The internet is large enough that it offers many more opportunities to the
opportunistic homesteader. There are several sites on the internet
devoted to the fresh, organic producer.
Localharvest.org and
Newfarm.org are two such sites. These sites can be a shot in the arm
for the small producer trying to make a go at self-sufficiency on the
homestead. They list many of the local CSA growers and farmers’
market locations, but the biggest and best thing they offer is free
advertising for each producer. They provide a list that is free for
you register your farm and the products that you raise and produce.
They have search engines that allow the buyer to search for producers
close to their home areas. They also have a large supply of
information available concerning ways to grow and market products.
Localharvest.org offers a special support to producers, one that opens the
market to a greater degree. They have an online store for producers
to list products they have available for online purchase. The
website currently lists over 5,000 products available in this manner.
It is possible to market wool, soap, dairy, meats, seeds, herbs, teas,
preserves, fruits, nuts, processed foods, tinctures, flowers, syrups,
crafts, and even pet needs here. This can be a great service to all
producers, but through this website even the smallest producer gets a
chance to market products of all kinds produced on the family homestead.
The last marketing area can be managed by the homesteader himself.
Many producers develop their own website on the internet for the sole
purpose of marketing their products to a worldwide market all by
themselves. Whether you design a website yourself or use a
pre-formed template, a little general computer knowledge is all that is
needed to accomplish this. Many producers use pictures as well as
words to help market their products. Pictures allow the producer to
showcase their many products available for purchases at different stages.
If a homesteader wants to market free range chicken eggs, for example,
they can use photos as a tool. When buyers see photos of chickens
moving around a homestead, free from cages and eating any insects they
find, they know that the producing hens are not caged and eating processed
arsenic. Next, the producer shows the eggs for sale in a basket or
carton. This makes the personal website a dual marketing tool; not
only is it offering products that the producer has for sale, but it also
allows the buyer to feel a real connection to that producer.
Selling products in this manner makes it very easy to collect from buyers
via electronic payments. Entities like PayPal make it easy for
producers to collect upfront payments for the sold products much faster
than by the traditional postal system. As far as delivery goes, the
producers will need to offer mail service for goods sold over a great
distance or arrange a monthly meeting place for buyers to collect their
purchases. Websites are a smart option for a producer, even if he
does not make items available for purchase through the site itself.
Customers that purchase items from producers in the ways previously listed
still enjoy making a personal connection with the producer through the
website photos and statements.
The key to selling homestead products is to check into each of the
marketing options previously discussed. Find the one or more that
best fits you and your homestead, then plan on marketing the products you
have through these options. Inspecting the items that other
producers have for sale in these areas can also sometimes help to jump
start an idea of a new product to market that is available on your
homestead - one that you might not have thought of before. The truly
enterprising homesteader is not only always looking for a way to market
the products they produce, but also looking for new and better items to
market. Becoming self-sufficient usually means being diverse in not
only production, but in marketing as well. Give it a try - you might
be surprised at just how well you do.
