Rural Marketing

by Mary Ridder

Comparing business activity in the heart of Manhattan, New York, to the Sandhills, Nebraska was fascinating last week. As I walked down 5th Avenue I couldn’t help but see why rural communities and businesses have such unique challenges. While every business must address marketing, the ultimate concern, not all have to   face it where sheer numbers are challenging.

I met a manager of a gallery on 7th Avenue and W. 55th Street. The monthly rent is $20,000. And in the first 7 to 8 days of each month, the rent bill is paid.

The businesses in Roots of Change don’t have access to such a volume of potential customers, so nowhere must you be more creative in your business plan, particularly your marketing plan, than in a remote rural area.
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Mary Ridder is the author of Roots of Change, now available from the University of Nebraska Press.