Last Updated on: 21st November 2023, 09:55 pm
According to Vestaron, investments in agriculture technology (ag-tech) grew significantly through 2021, nearly doubling between Q3 and Q4 to nearly $4 billion. If your business is in this field, social media is an excellent tool for attracting potential investors. However, having a social media presence isn’t just about having a colorful page. You must ensure you’re making the most of your social media account. Use these three tips to show off your business’ new agricultural technology.
1. Be Active and Consistent
Consistent, timely activity is key to a successful social media presence. Few people will view your page and posts when there’s little activity. If there’s too much activity, it might be mistaken for spam, which could cause people to ignore your message.
There’s plenty of activity and facts to post about agriculture. For example, according to Pesticide Facts, food crops must contend with 30,000 types of weeds, 10,000 species of plant-eating insects, and 3,000 species of nematodes. This fact alone can give you plenty of posts.
Today, social media platforms allow you to draft posts and save them for later when you want to make them public. This way, you can draft several posts and be timely and consistent. You can take it a step further and schedule a post for the moment you want it to go public and have a timer release it automatically. Doing this allows you to remain active when working in the field or away from a computer. When you maintain a consistent schedule of the days and the time you post, your followers will notice and start to anticipate your messages, which is a great thing.
2. Engage Your Community and Consumers
Staying active and consistent will only bear fruit if you engage with your customers and community. A study from SalesForce Marketing Cloud found that 83% of consumers ‘love’ or ‘like’ it when a company reacts to them on social media. The more your followers interact with your posts and page, the more likely it’ll be seen by other social media users. Be creative in how you engage with clientele. Everyone wins when you reciprocate the comments, likes, and shares that you receive on other people’s pages and are an active online contributor.
Make an effort to interact with local organizations and producers within agriculture. Bakeries, breweries, restaurants, and other value-added producers are a great place to start. You can also count on the support of farm bureaus, grower associations, departments of agriculture, and other agricultural organizations. The more you engage with your local community, the more interest locals will have in your business and what you do. Word-of-mouth and an online presence are perhaps the most effective marketing tools today.
3. The Goal Is to Make Sales
Social media is a great tool for branding and marketing your farm. If you use it right, you can establish a solid customer base. Separate your account from your company’s account by listing it as a ‘business.’ While having a large social media following is fantastic, you should use that exposure to generate sales and income for your agriculture business. Fewer followers who frequent your farm are better than hundreds of followers who like your posts but don’t buy anything.
Tailor your content to indirectly and directly lead to sales. While convincing your followers to visit your farm to see your new agricultural technology doesn’t guarantee a sale, they’ll likely find something that interests them. Make it clear how your followers and other social media users can purchase your products or services. When they find something they like, be careful not to create barriers or challenges in purchasing. Be transparent about what you have available, location, hours, and payment options. Occasionally post reminders about these details, especially when you have many new followers.
Social media can be a powerful marketing tool. However, you need to know how to navigate its different aspects. Use the tips to make the most of your social media efforts.
