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
350 Lessons from a Handmade Goat Soap Business - Interview with Hooves and Feathers
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
A few months ago, I opened my mailbox to find a beautifully packaged starter box of goat milk soap from Allan Laird of Hooves and Feathers. Allan is a Farm Marketing School student… and he was proudly showing me his homework. 😊 Inside the box were thoughtfully chosen products, a clear “try-this-first” experience, and a sense that this wasn’t just soap — it was a brand with intention. I remember thinking, This is what happens when someone applies simple marketing frameworks with consistency. So I called Allan and said, “You need to come on the podcast and walk us through what...
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349 What Do I Put on My Farm’s Website Homepage?!
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Have you ever stared at your farm’s website homepage and thought… what am I even supposed to put here? Your website is the source of truth for your brand. It’s where people go to learn more, double-check you, and decide if they want to buy. And if your homepage is unclear or overwhelming, most people won’t stick around. In today’s episode, I’m breaking down a simple framework for what actually belongs on your farm’s website homepage—so it’s clear, strategic, and helps turn visitors into customers. We’re talking about the specific messaging blocks every strong farm...
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348 Building a Values-Led Farm Business with Value-Added Products (Without Going Full-Time)
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
What if your farm didn’t have to “scale up” to be successful? What if it could stay small, seasonal, creative — and still feel deeply worth it? In this conversation, I sit down with a farmer who has intentionally chosen a different path: one rooted in values, flexibility, and creativity — and who’s built a beautiful business around it. This episode is a quietly powerful case study. Claire and I talk about: Running a farm while not being a full-time farmer Letting creativity lead your product development Using one strong “gateway...
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347 A Step-by-Step Promotion Plan for Selling Monthly Meat Shares
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
What if I told you I recently ran a 7-day CSA Chicken + Pork Share promotion on my farm, using only email, a private Facebook group, and a simple promotion framework? It went REALLY well, exceeding my sales predictions. If you’ve ever thought about launching a monthly meat share — or already have one and want to sell it more consistently — this episode is your behind-the-scenes look at how I design, organize, and execute a high-performing farm promotion from scratch. I walk you through: How I structured the product How I worked with my partner farm How I decided pricing, timing,...
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346 What to Put Inside Your Farm’s Media Kit with Erika Tebbens
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Last summer, I got invited to be on TV. Exciting, right? Then they asked a simple follow-up question: “Can you send over your media kit?” And I froze. I didn’t have one. I wasn’t even totally sure what should be in one. Fast forward to this winter, as I start doing more speaking, partnerships, and visibility work for both my farm and My Digital Farmer -- I realized this was a gap I needed to close. So I invited someone back on the show who lives and breathes this stuff. On today’s episode, I’m joined again by Erika Tebbens from Taste the Local Difference. If Erika sounds familiar,...
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345 — The Energy of Money: FMS Money Mindset Series
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
This week on the podcast, I’m pulling back the curtain on something I’ve never shared publicly before… Inside Farm Marketing School, we’ve been doing a powerful three-month deep dive on rewriting your money story -- and today, I’m releasing one of those private “members-only” private podcasts here on the main feed. This is Episode 2 of that private series, and it’s all about the energy of money -- how it flows, how it gets blocked, and why the emotional tone behind your money exchanges matters just as much as the dollars themselves. You’ll hear stories from my own life,...
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344 How to Win Back Customers Who Have Gone Cold
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
What do you do when your customer just… stops paying attention? This week’s episode was inspired by a walk on our farm -- and a stubborn dog who found a vole in the field and completely tuned me out. Calling louder didn’t work. Waiting didn’t work. What finally worked was walking back out to her, getting in her line of sight, and offering her the right treat -- something she actually wanted. That moment sparked a powerful realization about customers who go quiet (and what actually brings them back). If you’ve ever looked at your email list or customer list and...
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343 Goal Setting - Finding Your One Word Intention for the New Year
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Every January, we’re told to start fresh by setting goals, building plans, and fixing what didn’t work last year. But what if that pressure is the very thing that keeps us stuck? In this episode, I’m inviting you to try something different—something simpler, deeper, and far more sustainable. Instead of resolutions or rigid goals, what if you chose one word to guide your year? In this episode, I walk you through the practice of choosing a one-word intention—and how that single word can become a lens for your decisions, your energy, and the way you show up in both life and business. I...
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342 The 12 Day of Christmas Song - Farm Marketing Edition
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
Every December, I love to pull out something fun, festive, and just a little bit cheeky to celebrate the season… and this year, we’re doing it farm-style. Today’s episode is a playful spin on the classic song The 12 Days of Christmas — but instead of partridges and pear trees, we’re singing our way through 12 foundational marketing must-haves every farm business needs to grow, thrive, and sell consistently. You’ll laugh. You’ll nod your head. And you’ll walk away with a massive checklist of the exact pieces you need to build a truly functional farm marketing system. Whether...
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341 Should You Join Farm Marketing School? ALL the Details!
My Digital Farmer | Marketing Strategies for Farmers
When I first started teaching farm marketing, I noticed something right away: most farmers weren’t struggling because they were “bad at marketing” — they were struggling because they had never been taught how to do it. They were winging it, trying to piece things together from YouTube videos and Instagram posts, and feeling defeated when sales didn’t budge. Farm Marketing School was born out of that gap — a place where farmers could learn the skills, systems, and confidence they need to market their farms well. And since enrollment for next year is now open, I wanted to...
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:
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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.
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