Social Media and Online Marketing for Farms

Posted on January 1, 2021 by Taylor in Beginning Farmers, Education, Farming, Farming Practices, Internet Resources, Management, Marketing, Small Farms, Training Programs // 0 Comments

Attract More Customers with a Strategic Farm Presence Online – Social Media and Online Marketing Course from Cornell Small Farms – January 2021

Are webpages still useful? Does Facebook drive sales in real life? What do hashtags do? What kinds of photos do customers respond to? What are good strategies for low-cost online sales/marketing? What is Square and should I be using it? If you’ve been struggling with questions like these for your farm, this course is a great starting place for you. Take our Social Media & Online Marketing for Farms online course and learn how to build a successful online presence, grow your customer base, and sell more product.

The Social Media and Online Marketing for Farms course is for aspiring, new, or experienced farmers, but it assumes participants will be beginner to intermediate social media/online marketing users who are interested in polishing and expanding their skills for increased social media traffic and online marketing for farm businesses. Students should have basic digital proficiency, including use of email, internet searches, and may already have some personal and/or business social media accounts set up, including Facebook, Instagram, etc. The course is not geared to advanced online marketing users and/or those who anticipate the majority of their farm sales to come from online sources.

The course is designed to improve your understanding of social media, online marketing ideas and tools that may increase sales and increase awareness about your business. From experienced farmers and farm service providers, you will learn:

Some of the more common tools and strategies to attract followers online,
How to drive customers to sales locations (online or real-life)
Marketing planning activities, including distribution, pricing, customer demographics and sales region.
Tips for improving photos, videos, graphics, memes, and more.

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in Teachable, our online course platform. To add to the experience, live webinars will be held during the live instruction period — from January 14 to February 11, 2021, on Thursday evenings at 6 p.m. ET. These webinars allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from presenters and ask questions in real-time. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

Meet the Instructor:

Rebecca Schuelke Staehr owns and operates Cayuga Pumpkin Barn, a seasonal vegetable farm and roadside stand in Springport, Cayuga County, NY. Rebecca and her husband Ed own an operate a grain crop farm, Staehr Family Farm. Corn, soybeans, wheat, alfalfa and more and grown using conventional farming practices, certified organic, and certified non-GMO farming. She has worked for Cornell Cooperative Extension and the NY Farm Viability Institute. She is a past chair of CADE, the Center for Agricultural Development & Entrepreneurship. Rebecca serves on the board of Cayuga County Farm Bureau. She has taught classes in business planning, time management for beginning farmers, starting a farmstead cheese/dairy value-added operation, and more.

Already Engaging Customers Online? Check Out Other Upcoming Courses from Cornell Small Farms

Exploring Markets and Profits
Thursdays: January 14 – February 18, 2021
Have an idea for a farm enterprise but not sure if it’s feasible? This course will help you explore the potential markets and profitability of your ideas, picking up where BF 101: Starting at Square One (not a prerequisite) left off.

Holistic Financial Planning
Mondays: January 11 – February 15, 2021
If you’ve been struggling to make your farm operation profitable without driving yourself into the ground, this financial planning course is for you. You will learn how to make financial decisions toward farm and family values and goals.

Introduction to Beekeeping
Tuesdays: January 12 – March 2, 2021
Whether you are currently keeping honey bees or are considering them for your farm, a basic knowledge of bee biology, diseases, pests, and setting up your colony are essential for success. This 8-week course will give you real-world experiences paired with academic concepts.

Introduction to Tree Fruit Production
Wednesdays: January 13 – February 17, 2021
Tree fruit are an important component of the agricultural and homeowner landscape. This course trains beginning tree fruit growers in fundamental concepts in orchard planning and management.

Season Extension with High Tunnels
Tuesdays: January 12 – February 16, 2021
Adding weeks to your growing season can mean attaining a premium for having products available well before (or long after) other local growers. This course will introduce you to unheated plastic-covered “high tunnels,” covering cost, management and more.

Sheep Production
Thursdays: January 14 – February 18, 2021
Have sheep or thinking about getting a flock? Producers of all experience levels will find something for them in this lively, wide-ranging course. There is no one right way to raise sheep — this course covers many of these different options.

Vegetable Production II
Wednesdays: January 13 – February 17, 2021
This course continues where BF 120: Vegetable Production I (not a prerequisite) ends, covering vegetable production from transplanting to harvest, including: in-season fertility, integrated pest management, weed control, harvesting, and marketing.

Woodland Mushroom Cultivation
Tuesdays: January 12 – February 16, 2021
With a bit of practice, mushrooms can be easily grown in the woods on many products. This course trains new and experienced farmers in the background, techniques, and economics of farm-scale woodland mushroom production.

Writing a Business Plan
Mondays: January 11 – February 15, 2021
Arm yourself with a business plan and you will have a guide to aid your farm decision-making and demonstrate to yourself and your family that your ideas are feasible. This course is designed to help you build your plan, including developing financial statements.

The Cornell Small Farms Program offers more than 20 online courses including Social Media and Online Marketing for Farms to help farmers improve their technical and business skills. These courses cover a range of topics any farmer needs to succeed, such as farm business, soil health, indoor mushroom production, grazing management, and so much more. Experienced farmers and extension educators guide students through course content, including weekly live webinars, videos, and resources.

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in Teachable, our online course platform. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the interface of the course for a dedicated time slot each year to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from presenters and ask questions in real time. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

You can browse all of the course offerings on the Cornell Small Farms website.