PLEASE NOTE:
New Web Site Look
Will Launch 2/20!
Are those letters big enough?? I feel like I have to make a huge deal about this based on experiences that we have had making changes in the past. People are resistant to change and even more averse to reading (I am included in this group too). So in order to help communicate some pretty big changes effectively, I need to use 28 point font. Looks like one of my high school papers trying to make my essay a full 2 pages.
Anyway, I have mentioned it, teased about it, and promised it would come. Well, we finally have a date for the launch and I am getting pretty excited/nervous for this new web site.
I was placing an order last night on our current web site and I have to tell you that I wanted to drop-kick my iPad out the back door. Our current site right now is so clunky and awkward that all I can do is apologize that it has taken so long for this new functionality to come our way.
A few years ago, I read about this marketing campaign that Domino’s Pizza had that said “We are sorry that our pizza has been so bad for so many years.” They did not want to sugarcoat or spin the fact that their pizza was terrible. Their marketing idea was to be real and be direct with the customers. Not sure if that worked for them and I still don’t eat their pizza, but I really respect that kind of marketing idea.
So here is my version of throwing the pizza in my face. Our web site has not reflected where I wanted our farm and business model to be. The first step is admitting that. Then comes the next monumental step, how the heck do you fix it?
Folks, I can converse with plants fairly easily. Figure out what they need in their cute little non-verbal nuances. But computers and writing code to me might as well be from another planet. I got a big fat C on my college Calculus course (sorry about that mom and dad). And so by the Fall of 1995, all my hopes and dreams of working on computers or finding a cure for cancer were gone. My brain had met its match.
So when I realized that our web site needed to change, I was acutely aware that there was nothing that I could do to help the situation. Furthermore, you cannot just find eCommerce home delivery software specializing in customizable CSA boxes on the shelf at the convenience store next to the pink Ding-Dongs. This is some serious software that we need to sign members up, operate an online marketplace, accept orders, route our drivers efficiently, then bill you for all of your culinary needs. This is some heavy lifting amigos.
So, with all of this said, the point that I am getting at is that we have been in a tough spot in the past and have not seen a major technological change to our web platform in 5 years. And a lot of changes have happened in the last 5 years technologically speaking. I mean people spend way more time on mobile devices now than they do on big ole desktop ones.
There are so many cool bells and whistles that this site will have, but before we launch it on the 20th of February, I just want to give you a heads up on a few things.
1. All of your account information is going to be the same. It will look and feel like a completely different web site, but it is actually a remodel and not a new house, so to speak. Your user name and password will still work.
2. Your recurring orders will all still be in place. There will be nothing you need to do about that.
3. There is a new “Deliver My Stuff” checkout tab that we have not had previously. So you will have to hit that to confirm and place your order.
It will feel very familiar to you and I promise that you will love the new additions and mobile friendly layout.
Thank you and stay tuned for more, Farmer Monte