.webp)
+1 (855) 699 1026
Many farms jump into e-commerce expecting quick wins, but end up with slow sales, abandoned carts, and frustrated customers.
The problem usually is not demand. It is avoidable mistakes. From poor mobile experiences to weak product pages and limited payment options, small issues can quietly hurt conversions and turn buyers away.
In this article, we cover the most common farm e-commerce mistakes and how to fix them so you can improve your store, increase conversions, and drive more consistent online sales.
So, what are the advantages of farm e-commerce specifically? Here are a few to consider:
An online store makes your farm easier to find when customers search for local food online. Instead of relying only on markets or word of mouth, you can attract new buyers who are actively looking for what you sell.
E-commerce also opens the door to regional and even national demand, especially for specialty or hard-to-find products. This helps you generate new sales beyond your immediate local network.Read more about farm customer acquisition: how to increase customers to your online store
An online store helps automate key parts of your business like order management, inventory tracking, and payment collection. Instead of handling everything manually, your systems stay updated in real time.
This reduces admin work, minimizes errors, and frees up your time so you can focus on production, fulfillment, and growing your farm.
With an e-commerce website, your farm is open 24/7, allowing customers to shop at their convenience. This constant availability can boost sales by making it easier for customers to buy from you whenever it fits into their schedules.
E-commerce also allows for different sales models, like offering farm subscriptions or pre-orders for the market, which can help you secure consistent revenue.
Read more about 6 farm ecommerce tips to boost business sales
Relying solely on in-person sales can limit your farm’s income potential, especially during off-seasons or when faced with unexpected challenges. By selling products online, farms can diversify their revenue streams, including offering value-added products, bundled items, and shipping options, which help stabilize income throughout the year.
Download our FREE guide to increasing your farm’s average order value
I’ve audited thousands of e-commerce websites and built hundreds myself for clients over the years, and I want to highlight the most common pitfalls I’ve seen stores consistently fall into. They are relatively easy fixes, but in principle, they can make or break an entire online sales channel for your farm business.
More than half of all website traffic and more than half of all online sales are made on mobile devices. Plus, if you create content and advertise on social media platforms, like Instagram or TikTok, nearly 100% of their users are on mobile devices. If you optimize for search, even locally, Google uses mobile-first indexing, meaning non-mobile-friendly sites may rank lower in search results.
It’s safe to say that one of the biggest mistakes farms can make when designing their websites is not making them mobile-friendly, both for browsing and purchasing. The Local Line website builder automatically formats websites for any device, including desktops, tablets, and mobile, so farms can rest assured that their online stores will be optimized for every visitor.
Solution: Using e-commerce platforms like Local Line, which is built to be responsive to any device creates the piece of mind that however customers shop, they’ll have a great experience.
Another huge mistake farms make on their website is not displaying reviews from their trusted customers. Social proof is a huge factor in building trust with new visitors, helping them drop their doubts to move forward with their first purchase. Some estimates say that more than 90% of consumers read reviews before making a purchase, and 31% of customers are willing actually to spend more on a business with excellent reviews.
With tight farm profits and margins, customer reviews may be the key to charging a premium for what they grow! However, the cost of not hosting or gathering reviews makes it hard for farms to build the trust needed to turn visitors into lifelong customers.
Solution: Reach out to existing customers and ask directly for their reviews. Then, create an automated email sequence that reaches out to customers one week after their online purchase asking for a review.
Farm’s product pages are crucial, but unfortunately, many of them I have seen over the years make the same mistakes over and over. Farm product photos are often low-quality or stock images, which misrepresent and can devalue the product. Take Force of Nature Meats, for example. They have professional photos of their product and show their meat in a delicious dish. Their product page differentiates their product from their competitors.
Farms fail to distinguish why their products are different in their written descriptions. This is a huge mistake. I’ve seen many online farm stores that do themselves a disservice by writing general descriptions of what they are selling.
Again, visit Force of Nature Meats’ product page and scroll through to see how they have differentiated themselves through professional photography and detailed descriptions.
Aside from not showcasing reviews, customers rely heavily on visuals and clear information to make purchasing decisions online. If farms don’t take the time to invest in professional product photography and write detailed, engaging product descriptions, they are doing themselves a disservice.
Solution: Invest in professional farm photography for at least your core products and write out detailed descriptions, covering all of the differentiators like variety, farming practices, etc.
Customers may abandon their carts if their preferred payment method isn't available. As stated earlier, mobile purchases are becoming more common, so payment methods need to keep up. Offering various payment options outside of just credit cards is critical to keeping customers happy and increasing website conversion rates. Digital wallets, like PayPal and Apple Pay, decrease the friction of completing purchases on mobile, so it is important farms don’t make the mistake of giving customers multiple options to complete their purchases.
Some farms even differentiate themselves by embracing cryptocurrencies and offering them as payment methods. This can make your farm stand out amongst the crowd and become part of their marketing strategy to set them apart from the competition.
Solution: Using e-commerce platforms like Local Line that already have frictionless farm payment processing setup will help ease this lack of options for customers
One of the biggest mistakes farms can make is ignoring the importance of customer service. The farm does so much work that addressing customers’ questions and needs doesn’t make the to-do list. Word-of-mouth is often a farm’s most effective marketing strategy, and customer service is an extension of the brand. Negative customer experiences can lead to bad reviews, decreased customer loyalty, and lost sales.
Over time, farms often receive the same questions repeatedly, which can help them better communicate their customers' needs on the website and social media. As these repeated questions are asked, I suggest farmers gather them up and answer them on a FAQ page on their website. This gives customers a place to find the answers themselves, and also a quick reference for whoever is handling customer service for the farm to direct customers to.
An easy workflow for farmers is creating a separate business email address for customer service, such as info@myfarm.com or help@myfarm.com. This can become the designated email address so personal and business emails don’t get crowded and give a clear picture of what questions have been answered and which ones haven’t.
Customer service can help farms learn more about their customers’ problems to better position themselves and avoid the frustration of unanswered questions.
Solution: Setup a designated customer service email and build a frequently asked questions page on your website that houses the answers to common customer questions.
With so many farm e-commerce platforms available, farms often need to pay more attention to shopping around and wasting time, resources, and money figuring out which is best for them. The platform chosen directly impacts customers' experiences and the scalability of online sales for the farm. Farms need to understand their goals and reasons for launching an online store so they don’t get distracted by the long lists of features each platform has to offer.
Luckily, Local Line already has 8,000+ farmers successfully selling their products online and growing their businesses. We’ve received their feedback, listened to their desired features, and designed our platform to best set them up for online success.
Solution: Sign up for Local Line for a turn-key online farm store experience, equipped with features like sell by weight, custom price lists, and subscriptions
Farms focused on selling their products directly to their customers online and growing their business through social media marketing must avoid these mistakes if they want to succeed. By avoiding these mistakes, their marketing efforts will result in new customers who are happy and satisfied to shop with them and tell their friends and family. When farms choose Local Line for their online e-commerce platform, they confidently set up their online store and avoid most of these mistakes.
Start a free trial of Local Line and launch your farm e-commerce store in minutes!
Selling products online helps farms reach a wider audience, even if their target market is local. The trend toward online shopping is growing, and having a farm e-commerce platform ensures farms don't miss out on potential sales. Additionally, an online store allows farms to streamline their operations, reduce overhead, and offer customers convenient options for browsing and purchasing.
To optimize a website for mobile, farms should use responsive design, ensuring the site automatically adjusts to fit any device. Websites should load quickly, have easy navigation, and support smooth mobile purchasing experiences. With mobile-first indexing, Google also prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in search rankings, making mobile optimization critical for search engine visibility.
Customer reviews build trust and credibility, which is essential for converting new visitors into buyers. More than 90% of consumers read reviews before purchasing, and many are willing to spend more on businesses with excellent reviews. Farms can use customer testimonials to demonstrate the quality of their products and create stronger customer loyalty.
Farms should invest in professional product photography to showcase their products accurately and attractively. High-quality images instill confidence in buyers and reduce the risk of product misrepresentation. Clear, detailed, and engaging farm product descriptions are equally important to communicate the unique value and benefits of the farm’s offerings.
Farms should offer multiple payment options, including credit cards, cash, and ACH. This flexibility ensures customers can complete purchases easily and quickly, particularly on mobile devices, which is where most online transactions now take place.
Excellent customer service helps retain customers and generates positive word-of-mouth marketing, which is especially important for farms. Providing timely and helpful responses to customer inquiries can prevent negative reviews and boost customer loyalty. Farms should consider common customer questions and incorporate answers into their website content to improve overall communication. Read our article outlining 8 Ways to Provide Great Customer Service for Your Farm.
Selecting the right platform ensures that farms can scale their online sales effectively and provide a positive shopping experience for customers. The platform should support their business goals, offer user-friendly features, and integrate smoothly with their existing operations. With Local Line, farms can confidently avoid many common e-commerce mistakes and grow their businesses online.
Poor product descriptions can confuse customers and fail to communicate the unique qualities of the farm’s products. This leads to missed sales opportunities. Well-crafted descriptions that highlight the product’s benefits and key features not only increase conversions but also help differentiate the farm from competitors.
Social proof, such as customer reviews, plays a crucial role in building trust with potential buyers. In the competitive online market, new visitors rely on the experiences of past customers to make informed purchasing decisions. Without social proof, farms may struggle to convert hesitant buyers into loyal customers.
Farms should assess their specific needs and long-term goals before selecting an e-commerce platform. It’s important not to get distracted by unnecessary features and instead focus on choosing a platform that is easy to use, scalable, and aligned with their sales objectives. A tailored solution like Local Line can help farms launch and grow their online stores successfully from the start.
.webp)
