Posted on

Boosting Your Business and Marketing Skills: Ag and Food Producers Academy 

Winter is an excellent time to learn new marketing and business skills to streamline your food or farm operation in the coming year. Taking the time now to prioritize goals could lead you to succeed in your marketing aspirations. But what to learn and where to look in a time where there is so much online? At Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County, we are putting on the Ag & Food Producers Academy that starts this month on January 15th! It’s available for existing and planning stages entrepreneurs in the 6-county northern New York region. There are 4 course tracks to choose from, and all online sessions meet on weekday evenings.

Reasons to Participate 

  • Hear from industry professionals. All the instructors for these courses work day in and day out with farmers and entrepreneurs. For example, Nicole Tommell is a Farm Management Specialist with 15+ years of experience advising producers on business planning and financing. You can hear her lead participants in the Prepare to Succeed: Business and Financing Options Course. 

     Nicole Ouellette, Jeremy Bloom, Flip Filippi, Nicole Tomell and Lauren Olson

Read more Boosting Your Business and Marketing Skills: Ag and Food Producers Academy 

Posted on

Social Media Strategies for Producers

 

Social media can be a great tool to use to communicate and interact with current and potential customers. You can post farm updates in real-time with your followers and share what is available for purchase. About 1 in 4 social media users use social platforms to discover, learn, purchase or recommend products or brands, so it’s important to have an online presence.

Here’s our tips for best practices to keep your customers engaged online, with examples from area farms and food businesses in the north country.

Post with Consistency 

Be active on your account, your followers will notice when there have not been any updates in a while. Share current happenings on your farm or what projects you have been working on. Having a lack of posts or interaction on social media can be the reason your followers and other potential customers are not seeing your content. With consistent regular posting, you can have customers look forward to seeing you and your farm updates. Try setting goals on posting consistency each week, maybe aim for 2-3 posts to start and then adjust accordingly based on your available time.

Visuals Matter Read more Social Media Strategies for Producers

Posted on

Questions to Ask When Choosing an eCommerce platform

Have you considered adding an eCommerce platform as a sales channel for your small business? Perhaps you’re eager to reach new customers or have better online visibility. There are many moving parts to consider when choosing an eCommerce platform that best suits you and your products. Thankfully, there are many resources to help get you started. 

We like the chart developed by the CSA Innovation Network because it takes a very complicated landscape of choices, and helps entrepreneurs clarify their needs. Once you’ve done that, it’s possible to eliminate platforms that don’t achieve your goals. Researching the answers to these questions will set you well on the path to finding a solid eCommerce solution for you.

(chart found through thelandconnection.org, click chart to zoom)

If you enjoyed this chart, check out the Farmer to Farmer Exchange eCommerce Platforms Report.

Deciding on a platform for your business can be daunting, but the Local Foods team at CCE St. Lawrence County can help to point you in the right direction. Stay tuned to learn more about the new Ag and Food Producers Academy we are offering this winter which will cover business development and marketing skills.

Lauren grew up in neighboring Vermont exploring and loving the green mountains and vast landscapes. Her undergraduate degree made her appreciate the communities that surround local foods and a Master’s Certificate in Food Studies from the University of Southern Maine made her want to pursue a career in the food system. In 2021 and 2022, she was the Local Foods Marketing and Development Educator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County.