My Digital Farmer Podcast

So you've got all these new CSA members this year. What do you need to do to help them achieve success with your CSA product? In this episode, I share my specific curriculum we teach to our CSA rookies to help get them to mastery faster.

So you have an email list. Now what? In this episode, I talk you through the value of an email "Nurture" sequence -- what they are, what kinds of things go in them, and how they can help you grow the know, like, and trust factor with your leads.

In this episode, we talk about the acronym "KLT," what it stands for, and why it's imperative that you build a strategy around it if you want to develop a strong customer base. I also share examples of how to build KLT into your marketing funnels.

In this interview, Dan talks about the three businesses (CSA, seed company, and Farmer Spreadsheet Academy) he's founded over his lifetime, and the entrepreneurial lessons he's learned along the way.

Now that you've got all these new CSA members, how do you onboard them and set the right expectations? Answer: a member handbook. We talk what goes inside this bad boy...

Are your customers getting tired of your brand? Have you done anything NEW lately? In this episode, we discuss the principle that your customers are always growing, and share some ideas for how to keep customer momentum alive in your business.

So your CSA is sold out thanks to COVID. Now what? Are you trying the "wait list" method? In this episode, I tell you why a wait list may not be your best bet, and offer another alternative that's more likely to convert long-term. DON'T miss this episode.

Customers are HOT for farm products right now. So are you using this reality to get them onto your email list? In this episode I share just how simple it is to build a simple lead generation strategy that will eventually turn into paying customers.

In this podcast episode, I talk about how we can be inviting our audience into the "bigger mission" of the local food movement. This "old" message suddenly feels more relevant than ever. Let's use this opportunity available in COVID to help people identify with a deeper purpose with long-term implications.

In this episode, I interview Karli Miller Hornick from Main Street Farms. She shares how her deep customer research helped her pivot her messaging and grow her CSA from 100 to 350 in one year.

Have you been thinking about adding on share types to your CSA product suite? Are you wondering how to do it? In this episode, I share my experience with add-on products, how we set them up, and what you need to think about.

Feeling anxious about your business? With COVID-19 taking over the economy and dominating the air waves and messaging, it's easy to get sucked into the landscape of fear it has created. As farmers, how can we resist the urge to see the glass even emptier than before? Can we find opportunity in our landscape of fear?

CSA retention. It's the holy grail of CSA farmers. I know for a fact that Facebook groups are a key driver behind my 81% return rate. What happens in these social spaces that enhances the CSA experience? As we face uncertain times of COVID-19 isolation and fear, groups are more powerful than ever. I share 3 ways a group can help your customers feel success.

Wondering if e-commerce or an online store might be right for you? Looking for advice on how to get started? In this episode, I invite Cole Jones from Local Line, an ecommerce platform for farmers, to share his wisdom on how to successfully leverage this platform and keep the sales coming.

When it comes down to it, there are three ways to increase your retail revenue on the farm. I used to spend most of my time on just one of them. In this episode, I share what the 3 ways are, and I suggest which one you should be concentrating on to maximize your profits.

This week, I feature Carrie Sedlack on the show. I interview her specifically about a new project she is spearheading -- a national CSA network called the "CSA Innovation Network." We talk through how this project came to be, what its goals are, and how CSA farmers will be able to specifically benefit. I've become a collaborator on this project, so I'm especially keen to help it succeed.

Just getting started with CSA? Wondering how the heck to find your first customers? In this episode, I share tips from OTHER CSA farmers who have walked this road before you. You'll learn how MOST of us got started and get specific ideas for where to begin.

What if you were a travel guide, engineering your client through a prescribed "perfect" journey through your brand? What stops would you craft along the way to make sure they experienced success as quickly as possible? That's what this episode is all about. Learn how to map out your brand's customer experience.

What happens immediately after someone buys your signature product? If all they get is a confirmation email, then this episode is for you. We talk through why an email welcome sequence can be a super powerful way to onboard your customer, and I share my exact template for how to build your own.

I bought a new air fryer last month. The "unboxing" experience was so top-notch, that I decided to make an entire episode about it. In this tutorial, I'm going to challenge you to think about how you are engineering the moments AFTER a person buys your product. Excite your customer and you'll have them coming back for more.

What can a haunted corn maze teach you about marketing? Turns out... a lot! In this episode, I share the concept of "pre-framing" your customer journey, and how to build doorways in your brand.

Pricing your CSA can be tricky. It's not just a matter of expenses, profit margins and knowing what the market can handle. There's a psychological and emotional component to pricing. In this episode we talk about why a person might think, "It's too expensive," and help you find the price that "feels just right."

Testimonials are a super simple way to start increasing your sales. But are you using them?! Sometimes we don't always know where to put them. In this episode I share 12 easy places you could be placing testimonials to help your buyers say YES.

Be honest... how often do you look at the reviews on Amazon before buying a product? (Every time, right?!) Testimonials are one of the primary triggers to getting someone to buy your CSA. In this episode we talk about how to find great testimonials...

Part of building out a new website is choosing your platform. This can often get farmers stuck in their tracks because it feels overwhelming. In this episode I go through 6 questions to consider so that you choose the right platform for you.

Can you describe what you do in a nutshell? That's your tagline. Don't make it complicated or fancy academic language. Keep it simple. In this training, I share the 3 parts of a great farm tagline that will help you draw in new customers.

Are you talking too much about yourself in your marketing? In this episode I share an a-ha moment for our farm that fundamentally pivoted how we marketed our farm. In this episode, you'll learn what this mindset shift is and how it will clarify your strategy.

How well do you know your customers? Using telephone interviews is a great way to do market research. In this episode, I talk you through how to identify your best customers to research using telephone interviews. The result will blow your mind.

Website redesign... did you just groan? Building a website message can feel overwhelming. But it's absolutely critical to finding new customers. In the episode we talk about 6 common website mistakes so you can fix them!

If you want to be effective at marketing, you'll need to learn to think and talk like a cave man. In this episode, I teach you the three questions your messaging MUST answer to keep your customer from getting confused.

Today's guest is Michael Kilpatrick, host of the Thriving Farmer Podcast. Michael shares his tips for how to make the most out of a farming conference and leverage the networking opportunities at these events.

You are NOT selling just vegetables. As a CSA farmer, you're actually selling something a WHOLE lot more valuable. In this episode, I talk you through what that is, and why it's imperative that you change your messaging to focus on it.

A well-written customer survey can give you valuable intel to help you better understand who your ideal customer is, how they think, and what they value. I share my tips for how to craft a great survey that will actually help you write better marketing.

Trying to figure out what kinds of stuff you should be building for your marketing strategy? In this episode, I share my list of the top 10 marketing assets I think matter most. Use this list to guide your first steps in building out your plan.

Look inside the great CSAs, and you'll likely find specific mechanisms in their business that "surprise and delight" their customers. In this episode, we talk about the power of the surprise and delight factor and how it looks in practice for your farm.

Bulk buyers are my quintessential buyer. When I realized the amount of income these CSA members were generating for me, I began to ask myself: "How can I turn more of my CSA members people into this kind of buyer?" In this episode I share my framework.

I'm going to teach you about an awesome tool that has been helping me convert CSA leads into customers quickly... it's a video email messaging app called BombBomb. Learn how to record a video message right from Gmail and hit send. BOOM.

Want to learn a way to keep your CSA customers deeply engaged with your farm in the off-season? In this podcast I teach you step by step how to build a "challenge" - a content strategy used in online marketing to grow your clients into raving fans.

If you're a beef or meat producer... this episode is for YOU. As a follow up to episode 25, I walk you through a practical example of how customer objections kept me from buying a side of beef. Get ideas for how you can overcome them.

Something is keeping your customer prospect from buying... What is it? Do you know? Identifying your customer's "objections" or obstacles that are stalling the purchase is a key part of your marketing strategy. Learn how to ace this!

Do you wish more of your CSA members would renew for next year EARLIER? Do your "early bird" sign ups work? In this episode, I share my framework for how I build my early bird renewal campaign to get a LOT of my members to decide YES before Thanksgiving.

What if your social media posts were more than just cool pictures of your farm's produce or calls to shop the market? In this episode, I teach how to create "Content Pillars" that help you not only connect with your audience but promote your unique brand.

CSA is not an impulse buy. That means we need to build a long-term strategy to get people to warm up. In this episode, I talk through the concept of "Building a Runway" to get your customer ready to buy. And I give you 10 ideas for how to do it.

What do you want your customer to do next? As a marketer, you've got to TELL THEM. In this episode, we help you get really clear about what your next steps should be, and how to make sure your customer knows them.

That darn email promotions tab. Don't you hate it? What if I told you some secrets that would keep your emails from landing there? It turns out there is a science behind the spam filter. And knowing how it works can make a BIG difference in your open rates. In this episode, I share the principles you need to understand about "sender reputation," and I share 12 things you can do to increase that reputation (and keep your emails out of the promo tab).

In this episode I share the P.A.S.T.O.R. method for crafting your sales message. I use this to frame my website and my promotional email campaigns. If you're stuck not knowing how to start your sales argument, start here.

Writing email copy isn't the same as writing for your English teacher. There are different "rules" of engagement. In this episode, I share best practices for writing emails so that people will actually read them.

Email marketing is a key way to warm up your prospect and get them ready to buy. But what do you SAY in those sales emails? I answer that in part 1 of this 2 part series all about email promotional sequences (and how to write them).

How do you go about building an email promotion sequence? When do they work? And what exactly do you say inside them to get people to open them and act? This is part 1 of a deep dive training to help you become better at sales emails.

Is it hard for you to ask people to buy your product? Do you worry about coming off as "too salesy" when you develop your email sales sequence and Facebook ads? I talk about 6 mindset shifts you can make to help you get over this fear.