A farmer isn't a "late adopter" of new technology. They're a hyper-skeptical investor.

They're waiting for clear evidence and the knowledge to make it work on their ground.

Your biggest challenge isn't creating the tech. It's providing the teaching to overcome their learning curve.

Keep reading to learn how to make your expertise the first thing you “sell”.

You're scrolling LinkedIn when you see an ad for a new AI-powered crop disease detection tool.

"Identify diseases 10 days earlier than traditional scouting. Prevent yield loss before it starts," the ad promises.

You keep scrolling. Sounds too good to be true.

But later that week, you see a post from the same startup. No sales pitch. Just a question: "Do you know how much yield you're losing to diseases you catch too late?"

You stop scrolling. Because honestly, you don't.

The post walks you through a simple framework for calculating hidden disease losses. It shows real photos of early-stage symptoms most scouts miss. It explains why waiting for visible damage means the window for treatment has already closed.

You bookmark it. Share it with your agronomist.

Two days later, when you see their webinar invitation, you actually register. And when they finally demo their AI tool, you're not skeptical anymore. You're taking notes.

Why did the second approach work?

In today's edition of Ag Growth Letter we'll explore The Learning Curve Effect. It's why teaching customers before selling creates faster adoption and stronger loyalty.

Let's dig in.

The Learning Curve Effect describes how people's performance improves with repeated exposure and practice.

But here's what matters for marketing: the learning curve also applies to buying decisions.

Research by psychologist Robert Zajonc proved the "mere exposure effect." People prefer things simply because they're familiar with them.

When you add education to this, something powerful happens.

A study published in the Conductor website found that customers who learned from educational content were:

Here's why this works in the brain:

When you teach someone something new, you activate their learning center. This releases dopamine, the same chemical linked to reward and motivation.

Teaching = Rewarding experience

But when you pitch without teaching, you trigger the brain's threat detection system. This creates resistance.

Pitching = Defensive response

For ag companies, this matters because:

When you teach first, you're not just sharing information. You're building trust, reducing risk, and making change feel possible.

The result? Faster adoption and more confident buyers.

If you're selling precision ag tools like sensors or variable rate equipment, don't start by listing features.

Instead, teach farmers how to calculate what their current approach actually costs them. Create simple guides on topics like "How to measure fertilizer waste" or "The hidden cost of uniform applications."

By the time they see your demo, they already understand why precision matters. Your demo just shows them how your tool solves the problem they now recognize.

This helps you compete against lower-priced options. Because educated buyers focus on long-term value, not just upfront costs.

When farmers consider biologicals or regen ag products, they face tough questions. What's the transition? How does it affect yields? What about cash flow?

Instead of pitching your product, create content that teaches farmers how to evaluate their options. Publish guides on "Understanding biologicals in different soil types" or "A framework for calculating soil health ROI."

These resources don't push your product. They teach farmers how to think about soil health decisions.

The payoff? When farmers are ready to try something new, they've already learned from you. You become their trusted advisor, not just another vendor making claims.

Your sales team spends less time handling objections and more time solving specific farm challenges

If you're selling farm management software or data tools, don't start with a screen-sharing demo.

Instead, teach farmers the frameworks that make data useful. Offer free courses on "How to use field data to improve planting decisions" or "Understanding profit by acre."

Teach the concepts behind better farm management, regardless of what tool they use.

Here's what happens: as farmers learn these frameworks, they naturally start looking for software to apply them. And since they learned from you, your platform becomes the obvious choice.

This also reduces churn. Farmers who understand the why behind your software see it as essential to their operation, not just another monthly expense they could cut.

In agriculture, trust comes from education, not sales pitches.

The Learning Curve Effect shows that when you teach first and sell second, you build confidence, reduce risk, and create loyal customers.

Whether you're selling precision ag tech, biologicals, or software, remember: your best salespeople aren't the ones with the smoothest pitch.

They're the ones who are the best teachers.

There are a few ways I can help:

→ Ghostwriting Service: I'll turn your expertise into educational newsletters that build trust without the writing hours. You bring the knowledge, I handle the rest. Apply here

→ Content Strategy: I'll help you build an educational content system that turns skeptical farmers into confident buyers. Apply here

Loved this email? Hit reply and let me know what resonated.

And if you found it useful, don’t forget to share it with a colleague who's trying to break through farmer or investor skepticism.