I accomplished a big professional goal of mine on February 3, 2017 by presenting a marketing workshop to inquiring minds of the agricultural world. My presentation was made possible by the great people of PASA, the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture, as it took place at their 26th Annual Farming for the Future Conference. And of course by all the beautiful people who decided to be present in Room 207 at 12:50 PM on Friday, February 3. Thank you!
The presentation introduced attendees to finding their brand identity and tapping into primal concepts to help shape marketing strategies.
Your brand identity is ever so crucial. Not only because it is shaping the opinion of your consumers at all times, but also because it should steer the business owner to focusing in on opportunities that are best, not just right, for the business. Without a grasp of your brand, there's a good chance you'll waste a lot of time on opportunities that aren't delivering results that you want and need. The tricky part is these opportunities often feel successful and they don't fail at delivering results, but they fail at delivering the best results. So we often continue hopping from one opportunity to the next, overcommitting and spending time and effort on something that doesn't feed our bottom line.
Remember that you can't be everything to everyone.
This has been proven in the 80-20 rule through various industries and through approaches to personal life. It states that 20% of your time and effort leads to 80% of your rewards and results. Establishing your brand identity will help you stay focused on that 20%. To identify the 20%, you must have a secure understanding of your financials. I recommend you check out Kitchen Table Consultants' website or contact them to grasp the financials part.
Socialize on social media.
The second part of my presentation emphasized the power of authentic socializing as a marketing strategy through social media and other avenues. In our day to day lives, we traditionally make friends based on location, interests and authentic engagement/conversation, so why wouldn't we try that through social media and more? After all, gaining someone's trust is one of the most important steps in getting/keeping customers. My presentation ran through the technical elements of using Instagram and Facebook to locate potential customers based, first, on their location and, secondly, based on their interests.
Get back to the basics.
Beyond social media, I also suggested some simplistic marketing strategies that focus on quality over quantity. Word of mouth is still one of the most powerful marketing tools, but the way that word spreads has changed over time. So, consider joining a committee or sitting on a board of an organization with a likeminded mission as your business. Talk to local shop owners in the community and see if they'll host a "meet and greet" for you, either as a one-off or a regular occurrence, where you possibly pick a topic and lead an educational conversation. How can you make it stand out? How can you make it special? Can there be an incentive? Can you make it interactive?
Want to learn more, break free from the hamster wheel, and get your business on a successful but stress-free track?
Let's connect.
