Farmers MarketImpact Toolkit

DATACOLLECTION

TOOLS

METHODSAND

GUIDANCE

FACTSAND

RESEARCH

ANALYSIS& REPORT

TEMPLATES

1. Farmers’ markets build strong local economies• Competition or complement for local businesses and economic development• Small business incubation and market growth

2. Farmers’ markets promote sustainable and responsible agricultural practices

3. Farmers’ markets increase food security• Local land cultivation and food production

4. Farmers’ markets strengthen civic engagement• Community building

5. Market operational strength, engagement, and sustainability• Share tracking tools and benchmark against other markets

Impact Indicators

Project Timeline

Step 1: Gather support and volunteer teamStep 2: Training workshop

Step 3: June/July Survey AdministrationStep 4: July/August Data CollectionStep 5: August/Fall Snapshot Creation

Snapshot Outline• Farmers’ Market Overview

– Business success and sustainability• Community Building

– The market as a community hub– Contributions to civic engagement

• Farmers’ Market and Food Security– Biodiversity – Sustainable and responsible agricultural practices

• Economic Impact of the Farmers’ Market– Building strong local economies

Required IndicatorsTotal Annual Customers 20216Customers per Market Day

722

Number of Market Days per Year 28

Number of registered vendors 63

Vendor turnover rate 9%

Vendor growth rate 13%

Proportion of regular vendors 75%

Average Customer Spend $46.93

Customer Survey (dot survey) Direct collection Direct collection

Direct collection

access to good quality, fresh foodlearning about food productionconnections to community activitiestrusting relationships between vendors and customers

meet friends make new friendspositive impact on local economysupports sustainable agriculturewelcomes all people

67%43%41%

59%66%

71%81%44%

Direct collection; vendor, customer, and local stakeholder surveys

Required Indicators

Vendor Survey Direct collection Vendor Survey

Vendor Survey Direct collection; vendor, customer, and local stakeholder surveys

The Market as a Community HubA great crowd showed up, full of questions and enthusiasm and knowledge, and a couple of hours later I fumbled across the street with more yogurt than I had room to incubate. Disaster was averted, however, thanks to Ruth and Joseph’s fancy dehydrating oven. Saturday morning opened chilly and gorgeous, and I was pretty near ecstatic as I pedaled into Mount Vernon on the Kokosing Gap Trail. Melissa Raines had published a piece about me in the Mt. Vernon News on Friday, so plenty of people came up to me having read that I would be at the market. The crowd was fantastic – all ages, and I nearly ran out of my samples, saving some for afternoon demonstrations back in Gambier.

Required Indicators

Vendor Survey

Customer Survey

Vendor Survey

Destination Trips countThe market was primary reason for coming out 47 67%

Customer Surveys: Rapid Market Assessment

• Customer Counts– One person at each entrance– 10 or 20 minute periods (then multiply and add hours together)– Consistent times during the hour, every hour– Calculate annual attendance with consideration of seasonal

trends• Dot Surveys (Flip Charts)

– Clear multiple choice questions, 5-6 answer choices– Give strips of dots with one dot for each question, pre-cut– Replace sheets throughout the day to observe customer

variations over time– Easel placement – visible, covered, wind/rain protection– “Five dots, five questions, one dot per question.”

Customer Surveys: Rapid Market Assessment

Customer Surveys: Rapid Market Assessment

• 2012 Dot Survey Questions– How much did you spend, or will you spend, at

the market today? – How much did you spend at neighbouring

businesses? – How often do you come to this market? – When did you start shopping at this market?

(Categories vary by market age) – (One question of your choice)

Customer Surveys: Rapid Market Assessment

• Customer Surveys– BCAFM administration one day this year – more

may be necessary– 15-20 per day, recommended 30-40 total– “Do you have a few minutes to answer some more

detailed questions for the market?”– Overlap with dot survey questions (1, 2, 3, 5)

Data Collection and Entry

Snapshot Creation

Direct Collection from Market Management

• Quantitative– Business operations– Clarify what makes a vendor “regular”

• Qualitative – Capitalize on familiarity with market dynamics,

personalities, and history– Level of engagement with customers, vendors, and

local businesses & organizations? – Community hub question – be creative with collection

methods from diverse market connections

Vendor Surveys• Content

– 3 sections: all vendors, food vendors, farmers– Potential hesitance to provide financial information –

estimates and proportions are generally fine. This is marked on the survey.

– Vague questions can be useful because we are looking for associative answers – general connections of value related to the farmers’ market

– Defining “local” production and sale (i.e. In Q.#15b)• As far as the vendor knows, if the “end consumer” is in the

local area, that sale is a “local sale.”– #8: Vendor Relationship Mapping

• Challenges re: privacy of information• Varying goals: determine how tight the network is (names

required, social network mapping), or what kinds of network they are (categories of people, bar graph)

Vendor Surveys• Method

– In person is best, phone also okay • Encourage conversation, record stories • Some table format questions are easier to answer when visible

– Be consistent about which questions are asked to all participating vendors

– All vendor participation is best, but the feasibility of this depends on market size

– Regarding potential “vendor collectives”: use your judgment – one survey per producer/vendor is probably the way to go, depending on how closely they work together and how similar the products are.

– Private Information: • Wait until the end of the survey to ask vendors for their name/contact info –

some data may be seen as sensitive.• To maintain anonymity and ensure survey completion, list participating

vendors and attach a survey code to each of them. Label the survey with the code instead of vendor name, and only include their name if they volunteer it at the end of the survey.

Local Stakeholder Surveys• Local businesses, market partners, municipal

employees or police, regular market volunteers, board members, funders & investors

• Stakeholder groups – should be represented by one person, who market mgr has close relationship with– Response: balance between personal responses and

on behalf of stakeholder group – reflective of relationships with market management

• Contrast to BCAFM “local business” survey participation

Project Timeline: Next StepsStep 3: June/July............................Survey Administration• ASAP: Coordinate survey administration with

volunteer team• July 31: Survey administration completeStep 4: July/August...................................Data Collection• August 15: Data collection and feedback to

Annie/VCFStep 5: August/Fall..............................Snapshot Creation

Feedback and Questions

Annie Lambla annie_lambla@vancity.com

604-877-4940