Episode Overview

Podcast: My Digital Farmer Podcast
Episode: 339 – How I Got 234 CSA Members to Sign Up in One Day
Host: Corinna Bench
Release Date: November 19, 2025

Corinna Bench, CSA farmer and digital marketing educator, gives an in-depth breakdown of her most recent CSA Early Renewal Campaign. She shares the strategies, step-by-step processes, and mindset shifts that enabled her to secure 234 CSA renewals in a single day (out of 261 total in a week). This episode serves as both a campaign post-mortem and an actionable marketing blueprint for other farmers wanting to boost early sales with targeted, limited-time promotions.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

Campaign Results at a Glance

• Total Vegetable Shares Sold: 261 out of 350 listed (74% filled in a week)
• First-Day Renewals: 234 shares (majority in the first hour)
• Egg Shares: Sold out in 10 minutes
• Cheese Shares: 88 sold (noted as a high-profit item)
• Launch Window: 7 days at the end of the CSA season
• Average Order Value: $951 (up from $904 last year)
• Launch Platform: LocalLine for orders, Private Facebook Group and Email for communications

Why The Timing Works – [31:00]

Corinna emphasizes launching her renewal at the end of the CSA season in late October, riding on her community’s positive feelings and satisfaction.

“I always tell people… you should place it at the end of your CSA season when people are more likely to be thinking about it. If you try to do this in December, you're not going to have as good of a result… people are thinking about Christmas, they're not ready to put down a bunch of money for next year.”
— Corinna, [34:18]

The Pre-Launch Runway – [35:00]

A two-week "pre-launch" window is engineered to build buzz, answer questions, ignite the Facebook group, and make the coming renewal launch an anticipated event.

Activities to Prime the Community:

• Recipe Challenge: This year, a chili cook-off replaced the usual freezer challenge, resulting in high engagement and excitement ([39:00]).
• Golden Egg Game: Six lucky members found a plastic egg in their box, winning them early access to sign up—costing almost nothing but fueling FOMO and discussion ([42:00]).
• Daily Question Challenge: For five days, members answered values-driven questions about the CSA experience, which doubled as subtle “micro-commitments” toward renewing ([44:30]).
• In-Person Pick Event: A tomato u-pick & pepper gleaning event deepened community pride and built on feel-good vibes just before the campaign ([47:00]).
• Pop-up Prize Contests: Fun and unpredictable social challenges kept the group dynamic and primed for marketing posts ([48:30]).

“Renewal Launch week is an event now in our farm. People expect it… when I say, 'Oh, it's renewals week,' everyone's excited. No one is like, 'Oh, I gotta deal with promos.' They've had a blast, you know, celebrating the year with us, celebrating each other. And they want to do this again.”
— Corinna, [49:10]

Messaging: Key Talking Points – [52:00]

Before creating content, Corinna maps the critical talking points to address in emails and Facebook posts:

• Early Renewal Bonus: A high-quality, $5 bag of biscuit/pancake mix from Elderberry Farms as a new product introduction ([58:10]).
• Strict Cart Open/Close Windows: Clear, repeated reminders of when the sale begins and ends (Oct. 18, 8am–Oct. 24, 8pm).
• Exclusive Offers/Add-Ons: Extra bonus gifts for cheese, fruit, and coffee shares to encourage multiple purchases.
• Hottest Items Scarcity: The egg share’s extreme scarcity is emphasized (“You have to be online in the first 15 minutes to get it!”).
• FAQs & Transparency: Addressing questions like “Will there be a chicken share? How do I pay?” to reduce hesitation.
• Community Value: Highlighting life transformation and camaraderie as central to the CSA experience.

“I was trying to provoke that response… helping a person mentally make a commitment before they officially did it… they want to do this again.”
— Corinna, [01:02:00]

The Offer: Scarcity, Bonuses, and Fast Action – [01:06:00]

Corinna's system layers several irresistible elements that drive immediate signups:

• Short Window: Offer available only for 7 days — urgency & scarcity.
• Valuable Bonus: $5 gourmet mix included, built into the share price.
• Add-On Exclusives: Early buyers of cheese/fruit/coffee shares get unique extras (e.g., smoked butter, strawberry flats).
• Egg Share Scarcity: Deliberately selling only 120 pre-reserved, though supplier could provide slightly more, to keep demand and “frenzy” high.
• Fast Action Bonus: For the first hour, egg share buyers are entered into a draw for a free egg share ([01:11:00]).
• Visibility of Limitations: Telling members only 350 shares are available (out of a potential 385), which signals even more scarcity.

“I want the eggshare to be limited because I know this is what makes people get in line and sit on their mouse… right at 8am to try and get in.”
— Corinna, [01:14:00]

Results, Mindset, and Metrics – [01:19:00]

• Goal Setting: Set for 350 shares with a target of 70%; achieved 74%.
• Order Value: Average of $951 per order, indicating the upper spending limit for most customers is around $1,000 per transaction.
• Mindset Shift: Marketers must hold goals “loosely” and not judge themselves based on numbers alone.
• Pre-scheduled Content: All posts and emails prepared in advance to avoid burnout and emotional second-guessing during launch week.

“You are running an amazing campaign. There are so many cool things going on… There’s so much energy firing in our group.”
— Kurt (Corinna’s husband), [01:26:50]

Creating a Repeatable System – [01:29:00]

• Master Documents: Google Docs for all copy, Canva folders for visuals, and a daily “stage manager” sheet for content scheduling.
• 90% Rinse & Repeat: Vast majority of copy and structure reused annually; only minor tweaks to bonuses, schedules, and emergent themes.
• Automation: Pre-scheduling all emails and posts reduces in-the-moment stress.

“I have a plug and play process now… The emails are 95% the same from year to year. The social media posts are also about 90% the same.”
— Corinna, [01:30:50]

Marketing Budget & ROI – [01:32:00]

• Budget: $1,800 on bonuses/prizes; $300/mo for Facebook lead generation. The early launch alone generated $252,000 in sales.
• Strategic Investment: Willingness to “spend money to make money”—outlying bonus costs are dwarfed by the resulting cash flow.

Notable Insights, Lessons & Memorable Moments

AOV “Ceiling”

Repeated launches reveal a natural average order value plateau — more add-ons won’t always lift it; staggered offers throughout the year may prove more effective ([01:37:30]).

Sampler Insight

Her trial 4-week “sampler” flavor of CSA sees just 18% upsell to full share—a sign customers actually want small, flexible, or bi-weekly options, but the farm need not always accommodate ([01:42:00]).

“You get to decide how you want your business to be run… You don’t have to do what the market wants if it doesn’t fit your goals.”
— Corinna, [01:45:20]

Buying Rituals

What once felt “contrived” now excites her loyal base; with repetition, the renewal period becomes a fun, anticipated ritual ([01:47:00]).

The Bonus as Product Teaser

Testing a potential new store item as a member bonus previews next year’s moneymakers ([01:51:10]).

Segment Timestamps

| Segment / Topic | Timestamp | |------------------------------------------|---------------| | Introduction / Episode Setup | 00:00–08:00 | | Seasonal context & personal reflection | 08:00–16:00 | | Upcoming "Farm Sales Framework" events | 16:00–27:00 | | Launch Results: Renewal Campaign Stats | 27:00–32:00 | | Why Campaign Timing Matters | 32:00–35:00 | | Pre-Launch Runway: Activities & Buzz | 35:00–50:00 | | Key Talking Points & Messaging | 52:00–61:00 | | Offer Structure: Scarcity, Bonuses | 66:00–85:00 | | Results & Goal Setting | 85:00–97:00 | | Repeatable "Plug and Play" System | 89:00–93:00 | | Budget, ROI, and Cost Justification | 92:00–98:00 | | Insights: Order Value, Samplers, Rituals | 97:00–108:00 | | Using Bonuses as Future Product Testers | 111:10 | | Aftermath: Wait List, Next Steps | 114:30–119:00 |

Notable Quotes

• “If you need them to tell you now, you’ve got to come up with a reason to make it worth their while to decide now, instead of April or May…” — Corinna, [01:09:40]
• “I just want to remind you that you are the owner of the business… Listen to the market, but you get to decide.” — Corinna, [01:45:20]
• “The launch has become a buying ritual… they expect it, they can’t wait for it…” — Corinna, [01:47:00]
• “Keep the launch window short… You can do anything intense for seven days. Any longer and it’s just exhausting.” — Corinna, [01:52:00]
• “I have my exact social media posts that you can copy, my email copy, that master checklist example that you can use… so you have templates to show you how this could work.” — Corinna, [01:59:15]

Takeaways for Farmers and Marketers

• Build anticipation with a vibrant pre-launch—make it fun, interactive, and value-driven.
• Design a short, high-urgency renewal window with meaningful “now-only” offers.
• Engineer perceived scarcity and clearly communicate what’s in it for the customer, with layered bonuses and exclusives.
• Automate, document, and re-use proven systems to reduce future workload and stress.
• Reframe promotional campaigns from spammy “asks” to anticipated, celebratory community rituals.
• Embrace the owner’s right to decline market demands that don’t fit your business life or goals.

Final Resource Links Mentioned

• Farm Sales Framework Webinar: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/webinar
• Farm Marketing School: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/fms
• CSA Wait List Promotion Tactics
• Email List Signup: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/subscribe
• Show Notes: www.mydigitalfarmer.com/339

For anyone serious about raising the renewal rate (and energy level) of their direct-to-consumer farm business, this episode is an essential listen—and a playbook.