Hay Marketing 101

Growing quality hay is only part of the battle. After the hay has been produced, the next question is how to properly market and sell it. And one of the most important parts of marketing hay is knowing who it’s being sold to. Those who raise different livestock have different wants and expectations when it comes to hay. With this in mind, it is imperative that anyone who intends to sell hay has a good grasp of what different clientele may want from their hay.

For instance, horse owners are looking for unique characteristics in their hay. It is key that these aspects of hay are marketed to horse owners. No matter how objectively great the hay may be, if it doesn’t meet certain specifications that horse owners are seeking out, it won’t sell. What needs to be considered is what kind of horses the owner has. If he has physical active horses or pregnant ones, he will probably be looking for alfalfa hay, as alfalfa hay has sufficient nutritional content for these types of horses. However, if the horses are small or not very active, the horse owner will more likely be in the market for grass hay. So, when selling to horse owners, it’s important to know the specifics of the horses they own—knowing that they own horses is not enough.

Of course, these are not the only factors to consider when selling hay. Continuing with the horse example, horse owners, regardless of what type of horse they own, are looking for certain other specifications. Among them are size and shape. In order to maximize storage space, they will typically seek small, square bales. The appearance of the hay is also important. Even though looks can be misleading, it’s essential that the hay smell good, look good (that is, not be sun-bleached or noticeably weathered) and have a good texture.

Lastly, regardless of who is being sold to, hay must be of the highest possible quality. Even though appearance, size and shape are important, these cannot make up for the telltale signs of quality hay—no mold and no weeds, for example. Even the most glamorous looking hay is unsellable if it isn’t of good quality.

Selling hay is not always simple. Selling even the best of hay becomes troublesome if it doesn’t look good or doesn’t meet the specific desires of the purchaser. However, when it’s all said and done, quality hay sells best.