According to a study on regenerative agriculture, farms that use regenerative practices appear to be more profitable than those that use more conventional management practices. The profits come from various sources, such as decreased chemical and external inputs due to healthier soils and the ability to find more premium markets.
Many farms and ranches are already practicing regenerative agriculture. Some are taking their profits into their own hands by utilizing e-commerce to expand their brand and sell directly to customers who align with their stories and want healthier foods.
By 2026, grocery is set to be the largest e-commerce category. Currently, 13% of all $1.6 trillion USD of US retail grocery sales happen online, with plenty of room for e-commerce to grow.
Customers are now comfortable buying food online, even fresh and frozen. This growing demand is the perfect storm for ranches and farms to front-run the opportunity by moving their marketing efforts online to capture more sales through e-commerce channels.
The market size for regenerative products is estimated to grow 15% yearly from 2023 to 2030, reaching $2.9 billion USD, according to Grand View Research, Inc.
Plus, data from NIQ shows that 54% of consumers are curious about trying regeneratively grown products and 75% of consumers are looking for certifications.
Farmers already practicing regenerative agriculture are in the perfect position to take advantage of this growing market momentum. For those who would like to learn more about regenerative agriculture, read the recent article digging deeper into the practices and principles.
Direct-to-consumer farm sales grew 35% to $10.7 billion in 2020 vs 2019, proving the growing demand amongst consumers to connect directly to farms and ranches. People’s desire to buy directly from farms and ranches is not slowing down. Even though farmer’s market growth has slowed slightly in the last few years, farms utilizing e-commerce have the potential to grow their direct-to-consumer sales by connecting with customers across the country or even regionally.
Selling online allows you to find customers who align with your farm’s values and not just compete for the lowest price. The ability to set your own price, even a higher price than you could imagine, is contingent on your ability to portray the value of your farm’s product.
Suppose your farm is certified regenerative. In that case, you can tell the story using the certification’s framework that can deepen your customers' understanding of on-farm practices and how that relates to the quality of the food you raise and your care for the environment you steward.
For example, Maui Nui Venison sells its ground venison for $29 per pound! They can do this for a variety of reasons. One is that they highlight the scarcity of their meat because they harvest it sustainably to protect the wild venison population. Next, they gathered nutritional data on their meat and pointed out it was the “most nutritious meat on the planet.” This alone warrants an increase in price compared to other ground meats. You can find unique value propositions by farming regeneratively which can fetch premium prices for your products.
The average farmer only receives $0.14 out of every dollar spent on food, but the story is much different for those selling directly to their consumers online. Imagine getting $1 for every dollar of product you sold. Now, you must factor in the cost of production, packaging, and labour. Still, if you can set your price slightly higher than you would wholesale or battling for the lowest price at the market, you’ll keep more than $0.14 for every dollar and find a healthy profit margin.
Social media has allowed people and companies worldwide to share their stories and create credibility through their content. The most successful companies can create lasting brands that stick in customers' minds.
For example, think of a shoe company… You probably thought of Nike or Adidas. What about phones? Probably Apple. Numerous shoe and phone companies exist, but these brands have mastered marketing and storytelling, and you can do the same with your farm.
Leveraging regenerative agriculture in your marketing can create a memorable story and brand. I assembled a regenerative marketing toolkit to help you do just that. Your farm’s dedication to regenerative stewardship is worthy of respect. It’s also the recipe for marketing successfully online, finding your ideal audience, and creating loyal customers.
Selling online allows you to control the customer’s entire experience, from purchasing on your website to receiving the product to the follow-up and nurturing process. Every step of the way is an opportunity for your farm to add value to your customer’s life and deepen that relationship.
Once customers find products they love from brands that align with their values, they tend to be loyal. Plus, your customers are your best marketers. Word of mouth is still the best marketing force, especially when your farm comes up during a delicious meal with your food at the center of it.
You can incentivize your customers to create and share content on their social media pages talking about your farm! This is the digital version of word-of-mouth marketing. After your customers purchase from you, set up an email sequence that follows up with them when they receive your food in the mail.
At this point, you can encourage them to share your product on their social media. You can reward them with a discount code on their next order or have an ongoing monthly giveaway, where you pick one winner from those who create a piece of content using your farm’s products.
Imagine if you have ten people sharing content on their pages and they have 2,500-5,000 followers each. That is 25,000-50,000 new people exposed to your brand through simple incentives and rewarding customers to talk about your farm!
When thinking about growing an e-commerce business, it is crucial to understand the nature of the Internet. Growth here is not linear but exponential. Starting out, it may seem like nothing is happening. If you follow the strategies above and implement the regenerative marketing toolkit, your growth will compound quickly.
One piece of content can reach millions of people quickly. However, I would not suggest relying on a single viral post for your success, but spending 20-30 minutes on a single post can change the trajectory of your farm’s financial future. That’s the power of the internet and social media.
There has never been a better time to build an audience for your farm that is passionate about your work and wants to support you. Your ideal customers are waiting for you to start!
Getting started selling online can be challenging, but using Local Line makes most of the challenges simple. Some pieces to keep in mind when planning an e-commerce strategy involve understanding what extra labour costs can be involved, whether or not you have the marketing and brand skills to succeed, extra shipping materials and logistics, and the capacity to fulfill orders as they trickle in.
