“Two’s a crowd, three’s a party,” is a playful twist on the common saying. If you’d like to draw larger crowds to your region, begin talking now with nearby farms.
Festivals
Agritourism operations in both Kansas and South Carolina work with one another to host visitors on the same weekend. The Kaw Valley Farm Tour coordinates 40 agritourism operations in the Kansas City area. From Friday to Sunday during one October weekend, a $10 ticket provides an entire carload unlimited access to participating agritourism operations all weekend. Farms may choose to sell other items at an additional price, but all agree to let visitors onto their farms. The event was launched by the Douglas County Cooperative Extension in 2004 and has grown significantly.
Similarly, Clemson University hosts the Ag + Art Tour. Free to the public, the event is the largest free farm and art tour in the U.S. Since it was founded in 2012, more than 85,000 visitors have enjoyed the self-guided tour complete with local music, artists in action and farm demonstrations at each farm stop. Farms in 25 counties open their doors on weekends during May and June.
Trails
Trails bring cumulative attention to agritourism operations. It can boost marketing awareness for an entire region, or more frequently, for a specific product.
For example, the Virginia Oyster Trail features 34 local events and attracts more than 5,000 visitors each year, according to its website website. A local oyster farmer reports he has had several visitors from large cities reach out to shadow him on his boat after the Virginia Oyster Trail boosted search engine optimization for his farm. Visitors felt more comfortable visiting him, since he was listed on a credible government website, and the oyster farmer in turn charged the visitors a ticket price to drink wine on his boat while he harvested oysters.
Similar to the Virginia Oyster Trail, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (ODAFF) Agritourism Program hosts three trails - craft bear, jellymaking and wine. Additionally, ODAFF launched a Wine Passport program. The Jellymaking Trail has received national recognition for its marketing genius. ODAFF provides producers crop fact signs and jar labels, and visitors receive pamphlets explaining proper canning procedures and recipes.
Partnerships
At the very least, consider partnering with a local photographer. Hosting them at your farm will bring a steady line of visitors and expand your network into the photographer’s customers. Christmas pictures with a cute Highland cow, glamor shots in a sunflower field, maternity shots of “my little pumpkin” at Halloween … you get the idea. The photographer will do the work of promoting the event and inviting people to your farm.
Networking brings visibility to your agritourism operation and is an essential part of your business. It can be the missing piece to bring growth to your farm.
Comentários