There’s nothing like travel to get a fresh perspective of home. For on-farm retailing businesses, this is especially true because home and work are often the same place.

Every year, Cathy Bartolic, executive director of the Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association (OFFMA) coordinates an annual tour. Sometimes it’s to provincial locations and other years, such as 2015, her members went to British Columbia. For OFFMA vice-president, Nicole Judge, Spirit Tree Estate Cidery, “The smallest things can make the biggest difference.”

At one B.C. farm, the owner put up bulletin boards in the bathrooms publicizing coming events and promoting gift baskets. With a captive audience, business increased. This tactic worked much better than putting up signage at the cash register.

“Tell your farm story,” says Judge. “I don’t think we’ve done as good a job as possible in our own operation. That’s why we’re removing the artwork in our ciderhouse and replacing with canvas prints, using photography of all the seasons on the farm and our family.”

She has sourced three-by-four canvas prints at Costco for a reasonable price.

This renewed focus on branding is also playing out in a new emailed newsletter that features upcoming events such as their farm’s Cider Maker Dinner Series at Caledon, Ontario. To build her mailing list, she’s putting a box by the cash register that invites business cards for a draw. The prize? An apple pie from their on-farm bakery.

Planning content for a newsletter can be onerous for some. Judge has overcome this hurdle by profiling suppliers such as the locals who make ginger syrup and spice blends.

Judge is one of the OFVC speakers at the OFFMA session, starting at 9:30 am, February 18.  She’ll be sharing more ideas under the topic:  What can we learn from B.C. direct farm marketing industry?”

Key word:  Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association, Nicole Judge, Cathy Bartolic – LATEST NEWS