MyDigitalFarmer

366 What Farmers Can Learn from Aldi’s “Shop First” Strategy

Corinna96 — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 06:00:07 +0000

June 17, 2026

I got this podcast episode idea in the middle of Aldi.

Seriously.

I was walking down the grocery aisle when a sign stopped me in my tracks. It said:

“Shop Aldi First.”

And I remember thinking: “Dang. That’s good.”

Buried inside that simple phrase was a powerful marketing lesson that applies to almost every direct-to-consumer farm business.

Aldi isn’t trying to convince customers to buy everything from them.

They’re trying to become the first stop.

In this episode, I unpack the marketing strategy behind Aldi’s campaign and show how farmers can apply the same thinking to become the first place customers think of when they need your __________________.

This is going to make you THINK!!

Helpful Links & Resources

What email provider do I use? I recommend Kit.com — it is easy to use, powerful, and getting better every year. It also integrates with most e-commerce providers and tools. Use my affiliate link!

Ep 333 Finding Your Farm’s Gateway Product – I reference this in the podcast. It’s a great primer on how to find your farm’s official “first offer.”

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Local Line is my farm’s preferred e-commerce platform for farmers. Are you looking for a new solution for your farm? I can’t recommend it enough. Easy-to-use inventory management, great customer service, continuous improvement, and a culture dedicated to equipping farmers with marketing expertise. Local Line is offering a free premium feature for free for one year on top of your paid subscription. Claim your discount by signing up for a Local Line account today and using the coupon code: MDF2026. Head to my special affiliate link to get started: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/localline

Farm Marketing School is my step-by-step membership program for direct-to-consumer farmers who are ready to treat marketing like a system, not a guessing game. Inside, you’ll get plug-and-play projects, templates, monthly coaching, and a repeatable framework to help you grow your email list, run stronger promotions, and increase sales (whether you’re a vegetable, meat, CSA, flower, dairy, microgreen, or value-added farm). Your investment is only $69/month. Over 15 marketing projects to choose from. Learn more and enroll at: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/fms

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Share this episode with a fellow farmer or small business owner. Or forward my weekly email about the show to a farmer! (Get on that email list here to get more marketing tips: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/subscribe)

The post 366 What Farmers Can Learn from Aldi’s “Shop First” Strategy appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

365 Build Your Farm’s “Dream 25” List

Corinna96 — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 06:00:01 +0000

June 10, 2026

What if the fastest way to grow your farm business wasn’t finding more customers… but finding the people who already HAVE your customers’ attention?

In this episode, I’m introducing the concept of the “Dream 25 List” — a simplified version of the famous Dream 100 marketing strategy — and showing farmers how to identify partnership opportunities hiding all around them.

We’re talking about:

why partnerships can accelerate trust faster than social media
how to identify businesses and influencers that already serve your ideal customer
examples of creative partnerships for flower farms, CSA farms, meat producers, and wedding flower growers

I also share real examples from Shared Legacy Farms, Anderson Farms, Weber Ranch, and a coaching call inside Farm Marketing School that sparked this conversation.

Homework Assignment:

Create your own Dream 25 List:

Who already has the trust and attention of your ideal customer?
Then choose THREE relationships to begin building this month.

Listen here.

Helpful Links & Resources

Join here: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/fms

What email provider do I use to connect with my farm customers? Choosing a good marketing email provider is SO important. It’s one of the most important tools for making money! I recommend Kit.com — it is easy to use, powerful, and getting better every year. It also integrates with most e-commerce providers and tools. Use my affiliate link!

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 365 Build Your Farm’s “Dream 25” List appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

364 CSA Buy Down Offers: Marketing Case Study with Thirsty Fruit Farm

Corinna96 — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 06:00:57 +0000

June 3, 2026

In this episode, I sit down with Krista Barzen-Hansen of Thirsty Fruit Farm — one of my students inside Farm Marketing School — to break down how her marketing has evolved over the past year.

In this farm marketing case study, we unpack:

how customers discover her farm,
how she nurtures leads,
how she’s constantly optimizing her “gateway” product
what content she creates,
how she thinks about onboarding,
the systems she’s building,
and how she’s learning to approach marketing with confidence and experimentation instead of overwhelm.

Krista’s primary sales model happens to be a CSA “buy down” structure, so much of the conversation naturally flows through that lens. But the real lesson here is seeing how marketing principles come together inside an actual farm business.

If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like to move from “random acts of marketing” into a more intentional marketing ecosystem… this episode will give you a practical example.

Listen now.

Helpful Links & Resources

Proof Sentence Live Workshop: Want help finding your farm’s proof sentence? This June inside Farm Marketing School, I’m hosting a bonus live workshop where we’ll write your farm’s proof sentence together. You’ll get time to draft it, share it for feedback, and get coached on revisions so you can use it in your emails, product descriptions, website, and social media.

Join here: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/fms

Krista’s “Tip Jar” FAQ ideas: Krista shared this strategy in our interview. Here’s a list of the questions she pulled from to make her IG reels:

Q1: “What if I don’t use everything before it goes bad?”

Q2: “I’ve tried a CSA before and felt overwhelmed. How is yours different?”

Q3: “What if my family won’t eat half the vegetables?”

Q4: “How much do I actually get? I don’t want to be overwhelmed.”

Q5: “What if I can’t cook everything before the next week?”

Q6: “What if I’m traveling and can’t pick up?”

Q7: “Do I have to commit to the whole season?”

Q8: “What if my schedule is totally unpredictable?”

Q9: “I have a garden. Do I really need a CSA?”

Q10: “Is this going to add more stress to my life?”

Q11: “What if I don’t know how to cook something?”

Q12: “Do I have to meal plan around what I get?”

Q13: “What if I’m a beginner with vegetables?”

Q14: “Will this actually help me eat more vegetables?”

Q15: “What’s the most beginner-friendly vegetable to start with?”

Q16: “How long do your vegetables really last?”

Q17: “What does ‘knowing your farmer’ actually mean?”

Q18: “What if I don’t like something I ordered?”

Q19: “What makes your CSA different from others in the area?”

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 364 CSA Buy Down Offers: Marketing Case Study with Thirsty Fruit Farm appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

363 Find Your Farm’s Proof Sentence (That Helps Customers Say Yes Faster)

Corinna96 — Wed, 27 May 2026 06:00:42 +0000

May 27, 2026

What if one sentence could help your customers trust you faster?

In this episode, I’m introducing a powerful marketing tool called a proof sentence — a simple line that helps your customer think, “Yeah… this is probably going to work for me, too.”

A proof sentence doesn’t just describe your product. It shows what happens after someone buys it.

We’ll talk about why promises are so powerful in marketing, how to identify the transformation your farm product creates, and how to build your own proof sentence using a simple formula.

Because your customers aren’t just buying vegetables, meat, flowers, or CSA boxes.

They’re buying the transformation.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

Why proof sentences help customers overcome hesitation
The 4-part structure behind a strong proof sentence
How to start identifying the real transformation your product creates
Examples of proof sentences for CSA farms, flower farms, meat producers, and more
How to use proof sentences in your emails, website, product descriptions, and social media

Your homework:

Take a first stab at drafting your own farm’s proof sentence.

Ask yourself:

What can I honestly promise will happen to most of my customers after they buy from me?

Get specific.

Your customers are already experiencing a result.

Now point to it.

Listen here.

Helpful Links & Resources

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 363 Find Your Farm’s Proof Sentence (That Helps Customers Say Yes Faster) appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

362 How to Groom Your Farm Website During the Season

Corinna96 — Wed, 20 May 2026 06:00:58 +0000

May 20, 2026

Is your homepage reflecting what’s happening on your farm RIGHT NOW… or is it stuck in last season?

A few weeks ago, our farm was featured in the Toledo Blade during asparagus season, and suddenly we had a wave of new people discovering our business online. There was just one problem…

Our website wasn’t ready for them.

The homepage wasn’t talking about asparagus.
There was no mention of the newspaper feature.
And there wasn’t a clear next step for new visitors trying to figure out how to buy from us.

That experience sparked a huge realization for me: Farm websites are not static brochures.

They’re living storefronts.

And just like a retail store changes its displays, promotions, featured products, and signage throughout the year, your website should evolve with the current season of your farm business too.

In today’s episode, I’m unpacking:

Why stale websites quietly create friction and confusion
How new customers experience your website differently than loyal customers
The hidden role your homepage plays in guiding people deeper into your funnel
The seasonal elements I think farms should regularly rotate and refresh
A simple “website grooming rhythm” you can use throughout the year

If you’ve been treating your website like a one-and-done project, this episode will completely change the way you think about your homepage.

Listen now.

Helpful Links & Resources

Grab the FREE “Living Storefront Website Audit Checklist” – I designed this worksheet for this exact episode. It’s a seasonal website tune-up worksheet to help you audit your homepage, promotions, hours, featured products, calls to action, and mobile experience.

Download my FREE guide: The 10 Most Common Farm Website Mistakes – This practical PDF walks through the biggest issues I see farm websites making over and over again — the kinds of things that create confusion, friction, and missed sales opportunities online. https://shared-legacy-farms.kit.com/a52ed2b4df

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 362 How to Groom Your Farm Website During the Season appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

361 The Missing Piece in Your Farm Business: The Success Path

Corinna96 — Wed, 13 May 2026 06:00:06 +0000

May 13, 2026

There’s a missing piece in most farm marketing funnels, and it lives after the sale.

If your customers feel overwhelmed, unsure what to do, or like they’re “failing” with your product… they don’t come back.

In this episode, I’m breaking down the concept of a Success Path — the intentional roadmap you build to guide your customer from confusion → confidence → transformation.

When you build this well, you don’t just create repeat buyers… you create loyal fans who trust you, stick with you, and tell others.

Listen now.

What You’ll Learn:

What a Success Path actually is (and why it’s the most overlooked part of your funnel)
The key elements every success path needs:
Why teaching matters (and the kinds of skills your customers need to succeed)
How to think like a guide: building frameworks, processes, and “curriculum” for your customers
The power of normalizing roadblocks—and how it keeps people from quitting
Why community and belonging are retention superpowers

Once you see the path, you can start building resources around it:

Simple how-to videos (YouTube, social, website)
PDFs, checklists, and quick-start guides
Recipes, tutorials, and tool lists
A “home base” (Google Doc, Google Sheet, or webpage) to organize everything
Evergreen content you can reuse year after year

Over time, this evolves into a repeatable system. This episode will show you how to get started with this key element in your sales process.

Listen now.

Helpful Links & Resources

Join my CSA Academy membership for $19/month (get access to Corinna’s full library of CSA training resources that her CSA members get). You have my permission to use the resources inside for your own farm business, as long as you are a paying member.

Gut Healing Resource Page (Example of a Success Path in Action)
I mentioned my Shared Legacy Farms Gut Healing Resource Page in the episode. You can view it here!

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 361 The Missing Piece in Your Farm Business: The Success Path appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

360 What to Do with Your Farm’s Greatest Hits

Corinna96 — Wed, 06 May 2026 06:00:12 +0000

May 6, 2026

I own every single album by the Indigo Girls.

I’m a true fan. I know the deep cuts. The obscure songs. The ones most people have never heard of.

But the album I reach for the most?…Their greatest hits.

The one with all the favorites. The songs I already know I love. And it got me thinking…

What if your farm had a “greatest hits album”?

Most farmers are sitting on their most powerful sales tool… and not using it.

Your best sellers—the products your customers already love—are doing more work than you think. But if you’re not intentionally leveraging them?

You’re leaving money on the table.

In this episode, I’m breaking down how to identify your farm’s “greatest hits”… and more importantly, what to actually do with them so they drive more sales, higher order values, and repeat purchases.

Listen now.

Resources:

What email provider do I use for my email promotions? I recommend Kit.com (formerly ConvertKit.com) — it is easy to use, powerful, and getting better every year. It also integrates with most e-commerce providers and tools. Use my affiliate link!

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 360 What to Do with Your Farm’s Greatest Hits appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

359 Are You Tracking This Number in Your Farm Business?

Corinna96 — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 06:00:41 +0000

April 29, 2026

What if the growth you’ve been chasing… isn’t actually about getting more customers?

In this episode, I’m introducing a simple (but incredibly powerful) metric called Customer Value. And once you understand it, it will completely change how you think about your farm’s revenue, your marketing, and your growth strategy.

Most farmers are focused on the wrong lever.

They’re trying to bring in more people…
when the real opportunity might already be sitting inside their current customer base.

Inside this episode, I’m going to show you:

What Customer Value actually is (and how to calculate it for your farm)
Why this number brings clarity and predictability to your revenue
How it helps you make smarter marketing decisions (including what you can afford to spend to get a new customer)
And the mindset shift that moves you from chasing sales… to building a system

We’ll also walk through a real-life example of a farmers market vendor and show how small changes—like getting someone to come back one more time or spend a few dollars more per visit—can dramatically increase your revenue without adding a single new customer.

This is one of those episodes that will quietly rewire how you think about growth.

Listen now.

Resources:

What email provider do I use for my email promotions? I recommend Kit.com. — it is easy to use, powerful, and getting better every year. It also integrates with most e-commerce providers and tools. Use my affiliate link!

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 359 Are You Tracking This Number in Your Farm Business? appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

358 Timing is Everything: The Best Time to Sell Your Farm Products

Corinna96 — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 06:00:49 +0000

April 22, 2026

I walked into the grocery store this week… and it felt like Easter punched me in the face.

Everywhere I turned, there were Easter baskets, chocolate bunnies, pastel packaging, even M&M’s rebranded as “eggs.” It wasn’t just a reminder that Easter was coming—it was a full-on invitation to buy like it was Easter.

And here’s the weird part… I found myself wanting things I didn’t even plan to buy.

If your farm products aren’t selling, it might not be your pricing… your offer… or even your marketing.

It might be your timing.

In this episode, I’m breaking down the 5 moments when your customer’s “taxi light” turns on—those short windows when they’re actually ready to buy. When you understand these moments, you stop pushing products… and start meeting demand that’s already there.

You’ll learn how to spot these windows, avoid wasting energy selling at the wrong time, and start aligning your promotions with when your customer is already primed to say yes.

Listen now.

Resources:

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

The post 358 Timing is Everything: The Best Time to Sell Your Farm Products appeared first on MyDigitalFarmer.

357 How I Built a Spring Plant Sale Launch That Sold Out in 48 Hours

Corinna96 — Wed, 15 Apr 2026 06:00:21 +0000

April 15, 2026

We just sold out our entire Spring Plant Sale in 48 hours… and I had to shut the store down five days early.

But here’s the thing—this wasn’t luck.

This year, I approached the plant sale differently. I built it like a launch. And in the process, I uncovered a few new strategies (and a few surprising insights) that I haven’t shared before.

If you’ve ever run a promotion and thought, “Why didn’t this sell as well as I hoped?”—this episode is your behind-the-scenes look at what actually moves the needle.

I’m walking you through the anatomy of this year’s Spring Plant Sale launch—what I changed, what worked better than expected, and a few “a-ha” moments that apply to any kind of farm promotion (not just plant sales).

We’ll talk about:

Why I focused almost entirely on email (and what happened because of it)
The subtle shifts I made to the offer that dramatically increased average order value
What I did during the first few hours of the launch that most people overlook
And one simple post-purchase move that can shape how your customers behave next time

This is part case study, part workshop; and if you’re planning any kind of seasonal promotion, you’ll want to listen.

Listen now.

Resources:

Listen to my podcast from last year’s Spring Plant Sale Launch Ep 253, and the discoveries I made then. Do you hear similar themes? Ep 253 How to Build a Spring Plant Sale Promo Campaign

Thank You to Our Podcast Sponsors:

Learn more and enroll at: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/fms

Support the Podcast:

Love the My Digital Farmer Podcast? Help me reach more farmer earbuds!

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