5 Tips to Convert Buyers to Self-Serve Ordering

Buyers value their relationship with Farmers who grow and harvest products to sustain their local communities. 84% of Buyers are eager to spend more money on goods from local Farmers, as opposed to commodities that can be found elsewhere.

Unfortunately, Buyers often romanticize Farm-life, failing to appreciate the time and energy required to manage a Farm business 365 days per year. Traditionally, Farmers selling direct respond to Buyer requests via phone, text and email - requiring an average of 7 - 9 touches to close a single transaction, arrange fulfillment and collect payment. Managing these interactions can be draining for Farmers, fraught with errors, and complicates even a simple purchase. 

To save time and scale your Farm business, it is imperative to convert your Buyers to self-serve ordering.

While your Farm may be “new” to self-serve ordering, it is NOT a new experience for your Buyers. 96% of American Adults have ordered products online from Amazon.com without a phone call, voicemail, email or text message. You can, and should expect the same of your Buyers, to save your Farm time, simplify your operations and recoup time with your family (uninterrupted).

Here are 5 Tips to Convert Buyers to Self-Serve Ordering from your Farm, based on the best practices implemented from our most successful Farmers:

1. Redirect all Phone Calls & Voicemails

While your existing Buyers may have your contact information, do not share your personal phone number with any new or prospective customers. When responding to Buyers by phone, redirect them to your online Farm store to place their Order (where your inventory, fulfillment and payment options are spelled out). And, update your voicemail, too.

“Thanks for contacting Burke Avenue Farm. You can go to our website at www.burkeavefarm.com to see what Products are available and to place a self-serve Order anytime. 

If you have any questions or changes with respect to an existing Order, please go to www.burkeavefarm.com/contact, to quickly fill out the form, provide details and your Order ID. We’ll respond as soon we finish our Farm chores!

Thank you for supporting Burke Ave Farm!  Note, our voicemail box is not monitored regularly”

2. Include a “Shop CTA” in your Email Signature

For many of our most successful Farmers, Email drives up to 80% of their revenue. The key is sending consistent Order Reminders and Newsletters (at least 1-2x per month) with a Shop “Call-To-Action” (CTA). Be certain to update your default email signature, too, with a link to your Farm Store where can Buyers can place a self-serve order. 

3. Redirect all Inbound SMS Messages

Too often, Buyers may want to “text their order quickly.” However, every SMS interaction will lead to another, another, and another. It all takes time! Do yourself (and your family) a favor by redirecting all inbound SMS messages online. “Save a response” in Apple Notes or Google Notes, that you can just cut-and-paste with a redirect to your Farm Store. 

“Thanks for contacting Burke Avenue Farm. We have some good news! You can now order from our Farm anytime, access current inventory and our newest products, simply by going to www.burkeavefarm.com and click “Shop”. It is easy to order on any device, and gives me more time to focus on Farming and my family. 

Use BURKEAVEFARM_10 to get $10 off your First Order. Thank you for supporting Burke Ave Farm!” 

4. Embed a Shop CTA in your Social Profile

Many Buyers casually browse social media apps 1-2 hours per day, scrolling through information that peaks their interests. Buyers can discover new things about your Farm if you’re following the Three (3) E’s strategy: posting Educational, Entertaining, and E-Commerce information 2-3 times per week. To convert Buyers, include a link to your Farm Store on all your Social Media handles. Make it easy with a “Shop” button on your Facebook Page, and Instagram Linktree.

Listen: The ABC’s of Social Media’s 3 E’s (with Farmer Josie Rozum)

5. Embed Shop CTAs throughout your Website

Typically, Farmers are receptive to including a “Shop” Button in the upper right hand corner of their Website (that is an expectation of every Buyer). However, some Farmers are reticent about including a “Shop” Button interspersed throughout their website - on their About, Product, Practices and Recipe Pages (to name some examples). A best practice is to “break up” blocks of content on individual website pages with pictures, quotes, videos and “Shop” Button CTAs.  Designing and publishing 1000’s of Farm websites, the data proves that Buyer conversion increases with more Shop CTAs interspersed across your Farm pages.

Read: Farm Website Design Best Practices

Lastly, in addition to the best practices above, many Farmers appeal to the emotional value of getting more time with their Farm families, when a Buyer places a self-serve order. Farmers, too, can encourage and “look forward” to meeting in-person at pick-ups or markets, when Buyers collect their Orders (and they can then shake hands and shoot the breeze).

It typically takes a few months to help your existing Buyers to learn new habits (instead of just texting or calling you). Remember, self-serve Ordering is NOT new. All your existing Buyers purchase online from other vendors (e.g. Amazon, Cabela, TractorSupply). If you would like to get more time back to Farm and spend with your family, then it is important to reiterate that Self-serve Ordering is the new normal for your Farm. Be consistent with your responses, and in 3 - 6 months your Buyers will have made the switch and you’ll get more time back! 

Barn2Door is an all-in-one solution for Farmers selling direct – online and in-person. To learn why successful Farms run on Barn2Door, watch this 5-minute video.