Ag Businesses Need to Do More than Make Cold Calls During Pandemic

cold call

Generating leads for your small Ag business is never as easy as just making cold calls. Things are more difficult now that we find ourselves in the middle of a global pandemic.

In times like these, small Ag businesses must consider new ways to bring in business. While the sales-driven cold call should not be completely abandoned, tossing in some new methods is critical. 

One method is to lean into digital marketing to help target your cold calls. This will allow you to spend your time on prospects who are likely to convert, instead of using the time-consuming and less effective blind cold call.

Going forward, digital marketing is going to play a part during every stage of a prospect’s sales journey. That is why it is so important to have a well-thought out plan that can be executed for the greatest impact. This may seem daunting, but it is well worth the time and effort. If you feel like you are in over your head, a digital marketing agency that specializes in marketing to farmers and rancher such as US Farm Data can help guide you through the process.

So, what exactly does this process involve?

  1. Building brand awareness. Create content that connects, educates and inspires. In other words, content that solves a problem farmers and ranchers are experiencing right now.
  2. Conducting research. Once a prospect is interested in what you have to offer, provide them with content specifically related to their needs. Do your research so you can pinpoint these exact needs.
  3. Outperforming the competition. Rise above the competition (who is likely fighting for the very same prospects) with SEO, social media and pay-per-click (PPC) ads.
  4. Garnering attention. When interested farmers and ranchers reach out to you directly, keep them interested with targeted emails and phone calls. This is the time to engage with them offline.

The final step, of course, is a sales conversion. Whether this is a sale that is made online, on the phone or in person, the four steps listed above are what will get you to this point.

Talking to your most promising sales leads is always going to be important. This is especially true if your Ag business was built on these types of calls with farmers and ranchers. However, in these unprecedented times, sales conversions are likely to require more than just picking up the phone. Instead, you need to meet farmers and ranchers where they are – and during the current pandemic, that is undoubtedly online.

If you need help reaching out to new clients, give USFD a call today at (800) 960-6267 or visit us online at www.usfarmdata.com.