There’s a trend I’ve noticed lately that will impact how we farm, and it’s gaining in agreement. Jay Baer calls it “youtility.” Gary Vaynerchuk calls it “jabbing.” Seth Godin calls it “marketing with and for people” rather than to and at them.
The point is the same. Our efforts to sell and lead generate must evolve to a place where we connect with the people we want to serve in real and genuine ways — helpful ways. Ways that add value to their lives.
As top bloggers such as Pat Flynn and Corbett Barr are known to say, we need to “add value to the space.”
With that in mind, I recently released a podcast episode on 16 crazy and useful ways you can spoil your farm in 2016.
Here’s a summary of those 16 ways:
16 crazy and useful ideas to spoil your farm in 2016
- Create a tool shed where neighbors can check out tools for free.
- Do a monthly community service project.
- Join the farmers market. Offer services such as chair massages, face painting, gift wrapping, etc.
- Rent a branded kiosk in a nearby mall, and sponsor chair massages, face painting, facials, manicures or any other fun service by offering the kiosk free of charge to the service providers. Rotate services daily or weekly.
- Create branded garage sale signs people can check out. Include a checklist for people to get the most out of their garage sale plus balloons and a cash box.
- Create a neighborhood Facebook group.
- Contract a person to mow lawns and wear branded coveralls. Offer a free month of lawn service to select neighbors, and maybe rotate who gets it month by month.
- Do a free weekly car wash on a busy corner (and wear branded coveralls).
- Hire a photographer to do family photos for people in your farm.
- Host a weekly cooking class at your open houses. Invite local chefs to teach one of their specialties.
- Sponsor a monthly drinks are free hour at your favorite neighborhood bar. Maybe the first 50 people get a free drink ticket.
- Sponsor a monthly drinks are free hour at your favorite neighborhood coffee stand. Sponsor your local coffee shop sleeves, and print market stats on them as a “Did you know?”
- Create a membership site for your farm with weekly DIY project videos. Have the videos be of the appropriate contractors teaching the project.
- Create a five-minute documentary about your farm that looks cinematic. Use local videographers and journalists to help you create the finished product.
- Do a monthly reading at your local library with jumpy castle, refreshments, giveaways, etc.
- Create your own farm branded passport card type coupon program complete with a plastic card and business discounts from local businesses.
Use them all or just the ones that speak to you, and find your own twist to make this authentic to you and valuable to them. Let’s make 2016 a year of value.
Don’t be afraid to offer value outside of your real estate expertise. As I tell my clients and my classes, not everyone is at the place of buying or selling real estate.
To be relevant to our farm, we have to find other places to add value besides our industry. Use this list to spark your ideas, and 2016 might prove to be your best year yet.
Thinking of farming and want to stack the deck in your favor? Pick the best farm possible using my Farm Decision Matrix with instructions here.
Chris Angell is an author, speaker and coach; his company is Groundswell Business Consulting. You can find him on Facebook at www.facebook.com/