As farmers, we put a lot of effort into growing and raising food, but reaching the people who will buy it can feel like the hardest part. Farmers markets are unpredictable, social media algorithms change constantly, and even on-farm sales can suffer from low foot traffic. That’s where email marketing comes in. It’s a tool that is often overlooked, but it’s one of the most reliable ways to connect directly with customers and keep them coming back.
Common marketing challenges farmers face
Selling at farmers markets and on-farm sales
Farmers markets and on-farm stores are important sales outlets, but they come with challenges:
- Price perception: Customers sometimes expect farm-direct food to be cheaper than the grocery store.
- Fees and overhead: Booth fees, insurance, and inspections all add up.
- Logistics: Transporting meat, keeping it properly stored, and following labeling requirements can be a lot to juggle, on top of marketing itself and managing a farm.
- Foot traffic struggles: Even with good signage, it can be tough to get enough people to stop at your booth or make the drive to your farm store.
Promoting online: selling strategy vs. marketing strategy
Many farmers use social media to promote their products, but it’s often used both as a marketing strategy (raising awareness, telling your farm’s story) and a selling strategy (posting when meat or other products are in stock). The problem is, those two roles don’t always line up, and that can lead to wasted effort.
It’s also important to know that Facebook does not allow the sale of animal protein on its platform (technically they call it “animal parts”). Posts that list meat for sale can be flagged and removed, and in some cases, entire accounts/pages have been shut down. I’ve seen this happen to other farmers, even when they weren’t directly posting prices but simply sharing availability. On top of that, livestock-related content can sometimes spark backlash from people outside your customer base, which can make posting feel more discouraging than helpful.
That’s why it’s better to treat Facebook and other social media platforms, like Instagram, TikTok, or others, as a relationship-building tool. It’s a place to share your farm’s story, build trust, and guide people to a channel you control, like your email list. Relying on it as your main sales channel not only runs into the problem of low reach but also puts your account (and all the effort you’ve invested in growing it) at risk.
And here’s where social media gets even trickier:
- Organic reach on social media continues to decline, on Instagram, only about 3.5% of followers see a post, and on Facebook it’s around 1.65%. That means more than 96% of your followers might not see your updates unless you pay to boost them (social.plus).
- On average, organic social media posts across platforms reach just 2–6% of your followers (UMBREX).
Why email marketing solves these problems
Email marketing gives you a direct and owned communication channel, meaning you control it, not an algorithm or platform (as in social media).
- Direct and owned channel defined: It’s a way to reach your customers directly via email, without filters, algorithm tweaks, or even social media outages.
- Works across customer types: Whether folks buy at the market, your on-farm store, or via on-farm pickup orders, they’re all part of your email list.
- Restock alerts as incentive: Meat can sell out fast. Scarcity works in your favor when customers know they’ll get first notice of new stock.
- Builds loyalty and repeat sales: It costs 5 to 25 times more to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing one, and repeat customers account for more than half of revenue for 61% of small businesses (Small Biz Trends).
- Lower cost and simpler than ads: No expensive ad campaigns, just consistency with people who want to hear from you and your farm.
Practical steps to get started
- Collect addresses at your market booth or on-farm store with a sign-up sheet or QR code. Share it on your social media accounts.
- Add sign-up links to receipts, packaging, or social profiles.
- Offer a clear incentive, like early restock alerts or farm news, to get people on your list.
- Keep it simple: one monthly email is enough to start building real momentum.
Tools needed: Choosing an Email Service Provider (ESP)
If you’re going to send emails, you need an Email Service Provider (ESP), a tool that keeps your emails professional, organized, and legally compliant. Here’s why it matters:
- Compliance built-in: ESPs include unsubscribe links and anti-spam headers automatically. It’s important that customers sign themselves up, inserting emails you collected without permission could be illegal and damage trust.
- Scheduling around farm life: Write your email when you can, maybe in the evening after chores, and schedule it to send later, even on the busiest farm days.
- Automations: You can set up one welcome message and have it sent automatically to every new subscriber.
- Built-in sign-up forms: These make collecting emails easy and eliminate manual entry errors or lost lists.
Plus, many providers are starting to phase out free-tier plans, so picking the right one now can save time and money down the road.
My recommended option, especially when ramping up your email marketing efforts, is Flodesk. I use it and like that it is:
- Extra beginner-friendly. It has drag and drop templates. Or you can create your own.
- Flat-rate pricing, no matter how big your list grows.
- Includes automations, scheduling, and sign-up forms, all in one place.
Flodesk’s unlimited-list plan is unfortunately phasing out, but is still available for new customers to lock in the pricing for forever (offer ends Nov. 28). Plus, using my link gets you 50% off your first year. Note: I do receive a small commission for sharing, but it is at no cost to you.
Once your ESP is set, you’re ready to start sending real farm updates to your customers.
What to send (monthly email ideas for farmers)
Start with just one email a month. Here are some ideas to make it work:
- Restock notices
- Seasonal availability
- Market dates or pickup hours
- Farm updates
- How to use your products
References
- Vital customer retention statistics. January 2025. Small Business Trends.
- Social media follow reach analysis. UMBREX.com.
- Why organic reach is no longer a growth strategy. (June 2025). Social.plus
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