[AlpacaTalk] marketing
hi - i'd like to get this discussion going, as marketing is a focus for all of us. We have found ourselves in the position where money is going out, all the time, but not much coming in - We've only been alpaca farmers for a year and i was told it takes three years to "make money", but in the meantime the bills are piling up.
I ordered a farm marketing book that was mentioned on this website, and have found it to be extremely informative. We have just spent three days at a local Fall Fair . It is the first time i've ever done anything like this. I followed some of the suggestions in the book and our exhibit was outstandingly popular. We took one of our girls who is really cute and sociable and she was the hit of the "Old McDonalds Farm" - i am not a salesperson but i was able to put together an effective display that appealed to different market groups.
To make a long story shorter, I think the key here is exposure - we gave out over 150 of our business cards, sold two of our males, and lots of our fiber. One woman even bought the big basket of rosemary i had brought as a decoration. I realized i am deep-down reluctant to part with our animals as i put heart and soul into looking after them, especially the crias. This attitude has not encouraged sales in the past.
We have had hoards of people ask if they can come over to see our farm and talk about alpacas - (now i have to rush around and clean up to make us presentable)
I have volunteered to take over the management of "McDonalds Farm" for next years fair and i will make sure our alpacas have the nice big paddock. Both local news papers have asked if they can write an article on our alpaca farm, with pictures. Of course i said yes
So many people were totally surprised to find out our farm is right here in the valley that i realized my previous advertising (or lack of) hasn't been very effective.
I can share the ideas that worked best for our exhibit if anyone is interested.
Wendy
DreamWeaver Alpacas
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posted by Chaddo at 3:27 AM
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