Direct Farm Tactics #2: Pre-Orders: Increased Stability, Increased Sales
In this episode of Direct Farm Podcast's Tactics Series, we're excited to share some tactics about pre-orders and how they can secure constant cashflow for your farm business.
Accepting Pre-Orders for 2022? This Farm Secured $40,000+
3 Farm Success Stories with Subscriptions
Buyers Can Subscribe Anytime with Late Enrollment
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Cade: 0:26
Welcome everybody to the Direct Farm Podcast. I'm Cade your host for today from the marketing team at Barn2Door, and we have a great tactics oriented episode for you today. We're going to be talking about pre-orders for next year's season. And I'm delighted to be joined by Eliza.
Eliza: 0:42
My name is Eliza. I am an Account Manager here at Barn2Door.
Cade: 0:46
Awesome. So the topic of today's tactics episode is going to be all about pre-orders for 2022, because as you know, we're headed into the off season right now, you know, going into winter, a lot of farms aren't necessarily quite as active during the winter, but it definitely doesn't mean that you need to go completely off the grid even though the season is over. So Eliza, can you start by just telling us, why should Farmers be thinking about taking pre-orders?
Eliza: 1:09
Yeah, definitely. So Farmers should take pre-orders for next year, just because cashflow during the off season is just going to be really helpful for the business for next year. This gives Farmers the opportunity to finance for maybe that new delivery truck that they've been eyeing or even that extra freezer space as you continue to grow. Customers are looking to buy during the holiday season, capitalize on that. It's just a really great experience for you and your customers with the farm.
Cade: 1:38
Yeah, definitely. Yeah. I think that that's a great point. Like, even though the products might not be available right away, people are still definitely looking at more and more every year to shop online, make those easy purchases as gifts or just in the spirit of the holidays. And what better gift than a subscription to your great local farm products.
Eliza: 1:56
Yeah. And one thing to also think about is connecting with your local buyers, and build that relationship with your customers, your community. Your buyers are really looking to buy something special, especially during the holiday season. And even though your customers might be out next summer, or really not sure about next year, buyers can skip a week or even donate a box to a local food drive.
Cade: 2:19
Yeah. Even with it being so far away, people want to get in and make their purchase to secure that box, you know, even like you said, if they skip a week or whatever the situation may be. And I think a big part of that is with FOMO. So can you tell us a little bit about how Farmers can get started with taking pre-orders and some of those ways that they can drive people to actually place those pre-orders months in advance.
Eliza: 2:40
First, you can create just a promotion code in Barn2Door, but FOMO, fear of missing out, really creates urgency and rewards customers to buy early. Since food is an essential item it's a really great way to bring people together. So one thing to think about is an expiration date to really spur activity. People are used to purchasing for next year. Think about ski season tickets, or even sports tickets to your favorite team.
Cade: 3:05
Absolutely. Yeah. Especially when something's limited in quantity, like maybe you only have so many CSA boxes that people are going to be able to subscribe to, being able to really hit on that with your communication to your customers is definitely a big deal because with sports tickets or concert tickets, people want to desperately get those tickets before they sell out or else you're out of luck, right? So, capitalizing on that and communicating that to your customers so they know that they need to purchase now or else they might miss their chance, is definitely a great tactic, and one that tons of companies use all the time, especially in the holidays.
Eliza: 3:36
Yeah. And think about MailChimp, so rewarding your local customer base with those pre-orders. MailChimp can really utilize sending out those emails ahead of time for next year. Think about different kinds of campaigns you can send out. Like for example, first time buyers, those people who haven't purchased the CSA yet, definitely can get them excited for your newest CSA season. Let them know about what the CSA is all about. And then also can be limited time only. So, in the next 24 hours, purchase your CSA season for next year and get a really special discount, get the price today, before the prices increase next year.
Cade: 4:13
Yeah. That's, that's a great call out too. Definitely important to be communicating with your buyers, in the off season, even if you're not seeing them on your usual delivery route or at your usual markets, you can still keep that connection alive and going in the off season, and it's a great way to be thinking about segmenting your customers, so that way you're communicating the right message to each of them, like Eliza said, whether they purchased the CSA already, or maybe they haven't yet, and so you do some education on what they can expect for the next year, that is just always a great way to increase your sales and bring in those pre-orders way ahead of time, which is awesome. But I know also at Barn2Door, we've been seeing some great examples of farms that have been doing this with really great success, pre-orders for 2022 that is. So Eliza, do you have any examples that you could share with us of farms that are doing this successfully?
Eliza: 4:56
Yeah, definitely. We do have a produce farm that, before Barn2Door, they were attending Farmer's markets and manually tracking all of their orders through a spreadsheet. But with Barn2Door, now they can accept payment online, especially those pre-orders for next year, and really provide that convenience for their buyers. They also can track all of their CSA orders for next season using the pick and pack list, which is just really helpful, but this produce farm secured $40,000 in pre-orders just for their CSA. And it's probably a lot higher today.
Cade: 5:29
Yeah, that's awesome. Think about that revenue security and certainty that a farm can get by offering pre-orders. And clearly, buyers, aren't just buying that large of a quantity of pre-orders without really wanting it. There's clearly a desire, a demand for farm products, even with pre-orders and ordering advance. So, that's just awesome to see.
Eliza: 5:47
Yeah. And one really great thing that they used is the unlock feature. This is one of our new features that came out. And so after they purchased their CSA season for next year, customers are then rewarded with special items, so it unlocks their private store without having to send out any emails. It automatically does that for you and customers can go in to the store after they purchased their CSA box and purchased maybe those jams that you have for the winter season, or some smaller specialty items you just want to reward your customers.
Cade: 6:17
Yeah. Yeah. And that's another great way to definitely grab your buyer's attention. It's exciting to get access to products that not everyone has access to, especially some of those value added products like your jams or maybe products that you got from other farms in the area. Definitely a great way to feature those in your store. Just think about it from a buyer's perspective, it's fun to unlock those items, see those new items in the store and be able to purchase those as well. So, another great way to drive that fear of missing out. People don't want to miss out on being able to buy those items from you.
Eliza: 6:45
Yeah, definitely. And just a reminder, customers want to secure their box ahead of time. It's just one less thing they have to worry about for next year. And then also food security. You're their local farmer, so definitely provide that kind of service and opportunity for your customers.
Cade: 7:00
Yeah, absolutely. Clearly with $40,000 in pre-orders, people really do want to secure those products, that food from your farm ahead of time, so they don't have to think about it next year. Their box will come every week and they don't even have to think about it, which is great for you and your customers. So Eliza, just to recap, walk us through again why should Farmers be thinking about taking pre-orders starting now?
Eliza: 7:20
So this gives the farm an opportunity to finance expensive equipment for next year, and really be prepared for the unexpected. So definitely think ahead for next year and pre-orders can really give you peace of mind.
Cade: 7:35
Yeah, if buyers really do want to order ahead of time and have that food security and peace of mind, why wait to take those orders from your customers when they clearly want to place those orders now, gives you that financial security for your farm. And how can Farmers get started taking pre-orders?
Eliza: 7:49
So first, just set up all your items in the store in Barn2Door. They can be upfront, they can be reoccurring. You can also view all your orders in one place with the pick and pack list, with the sales order data. So, this is really a great way to stay organized and really get prepared for next year.
Cade: 8:06
Yeah. Awesome. Depending on how you want to run your subscriptions, you can set them up with those different payment options, whether it's upfront or per delivery. So yeah, that's a great way to customize the way that you want to control your orders and when the money comes into your farm and also meet buyer's expectations from your farm too. And then finally, you know, what is the benefit of taking pre-orders now?
Eliza: 8:26
Yeah, so think about increasing sales. So it provides convenience and ease for your customers. Also, it saves time. Less manual entering and keeping track of your customers all in one location. It checks all those previous orders. It saves their billing information all in one platform, so you don't have to sift through a bunch of paperwork, trying to find all the customers who purchased a CSA. Now you can use the platform in one place, and then allowing your customers to purchase ahead of time. It allows you to prepare for next season. So plan ahead and save for the next rainy day. There's always a new project that needs to be worked on, on the farm. So definitely invest into longer term solutions to really grow your business.
Cade: 9:09
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Why wait, if people want to purchase those products now? Give them the option and then you'll get that extra revenue security and certainty when people start placing their orders now, and just imagine a season where you don't have to track anybody down to get their commitment to their subscription for that year. And you have everyone locked in. So even if it's a rainy day at the market or, whatever comes up, you know that people will still be getting their box and, they've already paid for it. That'll just take a ton of weight off your shoulders and make your life a lot easier. Save you a bunch of time, which is always important, because we've never met a Farmer who has too much time on their hands. But yeah, thank you so much Eliza for joining me today, this has been great tactics for Farmers for taking those pre-orders for 2022. If you have any more questions about how to actually implement this for your farm, we do have a blog post on topic that we'll be linking in the podcast description, so you can go check that out. And we'll also leave links to numerous other resources on how you can set up subscriptions for your farm and best practices and tactics for that aswell. Thank you everyone for listening, and we'll see you next time.