For many of us that run fall agritourism businesses, we have discovered the significant impact that selling pumpkins can make to our bottom line.  In this article, we'll talk about the reasons that you should be selling pumpkins, selling & pricing strategies, growing vs. buying, and more.

Why should I sell pumpkins?

1. Attendance:  Pumpkins are something that potential customers associate with a fall agritourism venue and blends very well with most other fall related farm agritourism activities.  There are few things that evoke a better image of a fun family outing in the fall than a hayride to the pumpkin patch.  Adding pumpkin sales to...

In our last blog post, we talked about the critical elements of your web design and how your website is the anchor of your marketing efforts (see that post here).  In this post, we are going to talk about the crucial role social media plays in getting the word out to our target audience about our great agritourism business.  Here is a brief rundown of the current major players in social media:

Data from 2015 Pew Research Center Report

Facebook – Still the king of social media even though many of the younger crowd have migrated over to or added other social media platforms to their usage.  The latest statistics indicate that 72% of al...

Our website continues to be that anchor point to a successful marketing campaign.  Guests need a place to go to get detailed information about your business.  You may use things like Social Media, paper coupons, digital billboards, email campaigns, and more to get the word out about your business but nearly all of your marketing efforts will be done with the intention of driving that traffic back to your website where they can get all the information they need.  It is critical that your website have some key design elements to make the user experience the best it can be and to effectively communicate what your business is all about....

We received an email this week from an Agritourism business owner asking about Field Trips so I decided that would be a good topic for this week’s article.  Field Trips can add another great revenue stream to our existing business but it isn’t for the faint of heart.  To be successful you need to be very intentional and organized when it comes to all aspects of Field Trip scheduling and execution.  Here are some things to consider when thinking about or implementing an effective Field Trip program. 

*For copies of any of the materials we mention below that we used at our venue, just email the request to jamie@agritourismid...

We are always looking for ways to improve our venues and to add new things that will help us appeal to an even broader demographic resulting in an increased number of visitors to our farm.  Adding a haunted attraction to your venue can be a great way to do just that.  On the other hand, if executed poorly, they can be what haunts your dreams at night (pun intended).  In my opinion, of all the major attractions that we may add to our venue, this one is the one that takes the most resources and is the toughest to get right but if we pull it off – the rewards can be significant.

Farms are able to offer some unique things that cann...

1. Trained Staff

I believe the first step in providing an OUTSTANDING customer experience is a thoroughly trained staff.  I believe there are 3 key areas of training: Product Training, Operational Training, and Procedural Training.

PRODUCT TRAINING.  Providing an outstanding customer experience requires a staff that is educated about your “product” and can answer questions from your guests.  If you are a farm that offers organic food, they should know why your farm has chosen to grow organic and the benefits of eating organic food.  If you sell Christmas trees, your staff should be able to correctly identify the different varieties and kn...

1. Adventure

If your venue offers something unique and exciting, there are many people that will come just for the adventure.  Trying to find their way out of a cornfield maze at night, riding a horse, shooting pumpkins from a cannon, zombie paintball, or even something as simple as picking their own fruit or petting a cow.  All of these can represent adventure for different ages and life experience.  What can you do in your venue to kick the adventure meter up to the next level?
 

2. Relationships

What do you want to do this weekend?  A common question asked by all those looking to do something fun with those we care about.  In...

Reason 1:  Capitalize on a Current Event or Trending Topic!

Themes can be a powerful guest magnet if you choose the right one.  Think Big!  Pick a theme that has broad appeal.  Stay away from themes that are only about your farm or your town.  Use a theme that has the potential of drawing traffic from hours away!  Here are some of the themes we have done over the years:

• Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers (our venue was located about 100 miles from both Chicago & Milwaukee)

• New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles (our PA venue)

• Presidential Election themes (during election years)

• NASCAR (the year it...

Finding local businessess to get involved and sponsor your Agritourism venue can be a “make it or break it” difference in your success, especially when you are starting out. This article will give you 14 practical steps for identifying, securing, & keeping sponsors for your venue.  This article will give you 14 practical steps for identifying, securing, & keeping sponsors for your venue.

Step 1:  Establish a Timeline

So when should you contact sponsors for your event?  We find the earlier the better.  Sometimes you are asking for materials or funds that you need in order to build a new structure or event at your venue.  We find that s...