In recent years we’ve seen an increased momentum behind the local food movement. Naturally, this momentum has lead to more support and awareness for the local farmers market. And, with their rise in popularity, farmers markets are taking to the web to gain more traction with their growing customer base.
We’ve scoured Facebook for the most popular and supported Farmers Market pages, focusing on why people ‘like’ them so much.
First stop, Portland, ME. The Portland Maine Farmers Market has over 4,000 people on their fan page, including a good amount of fan generated content. With specific calls-to-action, such as “Looking For Customer Input on Market Expansion,” they are generating some great feedback and empowering their customers by giving them ownership in the ongoing development of the market. Customers are also quick to receive answers to questions posted on the wall, which is a sure way to encourage fans to continue participating.
Next stop, Memphis. The Memphis Farmers Market is bustling with activity. This activity is made apparent through the use of the video tab on their page where you can find a number of videos ranging from live demos on how to prepare and cook foods to live music from the market. Check out this video on how to make a hearty southern salad.
650 miles northwest of Memphis, TN is the Omaha Farmers Market. This market made sure to give some online real estate to their sponsors by listing them on their Notes Tab. Sponsors love the added value of this additional exposure and farmers markets love having happy sponsors – a win-win combo. The Omaha Farmers Market is also spot on with the way they end all of their wall posts with a question, such as: “Did you get a chance to make it to the Sunday Market at Aksarben Village? What was your favorite part?” Asking questions is a great way to solicit responses from your community and consistently improves the engagement between business and consumer.
Next, we have the Madison Farmers Market. This market’s successful approach involves highlighting specific vendors to increase excitement and generate exposure for the market’s main attractions.
And finally, the farmers market page with the most likes… the Downtown Des Moines Farmers Market, with a whopping 10,668 likes. I’m going to attribute that to their well managed vendor coupon system. What customer doesn’t like incentives?
The use of a Facebook page as a marketing tool offers farmers markets a number of turn-key functions that would otherwise be reserved for a robust website build.
Among these uses are:
Discussions: talk about what is in season, vendors to check out and new activities
Customer Feedback: don’t assume that your customers will naturally give feedback; post questions and polls to encourage discussion.
Community interaction: share articles, post information and meet-up requests on the wall
Incentives: provide coupons, specials and offers.
Content: Encourage fan pictures, place videos and showcase the market experience in full color.
Facebook is a natural fit for farmers markets. When you search “farmers market”, over 2,400 pages come up and this number is sure to increase in the near future.
As a final note, I leave you with a link to this awesome video that I came across while doing research. Backyard chickens + humor = awesome!
Tags: Farmers Markets, local food movement, Marketing on Facebook, Social Media Tips
Comments / ShareThis 
