The new year is all about making resolutions – eat less, exercise more, reconnect with a passion, and work to become a better version of yourself. But did you know that it’s not just people who can make New Year’s resolutions? Businesses can (and should!) do it too.
As a tested and experienced agribusiness marketing team, Root+Beta has seen many companies try and sometimes fail over the years by making grand changes that are too broad without any real plan of action to ensure their success.
If you’re an agribusiness that’s looking to shake things up in 2026, we have some tips and real-world experiences that can help you avoid common pitfalls that many companies make in the new year.
Goal-setting Mistakes
The first major issue we see many ag brands make when it comes to New Year’s resolutions is that they tend to set goals that are too broad without defining what success looks like. For example, a brand might set a goal to “grow awareness” in 2026. But what is the right amount of growth that would indicate success, and how are you measuring that growth? Another big mistake is failing to prioritize. Don’t try to chase too many objectives at once. This can lead to scattered execution and marketing that looks like it’s staying busy, but realistically is barely moving the needle. Keep your goals specific, tied to a sales cycle, and sustainable in the long term for your team.
What Makes Goals Actually Work
Now that you know your goal-setting mistakes, how do you make goals that are actually achievable and meet your objectives for the year?
Good goal-setting comes down to a few key points: connecting to business outcomes, tracking what works, and having clear next steps.
First and foremost, goals need to connect to a stated business outcome. Are you looking for better lead quality, trying to increase your pipeline movement, or maintain better customer retention? You should set a goal that can help you achieve those goals. Next, commit to tracking your goals weekly or monthly, not just quarterly. This will help you have a better understanding of what’s working and what needs to change. Finally, attach clear next steps to your goals. You want to increase traffic, but then what? Your next step should be increasing traffic that converts.
Brand Building vs. Sales Goals
One of the biggest challenges we see with agribusinesses is the constant struggle between brand building and sales goals. Should you focus on building the brand up with marketing that reaches tons of people, or scale back and only invest time and effort into your stated sales goals for the year? But here’s the secret: they don’t have to be separate strategies. When a brand earns trust from customers, sales-driven marketing efforts will help to convert a customer when the timing is right. The key is to use the same messaging foundation so all of your marketing campaigns feel connected, not random.
Here are some practical ways to balance both:
- Anchor your year in a few consistent brand messages (what you stand for, the problems you solve, why you’re credible).
- Layer in seasonal sales pushes that match buying windows and priorities.
- Use the same creative and messaging foundation, so short-term campaigns don’t feel random or disconnected from the brand.
Common Audience Mistakes
Agribusinesses get a lot of things right, but sometimes they can really get their audiences wrong. What does that mean? Talking to farmers like they’re one audience is one thing. Motivations vary by many different factors, such as operation size, geographic location, and buying stage, so a single broad message for a diverse audience often doesn’t work. Another big mistake is leaning too heavily into describing your product’s features and specs, instead of what the customer is trying to protect or improve. Most buyers are seeking fewer headaches, increased uptime, better margins, and reduced uncertainty. They don’t need more information; they need clarity and relevance.
Why Marketing Stalls in Q2
So you’ve got your marketing ready to go for 2026. You’ve had your initial kickoff meeting, everyone on the team is excited, and everything looks ready for success. But then, Q2 comes around, and rather than continuing the momentum of your initial Q1 launch, your marketing stalls out. What happened?
Many times, marketing efforts stall out around Q2 because of a number of factors: plans were too ambitious without factoring in sustainability, no clear ownership was executed, and repetition was pushed aside in favor of new ideas. For a plan to succeed in Q2 and well beyond, you need to have a cadence that pushes not a “perfect strategy” but a sustainable one for your team and budget. You can help lighten the load on creative teams by coming up with repeatable templates for work. Monthly check-ins to see how the campaign is progressing also help, instead of waiting for a big mid-year overhaul. Finally, set one or two priorities for the quarter, not dozens.
Keep vs. Re-evaluate
Sometimes, it’s worth keeping tactics that worked last year. Other times, you should take a hard look and re-evaluate a tactic that didn’t pan out the way you expected. Think of this like those viral “In vs Out” trends you see online at the end of every year.
One marketing tactic worth keeping around is real customer stories and proof points. This was a recent revived trend in marketing, and it still holds up today; people care about real stories from real people they can relate to. Show videos of customers who have had positive experiences with your business and who would gladly sing your praises to anyone who will hear. Another tactic worth keeping is educational content that supports your sales process, like a “How-to” video on a product or service.
Some tactics worth re-evaluating this year? Broad-targeted paid social, content with no strategic purpose, and spreading your content too thin across too many channels. The best marketing isn’t always something new and shiny; it’s what earns attention, builds trust, and drives customer action.
Underrated Tactics for 2026
We’ve talked about overrated tactics and ones that we think should be kept and re-evaluated – but what about underrated tactics for this year? One tactic we see resonating with customers is what we call “proof-first marketing.” This is marketing that shows evidence of the bold claims found in marketing every day. Ag buyers are skeptical, comparison-driven, and overwhelmed with claims that this product is going to change their life. Show them that your product can actually back up those claims. Whether that’s from short, specific customer stories, strong case studies, or before/after outcomes, you should always work to build your credibility at scale and make it easier for customers to believe you.
Root+Beta is Your Key to Success This Year
At Root+Beta, we’ve seen it all. We’ve helped countless agribusiness brands rethink their marketing strategies for the year, with countless success stories along the way. We’ve been where you are before, and we’ve developed proven strategies that can turn your resolutions into reality. The hardest part is taking the first step, so let us take the guesswork out of your 2026 marketing strategy and achieve your marketing objectives this year.
Ready to see what we can do for you? Email us at howdy@rootandbeta.com, give us a call at (501) 291-1642, or schedule a meeting with us today.