Farming is not an occupation, it’s a calling. The farmers that I know are passionate about growing really good food. Additionally, they want to educate their customers and keep them informed, which, in turn, creates loyal customers.

Selling directly to customers creates some unique issues for farmers. Standard marketing methods don’t usually work that well for a couple of reasons: it’s too expensive and casts too wide a net. Farmers who sell directly to consumers need advertising methods that work on a personal basis. They also need to reach customers locally, which can be a challenge on the world wide web.

There are a number of online tools farmers can use to solve some of these issues and yet maintain steady relationships with customers. Blogs and social media are free, immediately accessible, and usually easier to understand and use than a website. What they take, however, is time and a certain amount of dedication to the relationships these tools create. Time is in short supply when weeds need pulling and there are goats to milk and cucumbers to harvest.

I believe the trick is to find and use the tools that best fit your business model and your personality. Let me give you an example: a blog is a great way to keep your CSA customers in touch with what is happening on the farm. If you hate to write, however, a blog is going to be agony to use. A better choice would be Twitter, which limits the size of your postings. You can announce, “Beets are here!” without having to spend lots of time putting together an entry. You can even Tweet from your phone.

Last fall, I explored a few ways you can use social media to improve your marketing ability. In truth, social media and blogs are so new, that there isn’t really a wrong way to use them. (Well, unless you use them illegally.) Any way that you can enhance your customer base using Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, or Blogspot is valid. In fact, folks are quite encouraged to use social media in new and interesting ways.

I’m reserving a later posting to explore methods for reaching customers through social media, blogs, and other online tools. Stay tuned.