COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Successful businesses don't rely on customers.
Such is the notion consultant John Stanley of John Stanley Associates is presenting during a one-day workshop at the Ohio Direct Agricultural Marketing Association Conference, being held in conjunction with the Ohio Fruit and Vegetable Growers Congress.
The conference, which focuses on the business of direct marketing, will be held Jan. 14-17 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. Stanley's workshop will be held Jan. 15 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Stanley will present "Ban Customers and Grow Your Business, Advanced Retail Concepts," and will challenge participants to re-think the way they do business. The workshop covers farm retailing, marketing strategies, consumer loyalty, and top 10 tips to grow a business by 20 percent.
Stanley has degrees in horticulture and taught horticultural retail management for 10 years. His retail experience covers supermarkets, garden centers, and farm and farmers' markets. His books include Just About Everything a Retail Manager Needs to Know and Think FOR Your Customer. For more information on John Stanley, log on to http://www.johnstanley.cc.
If teambuilding is more in line with one's interests, participants of the Ohio Direct Agricultural Marketing Conference have the opportunity to attend a workshop titled "Hosting Teambuilding Events on Your Farm, Attract New Groups," by Jim Cain.
Cain's workshop will also be held on Jan. 15 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cain, a senior consultant for the Cornell University Corporate Teambuilding Program and a former executive director for the Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT), is the author of five adventure-based teambuilding books.
He will provide a variety of engaging topics during the workshop including teambuilding activities, theory, needs assessment, program planning and debriefing techniques. He will also provide tools, equipment, and resource books designed to show participants how to attract new customers to the farm business.
In the past, Cain has presented programs and workshops in 43 states and 10 countries. For more information, log on to http://www.teamworkandteamplay.com.
Registration for either workshop is $75 for Direct Agricultural Marketing Association (DAMA) members, and $115 for non-members, and includes lunch.
The Ohio Direct Agricultural Marketing Association Conference is sponsored by Ohio State University's Direct Marketing Team and the Ohio Direct Agriculture Marketing Association. The conference will be held in conjunction with the Ohio Fruit and Vegetable Growers Congress, the National Bramble Conference, and the Mid-American Ag & Hort Human Resource Conference.
For more conference information, log on to http://directmarketing.osu.edu. For additional information, contact Kathy Lutz at (614) 246-8292 or e-mail klutz@ofbf.org. For additional information about direct marketing or DAMA, contact Julie Fox at Ohio State's South Centers at Piketon at (740) 289-2071, ext. 225, or e-mail fox.264@osu.edu.