Free Publicity

Perhaps one of the greatest assets of a farmers' market is their connection to the community. As a member of the community, a farmers' market can get a lot of good publicity for free.

Managing PR

Perhaps the best source of free publicity for community events is the local paper and news channels. With the loss of viewers and subscribers to national internet sources, local media are searching for unique events that can only be found on a small local level. This is the opportunity for farmers' markets to get free publicity.

It Takes Work

Don't think that publicity is going to come to you simply because you exist. Publicity has to be sought out and managed. The most important thing is to establish responsibilities with someone in the organizations you want to publicize your market. Once those relationships are in place, these are the steps I recommend taking:

-Write a weekly press release
-Hold special events
-Join the Chamber of Commerce
-Use local entertainers

Using these steps a farmers' market can increase its visibility without increasing its advertising budget.