What Organic Farming Taught Me About Building Brands

During the week, I am a marketer. On weekends, I am a farmer. The two worlds may look very different, but over the years, the farm has taught me as much about building brands as any boardroom has.

Farming was never an escape from corporate life. It was a long-held dream and, in many ways, a return to my roots. I come from a family of estate owners in Coorg, and my father owned a large farm in North India. Living close to the land came naturally to us. My father taught me much of what I know, although I suspect the farm has spent the last few years correcting some of what I thought I knew.

When I bought my own farm, I did what any good corporate professional would do. I made plans, created schedules, allocated resources and expected results.

The farm refused to cooperate.

Soil has its own temperament. Rain arrives late, or all at once. A healthy-looking seedling may not survive, while the one you had almost given up on suddenly begins to thrive. Labour may not be available when you need it most. You can do everything right and still not get the result you expected.

For someone accustomed to plans, timelines and measurable outcomes, this was frustrating. I had to learn that planning is necessary, but so is accepting that not everything can be controlled.

Kabir captured it beautifully:

“धीरे-धीरे रे मना, धीरे सब कुछ होय,
माली सींचे सौ घड़ा, ऋतु आए फल होय।”

However much the gardener waters, the fruit will come only in its season.

Brand building has its seasons too. We live in a business culture that celebrates speed. We want immediate attention, rapid growth and quick returns from every campaign. But awareness can be bought faster than trust. Trust takes repeated experiences and promises kept over time. You cannot keep pouring money into communication and expect people to love a brand before they have enough reason to believe it.

The farm has also taught me when to change the plan. One year, the rains were delayed, and we simply did not have enough water for the area we had intended to cultivate with rice. So, we reduced the rice fields and moved to cereals and other crops that needed less water.

There was no point defending the original plan when the conditions had changed. The purpose remained the same: to grow healthy food. We just needed another way to get there.

Brands often face the same choice. Markets change, customers change and sometimes the product we are excited about is not what people need at that moment. We learnt this quite literally with dragon fruit.

We grew it because it was new, interesting and appeared to have potential. But the local market was not ready. We had produced something without first understanding whether there was enough demand for it. Over time, after experimenting with several crops, we returned our attention to indigenous varieties better suited to our soil, climate and market.

That experience stays with me when evaluating a new product or campaign. Innovation is important, but novelty is not the same as relevance. We can become so close to what we have created that we forget to ask a basic question: does anyone really want this? Sometimes the market needs education. Sometimes the timing is wrong. And sometimes we need to listen, accept the answer and move on.

Also read: The Cost of Decision Paralysis: 70% Right Now or 90% Right Later?

Organic farming has tested my commitment more than once. It takes longer, costs more and produces less predictable results. I have often been tempted to take the easier route, particularly when a crop is struggling. But I bought the farm to grow healthy food for my family and friends. If I compromised on that, I might still produce something, but it would no longer fulfil the reason I began.

This is where farming and brands come closest for me. Values are easy to state when they cost nothing. Their real test comes when staying true to them is slower, more difficult or more expensive.

And then there is the everyday work. A farm does not care that it is Sunday, raining heavily or inconveniently hot. Something always needs to be watered, checked, cleared or protected. Most of it is repetitive and invisible, but neglect it for too long and the farm will show you.

Brands are also shaped by ordinary things done consistently. Not only the big campaign or clever launch, but whether someone returns a customer’s call, keeps a commitment, admits a mistake or treats a colleague with respect. Reputation grows in those small, largely unseen moments.

Today, we grow much of our own rice, cereals, vegetables and fruit and are almost self-sufficient. When I reach the farm after a difficult week, I calm down almost immediately. I walk around, check each field and make plans for the next week. It is hard work, but strangely, it never tires me.

By Sunday evening, I usually leave with muddy shoes, a longer list of things to do and a quieter mind. On Monday morning, I carry some of that perspective back to work: pay attention, listen to the conditions, do not abandon your roots and give good things the time they need.

– Written by Kavita Rao, the Global Chief Marketing Officer of Findability Sciences, with over three decades of experience across marketing, communications, brand, reputation and people leadership. Beyond the corporate world, she runs Bougainvillea Organic Farm, where she grows grains, vegetables and fruit without chemicals or pesticides. She writes about brands, technology, leadership and sustainable business.