Farmer Spotlight: Grass Fed Cattle Co. - 1 Year later
Last Spring, we sat down with Valerie Luhman of Grass Fed Cattle Co to learn more about her experience scaling her Farm business and how implementing a streamlined ordering and delivery system has contributed to their growth. Recently, we caught up with Valerie to see how the Farm has evolved and get the scoop on how she and her husband Jared have made Grass Fed Cattle Co their own.
Purchased in March 2019, the Luhmans have expanded Grass Fed Cattle Co to sell pastured beef, pork, and chicken from their three Farms in Minnesota and Wisconsin. With most of their Customers located in the Twin Cities, they also serve Buyers from North and South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. Offering a range of fulfillment options, including pick-up, direct delivery, and shipping, Valerie and Jared focus on how they can serve their customers best.
Communication is Key
“We sell anywhere from a pound of ground beef or a few steaks to a half beef share if someone wants to buy in bulk. We encourage our customers to share what they like and what they want so we can cater to what families need.” Valerie has found that listening to her customers’ needs has empowered Grass Fed Cattle Co to scale quickly and has allowed them to reach more customers.
Last year as more Americans sought local, healthy foods, Valerie and Jared pushed to keep up with rising demand. Communication was critical to prevent the loss of future sales. “We’ve been trying to keep up with demand from the supply side. Last year, there was a time where we had four months with no beef in stock. But, communicating with our customers and letting them know why we didn’t have products was essential for us. We’re very thankful because our customers were willing to wait, and we keep seeing them come back!”
“We added a subscription and delivery program for our products last year too. Anything that offered convenience to our Customers where they had regular access to reliable food was really important to us. To this day, subscriptions for delivery have been popular. Not only did we see a spike in sales with the program, but we also saw more new customers.” Depending on the distance from their Farm, Valerie and Jared charge between $15-$20 for deliveries. Doing so guarantees that their time is well spent and paid for. In turn, Customers enjoy the convenience of having their favorite products arrive on their doorstep.
Brand Consistency Builds Relationships
Valerie uses multiple channels to educate Customers about Grass Fed Cattle Co, spread inventory updates, and stay top-of-mind. With weekly emails, blog updates, and an occasional Instagram or Facebook Live, Valerie has found that consistent communication is essential for building brand awareness and driving customer relationships. “I get feedback all the time from customers that they love our emails about the Farm. I weave in order reminders and show them where they can find our products, which has been great for driving sales. We also send out blog posts in emails that usually feature a story or a Farm update. Our marketing efforts are a one-woman show, so it’s hard to keep up with, but it’s all worth it.”
Valerie constantly hears how much Customers enjoy reading the weekly newsletters. Knowing that people are taking the time to look through them proves that Customers care to build a relationship and feel connected to local businesses and brands.
Valerie leverages the Barn2Door and Mailchimp integration to set up an email onboarding series to welcome new customers. When people subscribe to the Grass Fed Cattle Co newsletter, a series of emails from Mailchimp are triggered, including an introduction email with information about the Farm and a run-through of how everything operates. In the email stream, subscribers are invited to shop from the store and learn how to order. Valerie shared, “thousands of these emails have been automated to send out, and I have the ability to track how much revenue has been generated from them. It’s such a great tool to leverage for our business.”
Valerie can establish connections with new subscribers by making the stream personal and engaging. “We ask them questions in the emails that they can respond to. They truly are getting to know us, and we are getting to know them! Engaging with our customers in this authentic way has made a difference. Customers want to get to know you and want to feel connected to your brand. By showing them who you are and what your Farm is about from the beginning, has made a difference in our business and brand.”
Putting Into Practice: The 3 E’s
Valerie teaches the Social Media Barn2Door Academy series, helping Farmers implement effective social media and email marketing strategies. “The 3 E’s are one of the things that I love about the Barn2Door Academy that can be used on any platform. It’s essentially a way to categorize the types of content that you can share. They stand for e-commerce, entertainment, and education. E-commerce is any sales or inventory update, like a picture of a steak with a promo code. Entertainment could be a recipe, a silly photo from the Farm, or some kind of update that isn’t too serious. Education is about what’s unique about your product or what’s happening on the Farm. We’ve even partnered with dietitians and influencers for educational purposes on our social accounts.”
Using the 3 E’s to diversify the type of content Farmers share is a helpful way to build brand awareness and drive customer loyalty. It’s a tried and proven way to keep Customers engaging with your brand and making sure there’s no repetition in back-to-back content.
What’s Next for Grass Fed Cattle Co.
With a baby arriving and new product launches, some exciting changes are coming to Grass Fed Cattle Co this summer! “We’re getting ready for the baby and will have to communicate with our Customers about how things will look as our family is expanding. In the meantime, we’re focused on reaching new Customers while serving and keeping the existing ones happy. We’ve added new subscription boxes like a ground beef box people can receive monthly. We also have some grants coming in where we’ll perform some research on our pastured chickens. We’re expanding and will have more products available for our customers this summer!”
Subscriptions and delivery have been a game-changer for Grass Fed Cattle Co, and we’re excited to follow Valerie and her growing subscription program this year. We are delighted and honored to support Farms like Grass Fed Cattle Co that take care of their land and put their customers first.
At Barn2Door, we’re proud to support 1000’s of Farmers across the country by helping them increase sales, access more customers, and save time. If you’re curious to learn how we can support your Farm in growing and managing your business, watch this 5-minute video.