As a farmer – especially a niche farmer with a unique or alternative product – you know the importance of really connecting with the people who are on the other end of your hard labor. The consumer is what allows farmers to keep farming, and you want to foster a relationship with them that is built on people, not just product. That is where your farm logo and/or product label comes in. A logo and a product label are your tools for telling your story to your customers; it conveys who you are, and why you do what you do. It gives the folks who buy your product a glimpse inside your world – and with today’s push for local food and knowing the farmer, it can help increase your sales as well.
Logos and labels for your product should be noticeable. Typically, you have a short window of time to attract a buyer’s attention, and you want your label to be eye catching. “Create a label that will ‘pop’ in a retail environment,” said Stacy Tamerius, marketing director for Miller Bison at Elkhead Ranch in Bruner, Mo. “You have a small amount of room to convey your selling points and the highlights of your business, but the most important thing is getting the customer to pick up your product and look at the rest of your information in the first place.”
Ask yourself what you want to portray through your label. Debra Elam-McDonald, owner of Wren Thicket Gardens, a gourmet salad growing operation in West Fork, Ark., said, “We wanted to portray our surroundings in our farm name. We have an abundance of saucy little wrens in the grown up woods around us and they love to go in and out of our hoop houses, hence the name.” The Wren Thicket logo features a small wren against a simple, solid colored background with the farm name – Debra noted that the simplicity of the design helps make it unique. Rose Konold, from Mason Creek Farm, a pork and poultry farm in Fayetteville, Ark., also wanted to portray a sense of place with her logo. Rose said her label for her products features her logo and “I’ve also developed a ‘button’ with additional label claims for quality (no antibiotics and vegetarian fed) and use the Animal Welfare logo to indicate high standard of rearing.”
Be consistent with your logo and your product label. “Give the consumer recognizable elements to look for when they go back to re-purchase,” said Tamerius. A customer who is happy with your product will probably buy from you again, but they need to be able to recognize your label. Using a consistent design on your website, through advertising, etc., will help consumers recognize what else is associated with your product.
Expect to see more consistent sales when you use a noteworthy product label. “The first thing you need to do is produce a high-quality product that customers will want to come back for. A unique name and attractive design helps them remember where they got it. It is an important part of your marketing and well worth the thought and time put into it,” said Debra Elam-McDonald.
Let your label have a personal touch. “A personal flair to your logo or label helps add a personal feeling to your product. Now, more than ever, in the age of the Internet, customers want to feel connected, or at least in the know, to the companies they patronize. Particularly with food, customers want to know where their food is coming from, how it’s raised and produced,” Tamerius noted.
