Breaking the Mold: Why Data-Driven Strategies Fail in Agriculture and What to Do Instead
Embrace Storytelling and Strategic Differentiation to Transform Your Go-To-Market Approach...
What is different about the way you go to market?
Most of us mistakenly believe that when people see what we have to offer, they’ll immediately understand why they should buy it from us, what working with us could mean for them and their business, and properly assign value to the potential partnership.
But most people don’t. They don’t automatically know why they should buy from you, they often don't know why they should buy now, and occasionally, they are not sure why they should do anything at all - especially if you’re selling something new.
Most of the go-to-market brain trust will steer you toward competitive analysis, market research, and other “data-driven” tactics. These are all valuable tools, but they're not enough.
In fact…
It was the “data-driven” approach that led Ken Olsen, Founder of DEC, to say in 1977, “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home.”
It was the “data-driven” approach that led McKinsey & Company to predict that the total mobile phone market would consist of just 900K users by 2000.
It was the "data-driven" approach that led most energy drink companies to overlook Five Hour Energy initially. - It was the “data-driven” approach that led Blockbuster’s CEO John Antioco to laugh at Netflix’s $50M asking price in 2000.
The limitation of a purely data-driven approach to your go-to-market is that 100% of data is from one place: the past. It is only informative when you believe the past will be identical to the future.
And in agriculture today, there's only one thing that everyone from growers to retailers to manufacturers can agree on: the future is going to look meaningfully different than the past.
A new future means that we need a new way of going to market. It’s no longer good enough to compete for existing market share, in a current market category, with a “better” product or service.
That's what everyone is doing; that's what will get you lost in the noise.
Instead, companies in agriculture need to:
Differentiate themselves with a compelling point of view. Tell your story, a strategic narrative that helps people understand what makes you unique and gives them a reason to do business with you.
Meet your audience where they are. Host local events, start a podcast, write a blog, etc. - Gain conviction about that point of view by regularly talking to customers. I would take three genuine customer conversations over a spreadsheet full of data from thousands - and you should too.
Execute, execute, execute. Start investing in your story as if it matters. Start designing your category. Start talking to your customers.
Make something different. Make people care. Make fans, not followers.