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8 steps to better marketing

What do successful farmers do that gives them the marketing edge? Marketing decisions are much like production decisions -- doing many little things right improves yields. But there's no denying the hard facts -- some farmers are just better at it. Even so, they don't think they do anything other farmers can't do too.

On the surface, it seems Ian Lepp markets his crops very differently than Ken Motiuk does. In part, that's personal preference, but a large part of the reason is because their farms are so different. However, in this feature from the October 2009 edition of Country Guide, associate editor Maggie Van Camp finds two farmers whose strategic approaches to the markets are remarkably similar. Click here for the full feature.

Farming for... profit?

During the "Farming for Profit" conference in late June 2009 in Moose Jaw, Sask., University of Saskatchewan agricultural economist Ken Rosaasen spoke to Country Guide associate editor Gord Gilmour about the ways in which public policy has gone off the rails for farmers, while other sectors, such as the railway and fertilizer industries, have been much more effective advocates for policies favouring their interests. Rosaasen proposes that farmers take a closer look at issues they have in common and speak with a unified, rather than splintered, voice to work toward an improved regulatory framework. As well, he notes, most of Canada’s consumers may have lost their direct connections to the farm, but may soon begin to take a greater interest in how ag policy affects their own lives.

Click here to watch Gord’s video.

Must-have albums

Associate editor Gord Gilmour's quick rundown of essential listening from artists who broke out of the country stereotype. Canadian artists whose music won't be pigeonholed are profiled in the January 2008 issue of Country Guide ("Break Down Barriers," page 54).

At Folsom Prison and At San Quentin

Johnny Cash

The Man In Black may be gone, but his musical legacy lives on. A true original, Cash's distinctive deep voice and the "boom-chick-a-boom" sound of his backing band the Tennessee Three brought a whole new sound to country music in the '50s and '60s. Cash quickly earned a reputation as a hard-living outlaw who made his own rules.

Fittingly, his two best known albums are live recordings from the infamous Folsom and San Quentin prisons made during the late 1960s. While Cash may have sang a lot about prisons and outlaws and sown a lot of wild oats during his wayward youth, any talk of his own prison time is a myth: the Man in Black himself always kept more or less out of trouble.

Redheaded Stranger

Willie Nelson

Nelson's breakthrough mid-'70s album, that earned him a reputation as more than one of the best songwriters to ever hit the music business.

He's known for having one of the most diverse fan bases in music -- a tent that's big enough to take in bikers, farmers and ranchers and even a few hippies.

Cowboyography

Ian Tyson

This member of the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame may be best known for his work with ex-wife Sylvia Tyson, but he's also one of Canada's greatest songwriters and a serious supporter of authentic western music.

He started playing guitar and singing in his 20s when he was on the rodeo circuit and was recovering from a bad fall. He eventually built a following in urban coffee shops as a folk singer in the 1960s as one half of Ian & Sylvia.

Copperhead Road and Exit 0

Steve Earle

Earle may have become a political activist and solo singer-songwriter these days, but his second and third albums still stand as some of the best music ever put to tape.

His rocking country sounds were internationally popular for a time, but recently Earle has found audiences on this side of the border more receptive to his work.