I was recently driving through the rolling hills and winding roads south of Philadelphia and stumbled upon Wolff's Apple House. The farm with roots back to 1910 has been a staple market for the local community. I noticed a number of small but great little ideas for direct farm and produce marketers.
TIP 1: LOCAL SIGNAGE These signs very clearly communicate the price and highlight their locally grown attributes. Each sign connected the actual location in mileage from the market to allow customers to transparently see the level of freshness and commitment to sustainable foods.
KEY TIP 2: MEETING CUSTOMERS NEEDS: Sometimes the best way to market is to simply meet a customer's needs. This packaging method for fresh spinach and field greens was unique and very relevant to many buyers needs. The size of the package was manageable and I presume this could be created in-house by buying bulk greens and packing in house. The display gave a great view of the product and was topped with a selection of salad dressings! Due to the turns on this display no refrigeration was apparently necessary. Another example of whole fresh greens is below:
KEY TIP 3: CHOOSE THE RIGHT FIXTURE FOR THE JOB: This special fresh produce fixture was designed to hold large watermelons upright at an angle. It certainly filled the customers view with fresh I could hardly resist. I always recommend cutting a melon open on these displays and labeling as "display only). The pink or red flesh really helps sell the melons and can increase impulse purchases!
KEY TIP 4: CONVENIENCE IS KING! These pre-husked corn packages were ready-to-go for time-saving dinner solutions. The display was highlighted with a great signage and accented with a nicely designed and printed collateral piece: a recipe card co-sponsored by 3 local agriculture and sustainability focused organizations including Grid Magazine.
So just how are you implementing new ideas in your market or food store? It's always difficult to come up with new ideas when you're working INSIDE YOUR BUSINESS day after day. If you need help we offer on-site or remote reviews of your merchandising strategy. But before you request help you might take a moment to review your operation independently to see if any short falls exist between your current efforts and potential opportunities to drive food sales.
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