Farm Business Survey
Having to employ more staff to cope with lead volume is the lovely problem that faced Promar International, following the success of Hillsgreen’s campaign for the Farm Business Survey (FBS).
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Promar International, part of the Genus ABS family, is a leading consultancy firm offering services to farmers, food companies, and retailers. In 2022, Promar secured a five-year contract with DEFRA to facilitate the Farm Business Survey (FBS) for England. This annual survey offers an in-depth analysis of British agriculture at the farm business level. During the transition of the FBS to Promar, in its first year a number of farmer participants left the project. This meant Promar needed to increase their farmer participant numbers in key agricultural sectors in England to comply with their DEFRA agreement.
Impressions
Interested farmers
Qualified leads
Our integrated marketing campaign was designed to drive sign-ups by targeting farmers with personalised, data-driven messaging. We began by conducting interviews with existing FBS members to identify key motivators and challenges, shaping two core messaging strategies: appealing to farmers’ sense of duty to British agriculture and positioning the survey as a tool to enhance business performance through financial insights and benchmarking.
We optimised every touchpoint, starting with a redesigned landing page and simplified sign-up form to boost conversions. Social media played a pivotal role, with paid campaigns across Facebook and Instagram targeting awareness and conversions. This approach was data-led, informed by the popularity of Meta channels in our Marketing to Farmers survey. We further amplified reach through trusted farming influencers like Tom Pemberton and Olly Harrison, leveraging their credibility to engage the audience and drive traffic to our site.
Our email strategy was meticulously segmented, delivering tailored content by sector (e.g., pigs, poultry) and guiding users through a personalised journey. A key success factor was our strategic use of DEFRA’s email database, resulting in high open and click-through rates. In the campaign’s final phase, a “last chance” email created urgency, effectively converting those who had previously engaged but not signed up.
This seamless integration of digital assets, social media, influencers, and email marketing ensured every element of the campaign worked in concert to maximise reach, engagement, and sign-ups. Data from each channel informed ongoing adjustments, optimising performance across the board.
The campaign exceeded all set targets, demonstrating the effectiveness of our integrated marketing strategy and our ability to deliver results on a small budget. The impact of the campaign has led many more farmers to ‘do their bit’ and give real data to the government, which will ultimately effect future legislation for both farming and the environment.
We needed a new strategy to recruit farms for the Farm Business Survey, and Hillsgreen delivered with both innovation and professionalism. This pioneering effort for Promar showcased the powerful impact digital marketing can have on a business. The digital campaign exceeded our expectations by generating a high number of quality leads and significantly boosting brand awareness. Hillsgreen’s expertise is evident, we highly recommend working with them.
