I understand that a posting asked why I have been absent from this forum most of the winter. I'm back from teaching a million marketing courses and driving a lot of miles this winter.
What tools do you have in your marketing tool box? For over a year I've been asking almost all my farmer clients what they use for their "market information" tool. Painfully, a lot say things like "crusher rep" or "elevator manager" or "auction mart" or "weekly farm paper" or "neighbor". In my opinion, those sources may give farm managers tidbits but they're woefully short of good decision-making information in anything but a general sense.
I think farm managers need to buy dedicated market information. I can just hear it now forum members are thinking 'Here's another government guy telling us to spend more money on something we can't measure a return from!'
Well, here's the challenge: Nobody would drive farm machinery at night without buying lights, so why would we make marketing decisions without having good market info? Most of the "good" stuff we have to buy.
Want to see what market info is out there? Fire up your Web browser at http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/newsletters/market_clippings/index.html and look at:
-Market Info On The Internet - January 2000 Updated January 2001
-Market Information Sources for Western Canadian Farms - November 99 Updated January 2001
These articles will be updated as soon as I can get at it.
What are forum members using for market info?
Lee
What tools do you have in your marketing tool box? For over a year I've been asking almost all my farmer clients what they use for their "market information" tool. Painfully, a lot say things like "crusher rep" or "elevator manager" or "auction mart" or "weekly farm paper" or "neighbor". In my opinion, those sources may give farm managers tidbits but they're woefully short of good decision-making information in anything but a general sense.
I think farm managers need to buy dedicated market information. I can just hear it now forum members are thinking 'Here's another government guy telling us to spend more money on something we can't measure a return from!'
Well, here's the challenge: Nobody would drive farm machinery at night without buying lights, so why would we make marketing decisions without having good market info? Most of the "good" stuff we have to buy.
Want to see what market info is out there? Fire up your Web browser at http://www.agric.gov.ab.ca/newsletters/market_clippings/index.html and look at:
-Market Info On The Internet - January 2000 Updated January 2001
-Market Information Sources for Western Canadian Farms - November 99 Updated January 2001
These articles will be updated as soon as I can get at it.
What are forum members using for market info?
Lee
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