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market-farming - RE: [Market-farming] Farm markets vs. getting out of farming

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  • From: "Rick Williams" <mrfarm AT frontiernet.net>
  • To: <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: RE: [Market-farming] Farm markets vs. getting out of farming
  • Date: Sat, 8 Feb 2003 21:59:49 -0600

Don Palmer wrote:
> Have you thought about any type of agriculture
> entertainment or attractions to help bring folks out
> to your farm?

Sure. Actually, if we were say 25 years younger and had the same economic
base to work with, we would likely begin a multi-step plan to convert the
farm into a campground and then a retreat facility and eventually add
additional cottage like motel accomodations. But we are close to retirement
at this point and would rather do something like operating the farm and
direct marketing from the farm and the farmer's markets to keep active.

My wife is not very interested in adding minatures or small animals. It
would require some changes in fencing. Especially with goats!

I'm sure that the agritainment aspect of direct marketing will be included
in our upcoming panel discussion. There are some major "zoo" type operations
in the area already and I suspect that this can be easily saturated if many
farms did it.

We are on quite a few "lists" including internet ones. But I have not seen
many customers as yet. We do get some contacts from areas like Chicago
because they find us on the internet. But I would not consider this to be a
very fruitful marketing technique. If it is free and you get even one
contact, what the heck:) Go ahead and do it.

My main interest in having our web site is that I want something that is
available to our customers to always be able to find us if they can
remember mistyridgefarm.com. That gives them current pricing and any contact
information that they need. And can include background on our farm and our
wholistic (TM) approach for our farm. Also, I find that I no longer view
companies as being legitimate if they do not have a web address.

The one web site that we link to and we have a presense on theirs but I
don't think our web site is listed because this was several years ago, is on
Jo Robinson's eatwild.com site. This is the best grass-fed beef site on the
internet in terms of having a lot of the background information and a
listing of the farms in the U.S. It is very comprehensive. We do get some
responses through the net, and they are usually due to her site.

> Although the convenience of a
> supermarket is hard to compete with, promoting the
> scenic aspects with a nice ride out to the farm where
> the product is produced, and something to see and do
> after they get there will help.

Our actual experience has been that only a very few customers want to take
much time when they stop off for beef. Some will call ahead, which we
strongly recommend, so that we can have their product weighed and packaged
and calculated by the time they arrive. We have had a couple of customers
per year who do want to take a tour, but they are the rare exception.

As Jay Gee (a frequent poster to the list who claims a marketing background)
has pointed out though, people are not going to drive out to most farms to
buy products at the farm.

However, many of the direct marketing articles in such publications as SGF,
do specifically promote the concept of the customer coming to the farm (and
other venues as well) and the biggest names such as Joel Salatin, primarily
markets this way. Of course, he did not get there in one year or even one
decade:)

Rick Williams
Misty Ridge Farm
Direct marketed dairy beef and produce
(also dairy heifers and beef stockers)
Viroqua, WI






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