Scottish Enterprise Agritourism Monitor Farm

Making Money from Farm Tours

Caroline Millar 10.9.20 Farm Tours

What is the customer experience looking for a farm tour in Scotland?

Pricing

Health and Safety 11.30am Scottish Agritourism Farm Tours - VISION

• Vibrant farm tour offering • Professional delivery right through customer journey • Able to compete with other non-farming options for visitors • On-line bookable • Easily found on search engines • Travel Trade friendly if going for travel trade (on website etc) • Food tasting at end of tours or as part of tour – farm produce and/or local produce Reality in 2020

• A good opportunity • Emerging offering • People starting out and trying this • A few professional businesses • Some don’t have websites but are listed elsewhere/have Facebook page • Most don’t offer online bookable tours • Almost no one offering food experiences • Not in any way showing we are Travel Trade ready/friendly How easy is it to find a farm tour in Scotland?

• Google “Farm Tours in Scotland” • Other combinations of words could bring up different rankings • We need to look at what people search for days out/days out in countryside/bespoke tours/tours of Scotland as well as specifically for farm tours • Need to run again for Scottish Farm Tours, Visit A farm in Scotland

£36.31

£19.55 £61.45

£36.31

Page 1 on Google for Farm Tours in Scotland

4 Page 1 on Google for Farm Tours in Scotland

8 Page 1 of Google

Farm Tours in Scotland No. 1 Google

No. 3 on Google

No 4 on Google

No. 5 on Google

No 7 on Google

No. 8 on Google

No 9 on 1st page of Google

Page 2 of Google - Page 2 of Google -

Page 3 of Google -

23 Page 3 of Google -

27 No 20 on Google No 22 on Google

Rupipertours Visiting Ardross Farm 2021 No. 23 on Google No 24 on Google

No 25 on Google Page 3 Page 4 of Google -

32 Page 4 of Google -

37 Page 4 No. 29 on Google No 30 page 4 Page 4 No. 32 USA based! No 37, Page 4 Google

Page 5 of Google -

42 Page 5 of Google -

Farms in first 5 pages of Google search

1. Scottish Farm Tours 2. Newton Farm Holidays 3. Farm Buggy Tours 4. Swanston Farm 5. Old Leckie 6. Aberdeenshire Highland Beef 7. Portnellan 8. Belleveue 9. Lennox of Lomond 10. Byres Farm 11. Jacksons of Jedburgh Farms that didn’t appear in their own right but in an itinerary 1. Alvie Estate 2. Mid Torrie 3. Glen Tanar Estate 4. Chillingham? 5. Adross 6. Experience Days?

Forum – Leault Farm Farms in SEO but don’t provide paid tours

• Mackies, Aberdeenshire (virtual tour on website) • Rora Dairy (free tours?) Farms not in first 5 pages Google Search

• Kitchen Coos and Ewes, D&G • Down on the Farm, Aberdeenshire • Grierson Organics • Balkello Farm Tuesdays at 10am £15 2 hours

Running A Farm Tour Business

COMMUNICATION TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY & FUTURE PLANNING - With business partners - Myself - Creative ideas/R&D - Staff team - Others in team - Trends/international outlook - External includ. funders - Time out of coal face - Financial scoping/sourcing - Influencers/network - Business planning

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT MARKETING & SALES HR MANAGEMENT - Monitoring performance MANAGEMENT INTERNAL - CONTRACTOR instantly (P&L, cashflow) - Strategic marketing (brand - Compliance including - Budget v actual review/marketing plan re- pensions/contracts - Processing monthly visit) - Appraisals/reviews paperwork, VAT, Paye - Brand assets - Staff training & records - Regulatory financial - Annual plan/campaigns - Performance management management - Daily/weekly/monthly tasks - Staff meetings/communication - Purchasing

OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT When will you fit farm tours into your existing life?

Time Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Weekend Midnight to 7am Sleep Sleep Sleep Sleep Sleep Sleep 7am to 9am Breakfast/ Breakfast/ Breakfast/ Breakfast/ Breakfast/ Sleep Family/ Family/ Family/ Family/ Family/ Housework Housework Housework Housework Housework

9am to 1pm Work Work Work Work Work Exercise Family time Food Shopping 1pm to 2pm Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch out 2pm to 5pm Work Work Work Work Work Work 5pm to 10pm Dinner Dinner Dinner Dinner Dinner Fun Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Exercise Family Family Family Family Family Voluntary Voluntary Voluntary Voluntary Voluntary 10pm to Midnight Sleep Sleep Sleep Sleep Sleep Fun Setting Prices – 3 steps

1. Other offerings in the market place - What else can a guest do on a day out? - What else can guest do looking for a tour (any type of tour)? - What else can a guest do on a farm tour specifically? - How are those tours presented and packaged? - Do they vary with season, time of day, who is delivering tour? - Research 20, a mixture, on at least annual basis Setting prices – 3 steps

2. Understanding my costs - Being aware of all variable and semi-variable costs involved in delivering a tour - Pre-tour, delivery, post-tour - Valuing your time - both on tour and prior to tour i.e. a one hour tour with people turning up to be welcomed 30 minutes in advance - Setting up the tours in the most efficient delivery way i.e. a day of tours 4 tours each Saturday, concentrates time, maximum throughput that day - Costing out different options for tours – small bespoke, large one to many, guided or self-guided or mixture, costs for different people in business Costs

VARIABLE COSTS SEMI VARIABLE COSTS OVERHEADS

Online booking costs Top up Insurance for tours Your general agritourism or farm Cleaning items specifically overheads that won’t vary with Cleaner Hired in toilets your tour operation Any paid help Hired in wash hand Outsourced tour guide EHO costs Accountancy Petrol/diesel for tractor/buggy Marketing Food and drink – catering staff Administration Consumables CAPITAL INVESTMENT Insurance

Toilets OPPORTUNITY COST Hand washing Catering facilities VALUING MY TIME AS FARMER Shelter/bespoke facility Car/bus parking What else could I be doing? Signage (Cleaning cottage £10 an hour) Trailer/Buggy Driving tractor Working off farm Setting prices – 3 steps

3. Price according to how good my proposition is - Track record, starting out versus very experienced – 25 years in delivering farm tours - An expert tour guide backed up by endorsements/reviews - Top rated farm tour in Scotland/your region - A professional offering pre-tour - is booking experience professional, website, customer journey, information? Automated, digital? - Pricing for different quality of tour guides (farmer, or employee) - Is the tour guide or farm a well known figure/location “as featured on This Farming Life” “BBC Countryfile” “Farmers Weekly Sheep Farmer of the Year” - Are you award winning in farm tours? Agritourism? - How niche are you? What can you say that others can’t? (been here since 1750, 11th generation) - What makes you stand out? You play fiddle/bagpipes/sing? - Iconic tourism area, beauty of the area Setting prices – 3 steps 3. Price according to what my proposition is - Sitting around chatting in a barn - Walking tour of farm - Trailer tour has thrill of trailer - Off-road Landrover - Land and water/boat tour combo - Food included – own farm produce/local produce/home baking - Drink included – whisky tasting/non alcohol You don’t have to spend the whole time of their farm experience with the guests

This allows multiple groups in one day in on a “conveyor belt” Length of time with you Length of time on own Total time on farm Self-guide/employee/eating food 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 2 3 2 0 2 2 1 2 2 2 4

If they are spending the whole day with you one to one, you can charge accordingly, a bespoke, one to one, unique tour – a truly unique experience. Price will also reflect how many you have got on that tour

1 One of you to 40 guests on a large coach @£10 per head for one hour = £400

2 One of you to 20 guests on a smaller coach @£10 per head/one hour = £200

3 One of you to 8 guests on mini coach or large family group @£10 per head/one hour = £80

4 One of you to family of 4 @£10 per head/one hour = £40

5 One of you to a couple @£10 per head/one hour = £20

At some point for you to decide the group size makes it not worthwhile. So the price has to increase to reflect personal/bespoke/tailored. More Good idea to introduce MINIMUM GROUP CHARGES e.g. £80, £100 Bespoke and Intimate Price will also reflect how many you have got on that tour

1 One of you to 40 guests on a large coach @£10 per head for one hour = £400

2 One of you to 20 guests on a smaller coach @£10 per head/one hour = £200

3 One of you to 8 guests on mini coach or large family group @£20 per head/one hour = £160

4 One of you to family of 4 @£25 per head/one hour = £100

5 One of you to a couple @£50 per head/one hour = £100

At some point for you to decide the group size makes it not worthwhile. So the price has to increase to reflect personal/bespoke/tailored. More Good idea to introduce MINIMUM GROUP CHARGES e.g. £80, £100 Bespoke and Intimate Pricing Strategy also reflects what else you can up-sell to guests

• If you have nothing else, you might have to/want to charge more • If you make a high margin on a farm café, or delivering certain types of food experience at the end of the tour, the tour element could reflect that i.e. tour price less when booked in for 3 course farm tasting lunch or when staying in accommodation • Can you up-sell memorabilia that you get a margin on? • Or can they take home food and drink items from your farm shop? One hour tour

Rates per head Coach 40 Coach 20 Coach 8/2 cars Family 4 Couple

£10 £400 £200 £80 £40 £20 £12 £20 £30 £40 £50 £60 £70 £80 £100 £250 Health and Safety

• Jeremy Parker, NFU Mutual Making Money from Farm Tours

Caroline Millar 9.9.20