Selling Ag Products Online

Do you sell fertilizers, ag chemicals, or other farm inputs? Do you have unique farm technology that you want to sell to growers? Do you have the best in field sensors or IoT technology for growers? Do you provide services to growers such as hauling or custom farm management?

Prospecting can be tedious and time-consuming, but it’s something that has to be done to keep pipelines healthy.

However, while sales reps can’t avoid prospecting, they can certainly make it easier for themselves. By having a go-to list of places to find prospects, and a procedure for each platform, we no longer have to wonder where or how to find prospects.

Here are three ways salespeople can find farmers fast and keep filling up their pipelines month after month.

1. Let them come to you

   Parcel.ag makes it easy for growers to find suppliers that meet their needs through its ag supplier marketplace, discover.parcel.ag . This site enables any grower, regardless of whether they are using parcel.ag FMS, to find and connect with ag suppliers. This is the fastest way to get new leads. Best of all, since they are reaching out to you, they are already interested in what you have to offer, making that first call a warm lead.

2. Local industry groups

   Farmers get a lot of value from sharing ideas and best practices at industry groups. Often led by university cooperative extensions, coops, or group associations such as winegrower commissions in your area, attending scheduled meetings can be a good chance to get to know the growers in your local area. Word of warning, don’t try to overtly pitch your products at these sessions, growers are very sensitive to being sold to, and won’t take kindly to someone trying to co-opt their time. It’s better to meet at sessions like this, and reach out at a more convenient time for the grower to try to generate interest in your offerings. As you attend these meetings, check with the organizers to see if they will accept sponsored content in their newsletters, on their website, or onsite events. Often, in exchange for helping defray the costs of the meeting, you can get a dedicated slot to present your products or services.

3. Social media

   Younger farmers are now looking to social media platforms like facebook and linkedin to keep up with what’s happening in the industry. They often post details on their farming operations to help communicate with their prospective customers. This can be a great opportunity to find and connect with growers, regardless of location.

When talking about qualified leads -- there's no such thing as "fast prospecting." It takes time to build mutually beneficial relationships and develop the rapport necessary to reach out to a prospect for the first time. But these sources will give you access to large pools of leads just waiting to be developed into your next qualified prospects.