August Marketing Prompts

Prompt #1:(Easy)

An Instagram Carousel Post

Here's your easiest post for the month. This is another one designed to call out specifically to locals (or tourists) in your area. You're positioning yourself as a local authority (because you are!) and you can also plug your farm. 

I don't know about you all, but as a consumer, I save posts like these ALL THE TIME - and I send them to my friends or fiance as a reminder that I want to try something new. So, make a multi-photo post like this for YOUR locals, and they'll eat it up.

The tip here is to think of the hidden gems in your area - whether it's a lunch spot where you can always get a table when everywhere else is booked, a nature spot no one has ruined yet, the sky is the limit. 

Remember to change to your town, farm name, and of course, to your own local hot spots. 

The caption can be super simple, and remind people to save it so they don't forget the spots. And as always, add music!

To make a post like this, you can just choose different photos and add text right on top. The post does NOT have to look like this - the most important thing is to follow the guidance about directing locals to these 'insider' spots. But if you want to get fancy and copy and use this exact template in Canva, I got you. Just click here. 

Prompt #2: (Medium)

An Instagram B-Roll Reel 

Breathe easy, you don't have to show your face on camera for this one (though bonus points if you do!).

For this one, you're going to practice two different skills: 1) editing a simple video ("b-roll") so that it becomes more engaging to the viewer, and 2) telling a story very succinctly. 

Text Steps:

For your on-screen text, you're going to tell a mini-story in 4 lines. That's it - 4. 

Write them out in a text or on paper first so you're not trying to do deep thinking WHILE you're trying to make it look pretty on instagram :) Here's your basic script template. Fill in the blanks with something you'd like to share with the world. No over-thinking, instead go with 'first thought / best thought.'

Before I (had kids, started farming, quit your job, etc) I used to think_________.

Now I know that (poignant or funny plot twist)__________.

So, here's what I'd say to the (new mothers / farmers / people pleasers / teachers, whatever)_______.

And as for me, I'm (funny or wise state of being now)_____.

Save these ideas and set them aside. 

Filming Steps:

For the video - set the camera on a tripod (or let's be honest, on a bucket) and film yourself doing an activity in the field (harvesting, weeding, etc) for just 5-10 seconds. Then, move your phone to a secondary location and do the same activity again, but this time you'll be capturing it from a different angle. Do this a third and fourth time, so that you end up with four, 5-10 clips of you performing the same boring activity (sometimes they can be the same angle, but one is much closer up and the other farther away). 

Editing Steps:

Now, in either the Instagram or Edits app (whichever one you use!), create a new reel and add all four video clips together one after the other, in any order. 

Then, add one story line over each video clip. Make sure it's really legible - don't get fancy with fonts, use a classic or bold font with a contrasting color background (you can't go wrong with black and white). 

Then, you'll want to edit the clips to make them shorter. Aim for 3 - 5 seconds each, just long enough to read the text out loud.

Add some video, and then move on to the caption!

For the caption itself, I like to either expand a bit on the story or add a secondary moral. But here's the thing, captions usually don't even get read - so don't spend too much time on them! 

Prompt #3: (Hard)

An Instagram 'Yapping Reel'

Let's keep going with a video where you're talking straight to the camera. These are THE BEST way to get locals to get interested in you and more than anything, to TRUST you. 

I recommend breaking your story down into 3-4 main parts, and filming each one individually, then taking a breath, thinking of your next point, and moving on to film the next. 

Here's your template, in 4 parts. The goal is to make the whole video around 60 seconds or less. 

Part 1: Have I told you the story of how we started (your farm's name)?

Part 2: (Tell the very beginning of the origin story - what gave you the idea to start a farm?)

Part 3: (Tell the next part - how did the farm grow?)

Part 4: (Tell what you have in store for the future). 

Close: And that's us. I'd love to know in the comments - how did you find our littler farm?

You can add a short caption to add to the story a bit. I'd recommend something like 'And here's what I DIDN'T tell you...'