Released to the public in October, Expanding Opportunities for Canadian Agriculture by Understanding the Experience of Farm Women is a report on research conducted by Farm Management Canada (FMC). Alongside an experienced project team that included experts from Centric Engine and Strategic Perspectives, FMC completed an Environmental Scan and both qualitative and quantitative research. The results offer invaluable insight for all who serve the agriculture industry.
In particular, we see a great opportunity to put this new knowledge to work in your marketing plans. The better you understand the nuanced differences between the kinds of customers you are trying to attract, the better your brand’s advantage in what has quickly become a saturated, noisy market.
It’s not enough, however, to simply acknowledge that farm women are major contributors to the farm. In some cases, they are more than simple influencers for the main decision-makers in their farm business – they are driving decisions from annual planning to long-term strategy.
Here are the top 3 ways you can use the report to strengthen your marketing strategies.
If you don’t already have a farm woman persona, it’s time to consider why not – and, probably, start creating one.
Even if you do have one, the report provides a wealth of information you can use to refine your existing persona. The report clearly outlines how women contribute to the farm operation, which can help shape messaging at key points in your customer journey.
Perhaps the most important insights in the report are those surrounding the level of stress and lack of time that farm women reported. This invisible labour takes a toll and influences how they make decisions. Understanding these pressures can help you shape a stronger understanding of the pain points and challenges these key audience members face.
Further to our last point, how does your product or service fit into the experience of a woman on the farm? Is it helping them save time, reducing stress, or contributing to their success? More importantly, are the interactions they have with representatives of your brand respectful?
In the report, farm women indicated that they felt that being a man would improve their relationships with agribusiness representatives across most verticals. “In almost every instance, more than a third of respondents reported that being a woman poses a challenge to the relationship.”
There is a lot more work ahead to improve the actual implementation of equity and inclusion initiatives where they even exist. As one participant stated: “It took a while for suppliers to realize that this was my decision; those that have been around for a while have learned to come directly to me, but every now and then, I get a newbie that I have to train.”
This study is only the beginning, and given the value it has for everyone in the industry, but especially for brands looking to effectively market to their desired audiences, it can only improve from there.
The results of this research offer insights into where additional study can add depth and perspective to the results. There are many ways that the industry can better serve farm women – we just have to be willing to find them and then take action to make real change.
Author’s Note: WS recognizes the diversity of gender identities. The use of the terms woman/women and man/men in this article is not intended to be exclusive to any other gender identity. In using these terms, no distinction is made or assumed between cisgender and affirmed gender identity.
Editor’s Note: WS was proud to partner with FMC, Centric Engine, and the rest of the team and partners who share our values of increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in agriculture through initiatives like this project.
Stephanie has eight years of experience in content strategy across all channels; specializing in content creation, execution and deployment, social media scheduling and community management. She holds her Bachelor of Arts in Professional Communication from Royal Roads University. Stephanie wonders how communities define and redefine themselves both on and offline. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
