Creating 4 Sales Channels for Solid Agricultural Sales
Small and Medium sized farms are BUSINESSES and must be run as a business. With the plethora of fantastically fun farmers’ markets springing up like wildfire, there is a sense of false security that direct retail sales, by being a vendor at a farmers’ market, is the best and most valuable avenue for generating business profit from your farm.
Smart farm businesses diversify their sales mix to add on other forms of profit generation to minimize the high risk of vending at farmers’ markets while still enjoying all the positive benefits that farm markets bring – direct consumer interaction, community involvement, business and branding exposure, and much, MUCH more!
For many farmers, marketing and selling their products are the most challenging parts of the farm enterprise, especially when selling directly to consumers. However, direct markets for fresh and unique food products are among the most rapidly growing farm opportunities.
People around the country are looking to buy tasty, healthy food directly from farmers — farmers with whom they can talk, ask questions and build relationships. However, these new market opportunities, particularly in farmers' markets, community supported agriculture (CSA), roadside stands, restaurants and cooperatives, require expertise in selling as well as marketing, production and financial management.
Over the next 4 weeks, we’ll tackle the topics of Creating 4 sales Channels for Solid Agricultural Sales for small and medium producers to include farm markets, should you choose, while also laying a solid business foundation for multiple revenue sources with multiple risk variables to provide a full and sound profit foundation.
To follow along, you can check back here often. As new articles are added to the series, they will be hyperlinked below. You can also subscribe to our blog by email to catch the articles as they are posted.
More importantly, let’s talk together. What have you learned?
Creating 4 Sales Channels for Solid Agricultural Sales: the proper product mix for an agricultural business is to mix and have all 4 modes of profit activities: Direct Retail Sales, Indirect Retail Sales, Wholesale Sales, and Partner-Profit Sales.
Diversifying your Agricultural Sales Mix Blog Series
Check out our: