Three tips to Maximize Holiday Meat Sales

Many farmers selling direct-to-consumer have great success during grilling season, but there's a season of the year that can be even more lucrative: the holidays.

Last year, in fact, ChopLocal saw 4x more sales in December than in August!

Read on for our three biggest tips to maximize your holiday meat sales.

1

Holiday and Party Meats

Christmas hams? Prime rib roasts? Whole turkeys?

If you're able to offer these traditional holiday meats, you're probably thinking about your harvest dates and cut sheets.

Take the guesswork out of the equation and consider taking pre-orders early in the fall for a bit more certainty.

As a bonus, you can create a sense of urgency (pre-order by xx date!) which is usually a great way to motivate customers!

2

Plan and price your Gift Boxes

A box full of premium meat is a great gift for the hard-to-buy-for on every Christmas list. So make sure you have bundle boxes that are clearly labeled for gift sales.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• We recommend offering a $50 box available for pick-up only as well as a $100-150 box.

• To get the most bang for your buck, think about how the cuts you bundle fit into a shipping cooler. (We learned the hard way that baby back ribs require a big box, which adds extra cost!)

• Consider combining high-end cuts (like steak) with cuts that are harder for you to move (like grind or roasts.)

   

   

3

Start Early!

This blog post was written August 10, and this week, we had two inquiries for corporate/business gift boxes.

One of those requests was for 300 boxes, and the company wants to finalize the other this month.

It is NEVER too early to think about your holiday gift sales!

4

TL:DR Holiday Meat Sales

Was that too much detail for you? Here are the main points:

• Take pre-orders for the centerpiece of the holiday meal.
• Plan your bundle boxes to meet a variety of price points, minimize shipping costs, and move some of your "excess" product.
• Start the planning process several weeks earlier than you think you need to!