Applegate businesses gather for a presentation about online and affiliate marketing.
A handful of Applegate small business owners gathered in the large barn of the Applegate River Lavender Farm on October 24th. The gorgeous and well-tended lavender farm is a popular summertime stop for travelers, but it was late October in the Applegate and the season showed signs of winding down along with the fading lavender blossoms.
It was a perfect time to gather and think sales strategies with Applegate resident Henry Finkelstein. A graduate of Yale University and Stanford Business School, Finkelstein has extensive business education. He has a lot of “real world” experience as well, having worked with marketing and tech companies for over 20 years.
On this evening, he would give a presentation that would serve as Part Two to the Regenerative Economics presentation he gave at The Lindsay Lodge last February. A Greater Applegate (AGA) sponsored both events.
The group mingled and settled into the warm and cozy barn ambiance created by owners Marcy and Rob Rustad. A meal was catered by Mountain Mama Kitchen—a warm ratatouille, goat cheese with flowers and a pumpkin crème brulee. And, of course, the scent of lavender filled the air.
AGA’s Business Network Coordinator, Kate Vangeloff, began the event with a recap of AGA’s efforts and accomplishments to date: Building a brand identity through a logo, three websites*, a Business Network Membership program, a business directory, as well as workshops and events.
This groundwork provided a platform for Henry’s topic: online and affiliate marketing. Noting the seasonal fluctuations of a tourism economy, Finkelstein touted the year-round nature of online sales. It could serve as a way to balance out the local economy, which tends to spike in the summer season and drop in the winter.
He pointed out other benefits to selling online as well. The sales that come from tourist foot traffic areinsufficient to sustain the local economy, so e-commerce could expand to a customer base beyond the valley.
“We need to precipitate dollars from outside the valley,” he said.
Another plus: The overhead costs of setting up a website and sales system are much less than the physical infrastructure required to host tourists. Online sales also reduce the impacts of tourism.
“We can enable and empower local communities to live the life we want without changing the culture,” he explained.
Finkelstein feels that the Applegate is well-positioned to sell to the outside world, where hyper-local and handmade products are trending: “It’s easy to forget that products made in the Applegate are premium in other markets, like big cities.”
What’s ahead? Stay tuned for the State of the Applegate event for early 2025. This gathering will include a presentation of findings from the University of Oregon study about the demographic, income and employment trends in the Applegate Valley in 2024. Wander Applegate and the Business Network will also present other interesting Applegate trends–both as they relate to the natural world, tourism, and business owner/resident sentiments. Date and Details TBA
If the Applegate story is told effectively outside the region, Finkelstein guessed the products could demand two to three times the price premium compared to generic, no-name products.
He cited a few local businesses that serve as good examples of successful online operations: Oshala Farms and Siskiyou Seeds. He urged small business owners to partner up to sell their products on each other’s online platforms, a win-win strategy known as “affiliate marketing.” The product gets a wider audience, and the host receives a commission in return.
The dinner meeting ended with small groups brainstorming together ways to advance the small business community in the Applegate.
This Business Network meeting speaks to the Applegate Valley Vision values of creating a local economy that is “prosperous and vital.” The Vision is the culmination of the community listening sessions held throughout the Valley through the years of 2020/2021.
The Business Network will be teaming up with Wander Applegate this spring for an Applegate Ambassadors Program. This will be a training designed to cultivate concierge-level knowledge among local store, tasting room, and vacation rental staff so they can better support each other and travelers to the Applegate.
“We can raise each other up,” said Vangeloff.
Interested in becoming a Business Network Member? Learn more about the benefits here.
