Electricurrent Blog

Do you ever ask yourself if your marketplace is different than others?

I ask because very often, firms try to take cues from other firms who operate in different industries with different audiences and find that just following the leader doesn’t work. Often, they are left wondering where things fell apart and they never consider the fact that what works in one industry, might not work in another industry with a unique culture.

Take, for instance, the Agriculture industry.

As an agency with a number of Agriculture (“Ag”) based clients, we have a significant investment of time and people in that marketplace. The investment is due to the fact that the Ag marketplace is unique and has distinctive characteristics that need to be understood when communicating to people who operate within it.

Probably more than any other market, face-to-face relationship is critical in Agriculture. Although social media and online technology is making inroads into the Ag industry, in most cases, they exist on the periphery of communications and where they are in use, they are used to augment established and well-maintained personal relationships.

Of course, relationship is important everywhere and we talk about that a lot on this blog. However, the Agricultural marketplace is rooted and steeped in a deeper and more personal understanding of community and as a result, the people within understand deeply how relationships are fundamental to commerce.

So how does that play out when communicating about new services and products in the Ag marketplace? Well, if you haven't worked on the relationship either before or during the pitch, your chances of success are minimal. But, when you have proven yourself to be trustworthy (that you deliver on your promise), you not only have extremely loyal customers, but passionate advocates as well…not just someone that appreciates your product, but someone that actually appreciates you.

There’s a person behind every purchase in the Agriculture industry. Approaching Agricultural marketing communications with any other perspective is asking for trouble.

So how does your marketplace differ? What are the unique aspects/characteristics of your audience and how will you speak to them?

We’re all ears (pun intended).

Do you ever ask yourself if your marketplace is different than others?

I ask because very often, firms try to take cues from other firms who operate in different industries with different audiences and find that just following the leader doesn’t work. Often, they are left wondering where things fell apart and they never consider the fact that what works in one industry, might not work in another industry with a unique culture.

Take, for instance, the Agriculture industry.

As an agency with a number of Agriculture (“Ag”) based clients, we have a significant investment of time and people in that marketplace. The investment is due to the fact that the Ag marketplace is unique and has distinctive characteristics that need to be understood when communicating to people who operate within it.

Probably more than any other market, face-to-face relationship is critical in Agriculture. Although social media and online technology is making inroads into the Ag industry, in most cases, they exist on the periphery of communications and where they are in use, they are used to augment established and well-maintained personal relationships.

Of course, relationship is important everywhere and we talk about that a lot on this blog. However, the Agricultural marketplace is rooted and steeped in a deeper and more personal understanding of community and as a result, the people within understand deeply how relationships are fundamental to commerce.

So how does that play out when communicating about new services and products in the Ag marketplace? Well, if you haven't worked on the relationship either before or during the pitch, your chances of success are minimal. But, when you have proven yourself to be trustworthy (that you deliver on your promise), you not only have extremely loyal customers, but passionate advocates as well…not just someone that appreciates your product, but someone that actually appreciates you.

There’s a person behind every purchase in the Agriculture industry. Approaching Agricultural marketing communications with any other perspective is asking for trouble.

So how does your marketplace differ? What are the unique aspects/characteristics of your audience and how will you speak to them?

We’re all ears (pun intended).

I don't have cable television but when I get a chance, I love to watch the show, Dragons' Den.

For those of you that are unfamiliar, Dragons' Den is a group of five investors ('the Dragons'), who are seated in a room and throughout the show, entrepreneurs present business opportunities to them in hopes that they will invest in their venture and/or bring their expertise to bear in exchange for equity in the entrepreneurs company.

Some of the ideas that are pitched to the Dragon's are downright ridiculous and as a result, watching the show can be hilarious and awkward (often at the same time). But the thing that catches me is how often I've heard entrepreneurs defend their awful pitch with some variation of the phrase: "but it worked for Google!"

Really? You want to compare your business to Google? Google's market is the world. Anyone who has a computer can use Google...and for quite a while there, given their quality of search results, most did. To put a number on it, I just read in a Canadian Marketing Association advertisement that there are now 1.5 billion Internet users in the world. That is a HUGE market.

Let's say Google only penetrated 0.5% of that market...that's 7,500,000. 7 million, 500 thousand people. Even at a dollar a person, that market represents a HUGE opportunity to make money.

Now take your little venture that you've come up with that's marketed specifically to Canadian mothers of children between the age of 4 and 6. Your market is not even close to as big and as a result, you are no longer comparing apples-to-apples. It's not to say that your idea can't work, but to compare it to Google is ridiculous.

Take it a step further and think of your 200-500 person church in your community. What's your market? What is your ability to serve them? It's going to be different than what Google can accomplish. Yet, people do think that way. They think that because Google did it or Facebook did it or the big church down the road did it, that they can do it...and they think that without considering their market.

Consider your community. Consider their needs.

Know your market...then come up with your creative solution and marketing plan.

I don't have cable television but when I get a chance, I love to watch the show, Dragons' Den.

For those of you that are unfamiliar, Dragons' Den is a group of five investors ('the Dragons'), who are seated in a room and throughout the show, entrepreneurs present business opportunities to them in hopes that they will invest in their venture and/or bring their expertise to bear in exchange for equity in the entrepreneurs company.

Some of the ideas that are pitched to the Dragon's are downright ridiculous and as a result, watching the show can be hilarious and awkward (often at the same time). But the thing that catches me is how often I've heard entrepreneurs defend their awful pitch with some variation of the phrase: "but it worked for Google!"

Really? You want to compare your business to Google? Google's market is the world. Anyone who has a computer can use Google...and for quite a while there, given their quality of search results, most did. To put a number on it, I just read in a Canadian Marketing Association advertisement that there are now 1.5 billion Internet users in the world. That is a HUGE market.

Let's say Google only penetrated 0.5% of that market...that's 7,500,000. 7 million, 500 thousand people. Even at a dollar a person, that market represents a HUGE opportunity to make money.

Now take your little venture that you've come up with that's marketed specifically to Canadian mothers of children between the age of 4 and 6. Your market is not even close to as big and as a result, you are no longer comparing apples-to-apples. It's not to say that your idea can't work, but to compare it to Google is ridiculous.

Take it a step further and think of your 200-500 person church in your community. What's your market? What is your ability to serve them? It's going to be different than what Google can accomplish. Yet, people do think that way. They think that because Google did it or Facebook did it or the big church down the road did it, that they can do it...and they think that without considering their market.

Consider your community. Consider their needs.

Know your market...then come up with your creative solution and marketing plan.