Just about anything can be turned into a business these days. For example, there are many homesteaders who sell their produce and even use their expertise to sell courses to others who are looking to homestead themselves.
If you are trying to live off of the land and make some extra money, then you can find any number of ways to make money even if it’s just something extra. An example would be raising chickens. They don’t take up much space, are cheap to raise and can provide you with an extra income for little work.
In this article, I will go over how you can set up a small side business with a chicken coop and a few chickens that you would already have anyway.
Be different
People usually realize that eggs from a small homestead are much better than from the supermarket. But, you have to make sure that people understand why that is. SO you have to get the word out there about what makes your eggs or chickens better than store bought.
Make sure that you are raising them in a sustainable way, for starters. If you use sustainable soybean meal for your chickens, then you have to make sure that people know the benefits to the eggs and the chicken meat from doing this.
Make sure to highlight how your chickens are raised in a true free range style where they are eating worms and bugs out of your garden and are free to walk around. You should use your social media channels to promote the idea that your chickens are living naturally as opposed to the battery chickens from the supermarket.
Have your social media working
The most effective way to drum up business for your eggs or chicken meat is going to be a well oiled social media machine. You will have to be producing good quality content that people are interested in and not just promotions on your products. In other words, your social media should be telling a story.
Start out with Instagram and Facebook and build a following on those channels by highlighting your homestead and how things work. People will like that story with pictures. Then start a Youtube channel that talks about raising chickens and make your chickens the stars of the show.
When you have a decent following then make sure to let people know that the eggs and meat are for sale.
Follow local regulations
Selling food is generally tricky and it’s even more tricky when you are selling fresh produce and meat from your own backyard. Make sure that you understand your local regulations and follow them to a T so you don’t run afoul of the law.
Before you start selling, make sure that you have spoken to your local board of health and any other authority that handles food service. Hopefully there have been others in your area that have done the same thing so your local authorities are familiar with how to proceed.
