by Jan Johnson | Sep 27, 2018 | Farmer Insights
I’ve been out conducting some focus groups with farmers recently, and what they said drove home a point I’ve actually known for years; I just didn’t realize how much this mindset rules their entire existence. First off, farmers are some of the most...
by Jan Johnson | Aug 30, 2018 | Farmer Insights
I’ve been binge watching Blue Bloods from the beginning of its eight seasons. I am just starting season three. It strikes me that the show might be an analogy for all family businesses, but of course, family farm businesses are closest to my heart and the ones I...
by Jan Johnson | Jun 29, 2018 | Farmer Insights
Over the last few months, we have been talking about what is literally killing American farmers. Heartbreaking. We can only hope that the rest emerge stronger. Here’s a quote from a recent FBN newsletter: “There aren’t a lot of businesses that can...
by Jan Johnson | May 29, 2018 | Consumer Research, Farmer Insights
Sometimes I get a list of questions from clients that they want answered. Invariably, they are mostly yes and no questions. And then I feel good because I can help them. A lot. The world is rarely black and white, and it’s even less so in farming. I used to say...
by Jan Johnson | Apr 25, 2018 | Farmer Insights
I just finished reading this article by Debbie Weingarten, who left farming to learn more about – and maybe find answers to – farmer suicide. It’s heartbreaking. The land has an energy all of its own; it can change your frequency if you let it....
by Jan Johnson | Apr 10, 2018 | Market Research
What do customers really want? Last fall, I attended the Pig Welfare Symposium hosted by Pork Checkoff and conducted a consumer focus group session with a panel of diverse shoppers who purchase pork. The recording of the entire session is now available, and if...
by Jan Johnson | Feb 28, 2018 | Market Research
Is your faucet leaky? Whenever a company undertakes a market research project, there is always the chance that they will not like what they hear. This is a tough situation, almost like calling a plumber. We generally call a plumber when we have a leak or a blockage...
by Jan Johnson | Jan 16, 2018 | branding, Farmer Insights
Over the holidays, as many people did, I indulged in a little movie binge-watching on Netflix. It was then that I realized Netflix has audio branding … a sound – Da-Dum – that plays when the application opens. Just like Microsoft and perhaps the most...
by Jan Johnson | Dec 21, 2017 | Farmer Insights
When I have spoken with farmers over the past few months, they’ve talked about how they are going to plant more soybeans (USDA forecast came out this week; bean acreage is equal to corn for the first time in a long time), do more with less, and generally hope to...
by Jan Johnson | Nov 22, 2017 | Blog
I have come to believe that the closer you are to nature, the more natural gratitude you feel. I think perhaps it’s because nature does what nature does. You can’t order it around, you can’t demand from it, and it doesn’t argue with you. It...
