OFFMA’s Best Practices for On‐Farm Marketers During the COVID‐19 Pandemic                                            1  

Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association Best Practices for On-Farm Marketers During the COVID-19 Pandemic April 2, 2020 It goes without saying that the dynamics of doing business during the COVID-19 outbreak has changed. What are you doing to continue operating in this exceptional environment? Here’s a collection of what we see happening out in the industry. Lots of ideas to adapt or modify to your own business. This is an evolving document and more information will be added as it becomes available. 1. Ask yourself what is it at this time my customers are looking for? The answer: fresh local food with less risk from multiple handling; staying healthy; staying safe; and staying home. OFFMA members have always offered this in the past but it becomes even more critical now. 2. Your Plan What are your options for sustaining your business operation? What can you do to adjust your business model and still be able to serve your customers either now if you are open or at a later date?

You need to come up with a distribution plan for your customers in safe and healthy way. Contactless sales is an obvious solution, but what does that entail? It could be as simple as asking customers to make a phone call once they are in your parking lot and let you know what they would like to purchase off your inventory sheet OR it could be more complicated like creating an online store. There are lots of options out there but if you want to look at an online store and need some help in setting it up, here are some

companies to consider: Jester is a one stop shop for all things digital: web design, social media, SEO, training and video production. OFFMA has worked with Sue and her crew in the past and they understand agriculture and the farm fresh experience. www.jestercreative.com Local Line helps food suppliers doing direct sales increase their orders and save time on order fulfillment. Their e-commerce, CRM, inventory and logistics modules enable suppliers to control their own brand and grow their business on their terms. Sometimes called the ‘shopify’ option for farmers. www.localline.ca Kendal Hills Farms is a virtual farmers market that is open every week from Thursday at 12:00 to Sunday at Midnight. A very new concept but quite interesting. They offer the

OFFMA’s Best Practices for On‐Farm Marketers During the COVID‐19 Pandemic                                            2  

online site and delivery; you just need to supply pictures and products. www.kendalhillsfarms.ca Contact your web person and let them know what you are looking for. Time is of essence though. If you are going this route you need to set this up immediately. The answer: on-line ordering with payment; delivery maybe twice a week in designated geographical areas; pick-up at farm by appointment; in store shopping with limited number of people at a time with lots of space for social distancing. Keep your plan as simple as possible. Establish a minimum order value and a top up delivery charge if the customer orders more than once a week. Define your delivery area and designate delivery days to specific areas. 3. Delivery You have orders but how are your customers going to get them?

You are in charge here; it is YOUR plan. If you don’t have the capacity to offer home delivery, don’t. If you know of a business you can partner with or you feel you do have staff that could do delivery than go that route. Layout clearly what you are willing to do – a few days a week, only weekly. Whatever makes sense to you.

4. Prepping Staff It is important to be open and honest with staff. Take time to develop a COVID-19 Employee Healthy Policy. You can see examples of what other OFFMA members have done at www.ontariofarmfresh.com/covid19-news. Handwashing should be mandatory and the safety of staff and customers paramount. Staff should not report for work if they are feeling unwell. They must practice social

distancing between themselves and customers. You should have multiple hand washing stations throughout the store for both customers and staff. Emphasize all the protocols that the health authorities have been stressing. The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council

OFFMA’s Best Practices for On‐Farm Marketers During the COVID‐19 Pandemic                                            3  

(CAHRC) has a regularly updated COVID-19 information on their page at www.cahrc-ccrha.ca 5. Communicating with your Customers Once you have a plan in place make sure your customers know what it is. Let your customers know what you are doing through your web site, emails, and social media. Assure them that they can still confidently buy healthy food safely. Tell them about how you have trained your staff and how you are following all the COVID -19 health protocols to reduce risk. Be sensitive and flexible but also professional at all times. Everyone is currently under great stress, you are not alone. People are spending more time at home and this is the perfect opportunity to let them know about your business and what you have to offer. *Social media is a powerful tool, make use of it to the max.

1. Be transparent – share your struggles and concerns but also show what you are doing to keep staff and customers safe.

2. Pictures, pictures, pictures – at this time your customers won’t be able to necessarily see or touch your products. Use pictures and videos to help them know exactly what they are getting when they order from you.

3. Ask for help – ask your audience to share your posting to help get the word out. You could also ask them to tag a friend who may be interested in what your farm is offering.

4. Update – make sure information on your website and social media platforms is up to date and current. If you have added online sales, your customers need to know.

*Emailing your customers This is more important than you may think. Just because you have 1000 followers on Facebook doesn’t mean that all of them will see your postings. Emails are one sure way to at least get into their mailboxes. Your message has to be compelling enough to get them to open your emails. 6. What’s out there Now more than ever, don’t spend time re-inventing the wheel. Adapt and adopt ideas that are already out there. Things are changing and moving on an almost hourly basis. No one expects you to have the perfect solution, just do your best. Here are some examples of OFFMA members who are doing a stellar job of pivoting their businesses and communicating with their customers.

OFFMA’s Best Practices for On‐Farm Marketers During the COVID‐19 Pandemic                                            4  

Willowtree Farm Market – among all the things that Willowtree offers, they also have a sugar bush and were initially doing trips out to the sugar bush until there was a backlash on social media. They addressed the situation immediately by explaining their reasoning and stopping the sugar bush rides.  Willowtree makes effective use of all their communication tools: website, email, Facebook and Instagram.  

Kristi’s Market Kitchen has mouth watering pictures of the great things they are baking up each day. The pictures seem to draw you in and have you hooked as soon as you see them. They are also very good with updates on all the types of products they offer. Heatherlea Farm Shoppe has pivoted several times and now has an expanded online shop that encourages customers to purchase their great products with porch pick ups. They are genuine in their appreciation for their customers. Josmar Acres shows how staff can serve you outside. Lovely pictures of kids and flowers and vegetable plants and an underlying message that work on the farm continues so they will be able to have great produce for their customers. Spirit Tree Cidery has their open message right on their Facebook header. They have had to cancel some events but have made every effort to let people know. Regularly post their menu for customers so they know what is available before they even get to the farm.

OFFMA’s Best Practices for On‐Farm Marketers During the COVID‐19 Pandemic                                            5  

There are many more examples out there if you are feeling stuck. 7. Additional Resources: OFFMA’s weekly COVID19 Zoom webinars on various relevant topics, Mondays at 7pm, contact OFFMA for more information. Ontario Federations of Agriculture’s A Guide for Direct Sales to Consumers During COVID-19 and Beyond. https://ofa.on.ca/resources/a‐guide‐for‐direct‐sales‐to‐consumers‐during‐covid‐19‐and‐beyond/ Free Trial on Shopify to Create Online Stores Integrating e-commerce capability into your website is a way to continue to offer your products to your customers. Shopify, has a free 3-month trial available and is one of the easiest platforms to use both for businesses and their customers. https://www.shopify.com/free‐trial?&term=%2Bshopify&Network=Search&SiteTarget=&mt=b&adid=268936926950&device=c&test=&adpos=&CampaignId=788843257&gclid=CjwKCAjwsMzzBRACEiwAx4lLG_Q7jbycxe9LdFhg3gocR8B10YSFX49m3wMFqgTwboSa41xFIh4sfBoCG5IQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds Webinar - Tips to Get Your Business Online Bruce County (RTO7) has a recorded webinar on how to sell your products online. https://zoom.us/rec/play/7Jd‐Ib3‐qD43T4eQ4QSDAvF_W9XvKqqshygfrPUExRvkAHRSN1CgYOcTN7GiHXL‐2z64uFEr67mF7ltF?continueMode=true&_x_zm_rtaid=Q0itSBqxSYSXMx3a672UvQ.1585243433343.69e670a8e143378258c5f41966cf51dd&_x_zm_rhtaid=795 Webinar - Tourism in the Time of COVID-19 https://zoom.us/rec/play/vJd4JO76rzM3G4aSsgSDU6N9W426f_ms0ikb‐vRYyUnkUCRXOgCkYuZDa‐Y5G0LLnElNEDMBZUX8Q2WD?continueMode=true  

Local Line Direct Market Farmers’ Guide to COVID-19, https://go.localline.ca/hubfs/Gated%20Content/PDFs/Local%20Line_The%20Direct%20Market%20Farmers%20Guide%20to%20COVID‐19.pdf