285 Boost Your Farm's Revenue with Value-Added Products: Insights from Kendall Ballantine
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Release Date: 10/30/2024
326: Making the Most of a TV Media Opportunity for Your Farm Business
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
August 20, 2025 What would you do if the news station called and asked to feature your farm... tomorrow morning? Would you panic? Wing it? Or would you know how to strategically show up and shine? Well, that’s exactly what happened to us. In this episode, I take you behind the scenes of our recent appearance on WTOL’s It’s a Good Day morning show—and break down the exact steps my husband Kurt and I took to make the most of this golden moment for our farm business. You’ll learn how to prepare for a media appearance, show up like a pro, and use the afterglow to grow your brand, email...
info_outline
325 Twenty Ways to Use Farm Merch in Your Farm Marketing
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Local Line is my preferred e-commerce platform for farmers. Are you looking for a new solution for your farm? I can't recommend it enough. Easy-to-use inventory management, great customer service, continuous improvement, and a culture dedicated to equipping farmers with marketing expertise. Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: MDF2025. Head to my special affiliate link to get started: If your marketing to-do list is starting to...
info_outline
324 8 Instagram Story Ideas You Can Use for your Farm Every Week
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Instagram Stories are one of the most underutilized and powerful tools in a farmer's marketing toolbox. They’re fast. Raw. Relatable. And they let your audience peek behind the curtain of your farm life, creating trust and connection in just a few frames. But what the heck should you even talk about in a IG Story? In this episode, I break down 8 specific Story content ideas that I use every single week to show up consistently and connect with my audience — especially during the busy farm season. Whether you're totally new to IG Stories platform or you're ready to make them more intentional...
info_outline
323 The Secret to My 60-Cent Leads — How I Found a High-Performing Facebook Ad by Accident
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Local Line is my preferred e-commerce platform for farmers. Are you looking for a new solution for your farm? I can't recommend it enough. Easy-to-use inventory management, great customer service, continuous improvement, and a culture dedicated to equipping farmers with marketing expertise. Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: MDF2025. Head to my special affiliate link to get started: If your marketing to-do list is starting to...
info_outline
322 Using Collaborations to Market Your Farm with Erika from Taste the Local Difference
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Podcast Sponsors: Local Line is my preferred e-commerce platform for farmers. Are you looking for a new solution for your farm? I can't recommend it enough. Easy-to-use inventory management, great customer service, continuous improvement, and a culture dedicated to equipping farmers with marketing expertise. Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: MDF2025. Head to my special affiliate link to get started: If...
info_outline
321 How to Engage Customers While They Wait — Improving the Bulk Meat Buying Experience
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
If your farm sells bulk meat, you’ve probably experienced this challenge: a customer places their deposit… and then has to wait 4–6 months before pickup. That’s a long time to keep someone excited, informed, and connected. But what if that “dead zone” in your customer journey could actually become your secret weapon for building loyalty, reducing buyer’s remorse, and increasing repeat purchases? In this week’s episode, I sit down with Breann Detweiler, a pastured meat farmer in my Farm Marketing School. During a private 1:1 call, we workshop how to build a...
info_outline
320 How to Create a VIP Customer Strategy for Your Farm Part 2
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Last week we mapped out what your farm’s VIP program could look like. This week, it’s time to bring it to life. How do you structure it? Communicate it? Track it? And… what if someone loses VIP status? If you've ever wanted a loyal sub-group of "superfans" who promote your farm, buy regularly, and feel deeply connected to your brand—this episode gives you the blueprint to build that community on purpose. What You'll Learn in This Episode: The 4 different ways to structure a VIP system (and how to choose the right one) Simple methods to track VIP customer behavior without fancy...
info_outline
319 How to Create a VIP Customer Strategy for Your Farm Part 1
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Have you ever walked into a place so often that the staff knew your name—and your order? There’s something magical about being recognized and treated like a regular. It creates loyalty. That’s the idea behind a VIP strategy—and your farm needs one. In today’s episode, I kick off a 2-part series that helps you create a plan to identify, reward, and retain your farm’s most valuable customers. Part 1 is all about figuring out who those people are, and what kind of behavior you want to encourage more of. You’ll learn: Why your business needs a VIP strategy What behaviors to track...
info_outline
318 How Farmers Can Use July 14 to Create Buzz and Sales
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Have you every wished for a fun excuse to surprise your customers, build some goodwill, and boost mid-season sales? Well, what if I told you that July 14th is National Give Something Away Day—and it might just be the perfect opportunity to try something new, spark some joy, and get people buzzing about your farm? In this episode, I show you how to use this quirky, under-the-radar holiday to your advantage—with a list of 8 creative giveaway ideas you can steal, tweak, or flat-out copy. Whether you want to build customer loyalty, generate excitement on social, or increase traffic to...
info_outline
317 The Farm Stop Model: How This Ann Arbor Store Sells Local Food 7 Days a Week
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
What would happen if you merged a grocery store and a farmers market—and gave small farms a seven-day-a-week sales channel that actually pays them what they’re worth? In today’s episode, I interview Alex Blume, Marketing Manager for , a mission-driven retail concept based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, that’s redefining how local food gets sold. Their innovative “farm stop” model helps small and mid-sized farms grow by giving them access to retail space 7 days a week—without the staffing or wholesale markups. Alex shares how the consignment model works, how they support over 250...
info_outlineAre you creating value-added products and selling them in your farm business? After hearing this episode, you may decide to get started!
"Value-added" refers to any agricultural products that have been processed or enhanced in a way that increases their market value. This could involve transforming raw farm products into something more convenient, shelf-stable, or unique, thus making them more appealing to customers. For example, turning fresh vegetables into pickles, making jams from fruit, or creating bone broth from animal by-products are all considered value-added because they offer more convenience, flavor, or functionality compared to their raw form. These products often allow farmers to increase their profit margins and diversify their income streams.
In this episode, Kendall Ballantine from Central Park Farms dives into the world of value-added products and how they transformed her direct-to-consumer farm business into a thriving operation. Discover how these simple innovations can create new revenue streams, support business growth, and help farms stay afloat during the off-season.
Tune in to learn:
- How Kendall turned chicken bones into bone broth, chicken pot pie, and over 40 other freezer meals for her online store.
- Where to start with value-added products.
- How to come up with value added product ideas.
- Creative marketing tips to entice buyers to buy your value added products.
- Common mistakes farmers make when they first start out with value-added.
- How to price your value added so you remain profitable.
This conversation is packed with actionable insights to inspire your own farm business!
Today's Guest: Meet Kendall Ballantine.
Follow Kendall's marketing tips at www.instagram.com/
Her website: www.onlinemarketingforfarmers.com
Workshop: Increasing Revenue with Value Added Products
Workhorse Collective, Kendall's Coaching Program
Podcast Sponsor:
This podcast was sponsored by Local Line, my preferred e-commerce platform for farmers. Are you looking for a new solution for your farm? I can't recommend it enough. Easy to use inventory management, great customer service, continuous improvement, and a culture dedicated to equipping farmers with marketing expertise, Local Line should definitely be one of the e-commerce solutions you consider as you switch. Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: MDF2024. Head to my special affiliate link to get started: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/localline
Some of the resources mentioned in this episode:
Join my free email list! I have a great "Crash Course in farm marketing" that will guide you through the marketing jungle over the course of several months. Each week, you'll get a new email with suggestions and tips to make your marketing better. Subscribe at https://www.mydigitalfarmer.com/subscribe
Farm Marketing School - my monthly online marketing school membership just for farmers. Farm Marketing School is an on-demand library of marketing workshops and project plans that will help you build some of the most important parts of your marketing system: building a promotion calendar, setting up your Google Business Profile, auditing your sales funnel, updating your home page of your website, building your first email nurture sequence, acquiring and deploying testimonials, writing great weekly email promotions, nurture emails, onboarding emails, and practicing different types of offers. You get to chose what you want to study and build each month. These projects are designed to be completed in under 30 days, so that you slowly build your marketing system piece by piece. Use the step by step project planner and resource folder to help you jumpstart your work. Take advantage of my new marketing crash course inside or take the onboarding assessment tool to help you identify where your funnel is broken and what project to do first. To see what courses are currently inside of FMS, or to try out Farm Marketing School for a month at mydigitalfarmer.com/fms Start and cancel your membership anytime.
Subscribe and Review in Apple Podcast
I’d love for you to subscribe to my podcast! I don’t want you to miss an episode. Click here to subscribe in Apple Podcasts!