Using Your CSA Member’s Content to Build Social Proof

Your current CSA members are some of your greatest assets for lead generation.

You already know that.

But what you may NOT have realized is exactly HOW you can leverage their love for your CSA to help you find more customers.

In this blogpost, I’m going to focus on one method I use a lot to help me maximize social proof from my existing members.

Social proof is huge.

It’s one of the 4 main reasons people buy something. (I did a whole video training just on this topic. Click on that link to grab it).

To prove my point, all you have to do is think about how often you check the reviews on Amazon before you decide to commit to a purchase.

People want the reassurance that they are making a good purchase decision – especially for a high-ticket item like a CSA box.

Your prospects need to hear from your own members or they won’t buy.

Now there are lots of ways you can get social proof from your members. Testimonials are an obvious choice, and I’ll talk about the formula for a great testimonial in a future blogpost.

But one of the other primary ways I use social proof in my marketing is to highlight content and ideas created by my own members.

Let me give you an example.

This picture of beet hummus was posted in my private Facebook group by my members. I pulled it out and used it on my public channels to highlight the valuable feature of my community in the CSA offer.

Last week, one of my members, Erin House, posted a picture of beet hummus she had made from our beets inside our private Facebook group. The post went a little crazy (so I knew people would notice it), and the picture was bright and beautiful. So I decided to save it to my phone and post it to Instagram.

But I didn’t just post a good picture.

I paid attention to the WORDS I used in the caption. I used the text to talk up our engaged community behind the scenes and how much value they bring to the CSA experience. I threw in a call to action to check out if CSA was right for them and download my PDF guide.

BOOM.

I just used some of my member-generated content as social proof.

Here are some other examples of ways you might use your member’s content to help you build social proof:

• Share a story about something one of your members recently did with your produce in your newsletter or blogpost. One of my members, Bob, loves to cook down his turnip tops and broccoli greens with Rancho Gordo beans. So I shared this idea and gave him the credit.

• Share a post that one of your members posts inside your Facebook group onto your business fan page. Then talk about how the community is getting ideas for how to eat the produce you provide. Tease your audience that they too could get access to this inspiration.

• Do a case study of a particular member, either by blogpost, video or image, highlighting how their life has been transformed by the CSA experience.

• Invite a member onto a live video in your kitchen to teach something they are good at. I plan to have one of my migrant workers show up this Wednesday to teach my community how to make fresh tortillas the “real” way. I can’t wait!! They’re going to freak out!

• Take a screen shot of one of your member’s posts and share it on social media.

This month, I’m running a video challenge inside my private Facebook group with a $100 prize. Members are being encouraged to make a video on one of their social media channels, tagging it #slfarmsvideo. They can prep a meal, showcase a meal they made, teach a kitchen tip, or share their expertise in some way. It just has to use our produce somehow.

I’ve already gotten 4 entries, and I’ve never had my members post video before! I’m purposely creating an incentive to get some of my members to share their knowledge in a new way.

Why this works:

#1 This kind of social proof is so powerful because it shows a potential CSA foodie that your CSA delivers results – i.e. it works!

Remember, your clients come to you not just to get a box of vegetables.

They’re coming to you with an unspoken need or problem they’re hoping your product will solve for them. And deep down, they’re wondering, “Will you be able to provide that for me?”

If they’re anything like my customers, they may want to deeply connect with other like-minded foodies and get ideas for how to succeed at eating the food you grow.

When you peel back the curtain and show them that this is indeed happening, it provides the social proof they need to make the decision to buy.

#2 It also communicates to your prospects that there is a whole army of super-users behind the scenes of your CSA who are sharing their knowledge and ideas.

If they join your CSA, they will be able to tap into that incredibly valuable asset.

It’s not just you, the farmer, who will be able to teach them things. They’ll be able to access a much wider community of collective wisdom.

This changes the value proposition of your CSA offer immensely.

#3 Another bonus of getting your members to share content is that it helps with member retention.

There’s a big chunk of your members who are new to your CSA. And they aren’t quite sure about whether it’s a good fit for them. In fact, they may be struggling the first year.

But when they see other members sharing pictures and tips and ideas through the private Facebook group, it encourages them and casts vision for what they might one day become.

They’ll tell themselves: “If I just hang on, I too may one day reach this CSA Master status.”

Seeing your member-generated content keeps these rookies in your membership long enough to overcome that learning curve on the front end.

So shine a light on your members and what they are doing inside your CSA.

Post their pictures. Use them in videos. Get them to share their hacks and tips.

It’s a relatively easy way to build hype and social proof for your brand.