Agricultural Marketing

LEARN HOW TO MARKET YOUR AGRICOLA

Meat, Livestock or Crops

The constant changes and variations that face rural enterprises are faced by very few non-rural businesses.

Due to the effects of climate and environment, a rural manager must constantly take into account, appraise, and reassess (sometimes on a daily or even hourly basis) the multiple changes and forms of information that impact his or her business. Successful rural managers are aware of their specific markets and know how to take advantage of market trends to increase revenue.

Do You Know the Procedure a Buyer Must Follow?

Lesson Structure

There are 8 lessons in this course:

1. Agricultural Marketing Concepts
   • Marketing
   • Goods and Services
   • The Marketing Concept
   • Managing the Marketing Process
   • The Role of Marketing
   • Approaches to Marketing
   • The Goals of Marketing
   • Organising, analysing, selecting target markets
   • Developing the Marketing Mix
   • Managing the Market Effort
2. Farm Marketing Objectives and Strategies
   • Supply and Demand
   • Developing the Farm Marketing Plan
   • Organising the Planning process
   • Reviewing the Business’s Situation
   • Establishing Marketing Objectives
   • Developing Strategies
   • Market Penetration
   • Price Advantages
3. Target Marketing
   • Preliminary Research
   • Target Markets in Agriculture
   • Defining the Target
   • Resources
   • Analysing Market Opportunities
   • External Influences
   • General Economic Conditions
   • Government Policy and Regulations
   • Overseas influences
   • Demographic Patterns
   • Technological Change
   • Customer Values and Attitudes
   • Alternative Marketing Methods
   • Internal Influences
   • Selecting Target Markets
   • Market Segmentation
4. Handling Produce
   • Developing the Marketing Mix
   • The “Product” element of the Marketing Mix
   • Logos, packaging, positioning and image etc
   • The “Price” Element of the Marketing Mix
   • Pricing objectives and methods
   • The “Promotion” element of the marketing Mix
   • Publicity and Public Relations
   • Advertising, sales and personal selling
   • The “Place” element of the Marketing Mix
   • Market coverage
   • Determining Emphasis with the Marketing Mix
   • Impact of Product Life-cycle
5. Customer Relations
   • Customer Care Policy
   • Levels of Involvement
   • Effective Communication
   • Becoming an effective communicator
   • Dealing with complaints
   • Self evaluation
   • Maximising customer service
6. Market Research
   • The Importance Of Market Research
   • What to Research?
   • The Research process
   • Analysing Costs and Benefits
7. Promotions
   • Promoting Product
   • Creating customer awareness
   • Promotional Campaign Strategy
   • The Promotional Message
   • Promotional Material
   • Making Promotions Cost Effective
   • Channels of Communication
   • Publicity Marketing
   • Advertising
   • Structuring an Advertisement or Promotion
8. Managing Marketing
   • Market Retention
   • Balancing Strategy
   • Market Development
   • Market Growth
   • Managing the Marketing Plan
   • Sales and the Market

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school’s tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Describe the function of marketing in business and its significance in the business plan.
• Determine marketing strategies in connection to farming and evaluate the relative importance of marketing planning.
• To choose effective marketing strategies, identify target markets.
• Throughout the marketing process, describe how items are physically handled, including during packaging, labelling, display, and transportation.
• In an agricultural firm, make a plan to preserve good client connections.
• Investigate the market for a product or service in the agricultural sector.
• Plan to oversee the marketing campaign for an agricultural company.
• Create plans to control an agricultural enterprise’s marketing.

The marketing industry is complex and undergoing rapid change.

The majority of producers and processors make an effort to distinguish their goods through branding. Some farms even trademark their own goods, which can be a very clever move. You can have a more secure market for your produce if you own the brand name (for example, Smith’s Meat) and people become familiar with and desire that brand.

Products with generic brands have no brand name at all (yet not having a brand can become a “brand” in and of itself).

They come in basic packaging and merely advertise the product name. You can find examples in supermarkets.

Businesses can request to have their name registered in order to prevent other companies from utilising their brand name or symbol. This grants the company sole use of the name or emblem and safeguards it from infringement. When a brand name or symbol has the letters TM or R after it, it has been registered as a trademark.

The advantages of branding extend to both the customer and the business. It helps customers determine which things they enjoy or find objectionable. Making a company’s products stand out from those of its rivals aids in corporate success. When new products are produced, the company will also benefit from a carry-over effect if the brand name becomes well known. It has a clear competitive edge as a result of this.

Packaging and Its Significance

Packaging encompasses more than just placing the product in a box or wrapping it. The process of packaging includes creating a product’s container and brand image.

When making a decision, packaging might be just as crucial as the product itself. An appealing package can inspire first-time buyers and leave a good impression of the product. Packaging not only aids in preserving, educating, promoting, and protecting a product, but it can also convey a sense of exclusivity, elegance, and sensuality.

A company must consider a variety of things while creating new packaging. One important factor is cost. Another is high-quality packaging. Although consumers are willing to pay extra for high-quality packaging, there is a price ceiling. Marketers today need to be mindful of the issues posed by disposable packaging due to rising public awareness of the environment and pollution. Packaging that is recyclable and biodegradable is preferred!

Product Image and Placement

The building of a product’s image in comparison to the images of rival items is referred to as product positioning. For instance, the brand names No Frills, Porsche, Rolex, and NOW can conjure up images of high-quality products right away. The product’s place in the market is automatically determined by this.

Sales may be challenging to achieve in markets that are very competitive. A company will therefore make an effort to develop an image that sets its product apart from competing ones. The company will choose the image it wants to project for a product and then use the other components of the marketing mix to mould and uphold this image.

WHY STUDY THIS?

For those in agriculture, lack of marketing expertise is a problem that occurs all too frequently.

Yet, weak sales result in weak income, which leads to a decline in the profitability of farm output in the long run.

You will have a deeper understanding of marketing and a better understanding of how to market and sell agricultural products as a result of taking this course.

Anyone who sells produce from or to a farm can get a foundation from this training. This might comprise:

• Farmers aiming to market their goods more successfully
• Farmers’ equipment, materials, and other services and supplies are sold by salespeople.
• Agents, agricultural cooperatives, and anybody else who sells unprocessed or processed farm products