by Jan Johnson | Sep 18, 2019 | Farmer Insights
I walked into the Radisson Hotel in Normal, IL, and the layout made me ask the receptionist, “Did this used to be a Holiday Inn?” Why yes, yes it was. And then it had sat vacant for 15 years or so. Radisson revived the location and spent a pretty penny...
by Jan Johnson | Aug 22, 2019 | Farmer Insights
My brother, who is a large-animal vet, likes to tell this joke: Q: “What’s a farmer’s best year?”A: “2012 and this year.” It’s funny because it’s true. The eternal optimist in almost every farmer sees the good in...
by Jan Johnson | Jul 11, 2019 | Farmer Insights
I was at a meeting with farmers the other day and one of them said, “I feel like a young man, but I look in the mirror, and I see an old man. One of us is lying. I think it’s the mirror.” The old saying, “you’re as old as you...
by Jan Johnson | Jun 11, 2019 | Farmer Insights
“I will not be planting this year.” That’s the response I received to my request for some field information on a new project we have going right now. He ended with “Thank you.” It broke my heart. In those simple seven words, a man says...
by Jan Johnson | May 20, 2019 | Farmer Insights
What do farmers want? Market research is no different than any other business. There’s always a shiny new object that the leading firms develop and promote as the new big thing, with better consumer insights than ever before. It started when Japan began selling...
by Jan Johnson | Apr 17, 2019 | Farmer Insights
All over America, grown men are crying – okay, maybe just on the inside – as they put on a brave face and talk about next year being better. But make no mistake: Their hearts are breaking. Farming dreams. I hope North Dakota is not a leading indicator,...
by Jan Johnson | Mar 30, 2019 | Farmer Insights
For the first year in many, I had a garden last summer. The details aren’t pretty. Suffice it to say, I would not last long as a farmer. My planting was poor, my irrigation sporadic, and while my weed control was pretty good, it was not enough to overcome my...
by Jan Johnson | Mar 7, 2019 | Farmer Insights
Farmers just want to feel appreciated for who they are I have been doing even more talking than usual with farmers the past couple of months. I have been talking to my youngest son as well. Those conversations led me to think about how our aspirations direct our...
by Jan Johnson | Jan 29, 2019 | Farmer Insights, Product Liberation
Or, Why birds on a wire remind me of the four types of farmers in a coffee shop It’s been getting cold here in Minnesota, and I like to observe wildlife and think of what lessons we might draw from their behavior. I’ve noticed that some electric wires have 10 to 50...
by Jan Johnson | Dec 19, 2018 | Consumer Research, Farmer Insights
Is your customer journey a trek, a treasure hunt, or a treat? How would you like to make it a treat every time? A lot of clients have been asking me about customer journeys. They come to me with some sort of a diagram and say, “We think this our customer’s...
