progress towards greater revenue.  This is a good episode. 

Get my new weekly marketing roadmap when you subscribe to my email newsletter. I LOVE interviewing other farmers who are GREAT at marketing. Sometimes, the best way to grow our own  marketing strategy is to see what other farms are doing. Today's guest is Melissa Ballard of Bluegrass Beef in Kentucky. She has managed to build a growing, profitable farm business by attracting the right kind of client, telling her farm story, building a compelling offer, and turning them into repeat buyers. She also had a moment in her journey where she changed her mindset and claimed some ownership in her business' success -- one of the strongest parts of this interview. Whether you're a beef producer or a vegetable farm, there's lots of advice hiding in this episode about how to market and sell your product like a boss.

What happens to a person after they subscribe to your email list for the first time? Do they fall into the "black hole"? I've long encouraged you to build something called a "nurture email sequence" in your marketing funnel. This pre-written, automated email sequence drips out amazing, helpful content to your new subscribers to warm them up to your brand. And once it's written, it remains as a permanent tool in your business. But writing these can feel overwhelming. In this episode, I share a hack for how to build this "evergreen" (everlasting) nurture sequence fast. You probably have the emails to populate it already! You'll LOVE this idea that makes building your email sequene so much easier!

Need some help with Instagram reels? Search no more. Today's podcast guest and farmer is an Instagram guru. Laura Patterson has mastered the art of engagement and lead generation through the use of Instagram reels, creating compelling content every day that attracts her ideal customer. In this podcast, Laura shares how she marketed and grew her micro-greens business, and how she now uses those same strategies to grow her online business, teaching farmers.

Have you taken the time this season to identify your core marketing message(s)? Is your message consistent and clear? What are you trying to get your customers to know or do? And do you have a PLAN to get there? In this episode, I share how to find this message, and best practices to make sure your controlling idea is communicated.

Grab my Tips & Secrets for CSA Success Canva Template to Onboard Your CSA Members. How are you onboarding your CSA members into your CSA's first weeks? (Are you?) In this episode, I walk through the 4 categories of content/information you should consider putting into your onboarding strategy. You'll walk away with a plan for mapping out your strategy, what it should include, and how long it should take. I even share my CSA's handbook template.

In today's episode, I interview a farmer from Louisiana, Kate Estrade, who is a curator of locally-produced farm goods -- from her own pasture-based farm, as well as from over 25 other local farms and producers. She sells through an onsite "grocery" store as well as several neighborhood hubs. Customers have been "trained" to pre-order online each week and then come pickup their order at their location of choice. In this episode, we talk about how this business model evolved over time, how Kate helps customers support many local producers in one stop, what marketing looks like for this kind of business, and how she decides what vendors to work with. Could this "local distributor" model be the ticket for your farm?...

Need content ideas for your CSA members? Enroll in my CSA Membership Academy and get your first month for $1 when you use my coupon code TRIAL at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/academy Do you spend more time than you'd like in your farm delivery truck? Do you dream of giving this up and having more time for revenue-generating activities on the farm? What if you could outsource delivery to someone else? In this episode, I interview Andrew Miller from Farmstead Logistics -- a third party logistics provider who helps deliver farm products from Point A to Point B. Andrew talks through what services like his provide, what a farmer should ask to decide whether this service is "worth it," what potential hiccups you need to watch out for. My hope is that after listening to this podcast, you'll have a better idea of some of the issues you need to address before you contract with a courier service.

Download my Guide: 19 Social Media Post Templates to Unlock Your Content Marketing Strategy. Do you ever have a brain freeze when it comes to social media? What the heck should I be posting about? Or when it's time to "write your weekly email," do you ever find yourself staring at a blank screen with no clue what to say? You're in good company. As content marketers, our job is to create a steady stream of quality content that will help attract our ideal customers into our brand, and then ultimately convert them into paying customers. But what kind of content should you be creating? Well, in this episode, I'm sharing a "formula" that I learned from my own digital marketing mentors: E-I-E-I-O-O Yes, it's even a farming song! (LOVE!!) Each letter stands for a word that will remind you of a category of content. In this episode, I dive deep into what these are and give tons of examples.

Subscribe to my farm's CSA Resource Library for $1 using the coupon code TRIAL at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/academy  Have you ever thought about creating a passive form of revenue through a digital workshop? Today's podcast guest, Heather Carter of Nature Hills Farm, did just that! Her cheese-making online class is purchased by people all over the country. In this episode, she shares how she built the course, what obstacles she had to overcome, and how she plans to grow this revenue stream for her farm.

QR Codes. They are everywhere. But are you using them in your farm marketing? In this episode, I share LOTS of ideas for where your QR codes could link on the internet to help develop your leads into buyers, and turn your buyers into lifelong fans. Subscribe to my CSA Academy to get access to lots of resources to help your veggie lovers! Get your first month for $1 using coupon code TRIAL at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/academy

Imagine CSA customers coming to your farm every week to harvest their own share from your vegetable beds.  Yes. That's the concept behind a U-Pick CSA model. In this episode, I interview Kristen Muehlhauser of Raindance Organic Farm, who has built a profitable farm business off this CSA operation. She shares the pro's and con's of getting this kind of program off the ground.  Sign up for my seminar "The Beginner's Guide to CSA Add-On Shares" at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/addonshares

Ugh. Does your email open rate stink? Are your emails getting lost in the spam folder?  In today's episode, I share one strategy you can use to try and get your new subscribers to add your email address to their contact list -- this is something called "white listing," and it has an effect of making sure you never show up in the spam folder again. How does it work? After hearing this episode, you'll be able to take about 10 minutes to adjust a few words of text in your welcome emails, and it just might do the trick!  Lots of good stuff in today's show notes too! Tons of templates and examples, so go check it out.

Last season, our CSA trialed a partnership with a CSF (Community Supported Fishery) called Citizen Salmon Alaska. In this episode, I have fisherman Aaron Sechler back on the show to talk through how it went. We audit our experience and take-aways, and share some tips for how to do this well. PS: If you're thinking of adding on "add-on shares" to your CSA, but need some help getting started, check out my paid seminar "The Beginner's Guide to CSA Add-On Shares" at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/addonshares

Have you ever pre-sold spring transplants as a type of product line? Our farm is predominantly a CSA farm, and so we didn't offer this as a product until just a few years ago. At first glance, it didn't seem to "fit" our customer profile. Boy, was I wrong! Three years ago, we started offering transplants as a product line, and our CSA clients bought like crazy! It's created a whole new revenue stream for us, AND it's given us a new way to attract potential CSA clients. It's also a form of "guaranteed" income, because it's a pre-sale. In other words, we sell it first... THEN start seeding in the greenhouse. In this episode, I walk you through how we organize our Plant Sale from start to finish. Download my Product Price List Canva Template from the Show Notes!

In this episode, I interview CSA farmer Tessa DeMaster from Willowhaven Farm. I've been watching Tessa for the last 3 years, as she's slowly built her marketing strategy layer by layer. Today, she shares her story of how she's learned to simplify her marketing -- everything from the flagship product to her messaging. We even talk through what she's found to be the 2 most valuable pieces of her marketing strategy each week.  I also want you to check out her website. It's a great template to work from, if you're trying to build your messaging elements for a Choice CSA farm. www.WillowHavenFarmPA.com We talk through her sales funnel, her two awesome lead magnets, her Foster a Chick program, Pizza Nigths, and her top marketing a-ha moments. So many gems in this podcast! 

Grab my list of product badges in the show notes at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/151 What's a product "badge"? You know those little symbols or labels you can put on your product listing like "Best Seller" or "Award-Winner"?...  Turns out simply adding a product badge to your listing can help you sell more of that product! So why  not learn what they are and experiment! In this episode, I share some examples of product badge labels, best practices, and some categories to help inspire you how to use them. If your e-commerce platform doesn't make this easy to do, I also share some ideas for work-arounds in the episode.  I want you to head over to your online store, and audit your product descriptions this week! Decide which ones could use a special "badge" and see if it makes a difference in the sales.

Have you ever thought of giving your customers a "consumption goal" for your product? What if you customer is feeling confused about where to begin? or how to use your product? In this episode, I walk you through my CSA farm's new customer "Punch List." I'm helping my customers see the target to hit this season! And I think it's going to be awesome!  Listen to the episode and be inspired how a punch list might work for your business.  Check out my CSA Member Academy -- a library of resources to help shortcut my CSA customers to mastery fast at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/academy

In this week's episode, I interview livestock farmer Jamie Pritchard from WIT Farms in Ohio. Jamie shares how she has cultivated a loyal fan base for her pastured-raised meats over the last 5 years. I ask her to break down her marketing funnel for me, and you'll see a simple, yet elegant, process that intentionally pulls clients into her brand.

Get my CSA Tips and Strategies Canva Template to help onboard your rookies to CSA mastery faster. Get it at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/csasuccess What keeps my CSA members coming back year after year? I'm telling you now... it isn't just the vegetables.  In this episode, I interview one of my CSA's strongest members, Esther Hertzfeld. Esther and her husband have been with our CSA for 9 years. She shares her journey from rookie member to CSA Facebook group influencer to CSA site host to ultimate brand ambassador for Shared Legacy Farms! What drove Esther to sign up with us in the first place? But more importantly... what keeps her coming back? Use this episode to help you peek inside the motivation of a quintessential CSA client. What makes them tick? What do people like her look like? How can you find more of them? And what do you have to do to keep them coming back?

Eugene Schwartz, author of the copywriting Bible "Breakthrough Advertising," was the first to identify the 5 stages of Customer Awareness in marketing. The principle is simple: you need to know where a customer is in the spectrum of awareness, and then craft different messages to them, based on where they are. The five stages are: Unaware Problem Aware Solution Aware Product Aware Most Aware In this episode, I break down details of each of the 5 stages, and I give examples for what type of marketing content works best in each of these stages in your ag business.  Every marketer should be exposed to this concept, which is why I dedicated an entire episode to it in my podcast archives!

Sign up for my free Book Study of "Start with Why" by Simon Sinek this February at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/bookstudy Have you been trying to get people to buy your products, and you're getting no where? Are you posting your offer on social media and wondering why it's not getting traction? What am I doing wrong, Corinna?  In today's episode, I tell a fun story about my dog Harley that might just clear things up for you....

Sign up for my CSA Quickstart course and coaching program through Feb. 4th: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/csaquickstart What if you were given an opportunity to acquire a loyal customer base from another CSA farmer who was retiring? Would you take it? In this week's episode, I interview a CSA farmer who did just that! Aeros Lillstrom of Who Cooks for You Farm shares her story of how she grew her CSA to 800 members through this form of acquisition. She also shares some of the unique issues that needed to be addressed as part of that transition. If you've ever thought of this form of scaling, this will be a helpful primer for you! 

In this week's episode I talk with CSA farmer Kate Edwards from Wild Woods Farm in Solon, IA. Kate's farm boasts an 80% retention, and she's learned how to build systems to make running her CSA easier than the early years. Kate shares some of the milestones she passed through as a CSA farmer. We spend a lot of time talking about the importance of having a mentor, as well as learning how to communicate the "why" behind your business. If you're looking for a CSA farmer to inspire you, this is a great episode! 

What are the elements of a great "offer" that compels someone to buy your product? Last November, I received a mail order catalog from Shutterfly, the online photo printing company. On the cover was a small coupon code with the following words: 50% off all cards, photobooks, and calendars. 40% off everything else plus free shipping. BOOM. I ran to my computer that night to set up my order, and an hour later, I had dropped $350. WHY did I do that? How did Shutterfly pull that off? What were the elements of that offer that made me buy? Using my Shutterfly case study, I'll help you see how you too can build an offer that makes your ideal customer take notice. We'll cover: why targeting the right person is so important how to get the timing right why you must lead with the correct product how to position the price so the person feels good about it why a little bit of urgency and scarcity will seal the deal Need help building a CSA farm from scratch this year? Sign up for my free webinar "The 3 Mistakes Rookie CSA Farmers Make (And How to Avoid Them)" on January 28, at 12 PM EST. Registration is free at www.mydigitalfarmer.com/webinar

Grab my free resource: Choosing the Best CSA E-commerce Platform for Your Farm: the Complete List of Questions to Ask Before You Buy When is it time to get a CSA Management software? And how do you decide which one is best for you? There are SO many options to choose from nowadays, and the it can feel overwhelming! Do you go with a CSA Customer Management System? Or do you just stick with an e-commerce platform? I've noticed this is a roadblock for SO many farmers, and it keeps many of you from scaling your business. In this episode, we cover the big questions you should mull over as you navigate this territory. I give you advice from many years of experience, AND I share some awesome resources to help you figure it out once and for all!

In 2021, our farm decided to walk away from farmer's markets altogether. It was a calculated move, but it still felt scary. In this episode, I share the report. How'd we do? Did we survive? What were the results and impact on our business and livelihood? And if you're thinking about making this decision too, what should you be thinking about? I share some advice and encouragement.

Get on the CSA Quickstart Course Waitlist: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/waitlist Have you ever wondered if you should add a CSA to your farm business? If so, then you definitely want to listen to this episode. I interview my husband and business partner, Kurt Bench, from Shared Legacy Farms, and together we discuss the 10 questions to think about before you jump into the CSA arena.