Springing into a busy survey season

By Joanna Cave, Chief Executive Officer 

To say that the last few years have been challenging is somewhat of an understatement. COVID-19 enforced lockdowns and extreme weather events, including recent heavy flooding in New South Wales and Queensland, have taken their toll on greenlife business. Despite these circumstances, there is very good reason to be optimistic about the future of the greenlife industry in our country.

Data from the 2020-21 Nursery Industry Statistics Survey Report shows that our industry has grown by 20% over the last four years, generating $2.8 billion in sales during that financial year alone. A summary of results published in that report can be found in our newly released Facts at a Glance.

With the 2021/22 financial year now over, Greenlife Industry Australia (GIA), together with Down to Earth Research (DTER) and ACIL Allen, will once again capture the value and volume of greenlife production in Australia through the Nursery Industry Statistics 2020-21 to 2024-5 (NY21000) project funded through the Nursery levy.

This year, in addition to production nurseries, we are also surveying retail nurseries and landscapers to validate production data and gain further insights into how the supply chain operates. 

To build the most accurate and reliable picture of our industry we need your help.

The more input we get from growers, the better you can understand trends and make strategic investment decisions accordingly. The more accurate the data is, the more valuable the Nursery Industry Business Benchmarking Tool will be, meaning our growers will get greater value from the tool and be able to make more informed decisions about the future of their business.

From now through to early December, Market Metrics will conduct a random sample of greenlife businesses to arrange interviews. If you are contacted by Market Metrics, I highly encourage you to participate in this survey.

Turning attention to another survey, last month we asked you, the readers of our fortnightly e-newsletter, the GIA eNews, to tell us what we might do better. We received lots of positive comments. However, I am sharing with you some of feedback that tells us there is room for improvement:

• Whilst two-fifths of respondents (41%) find the information in our e-newsletter very relevant, three-fifths (59%) of readers find the information in our e-newsletter only somewhat relevant. We must double down and do better!
• 73% usually skim read our e-newsletter only. Clearly, we need to say more with less!
• Whilst 75% of respondents were satisfied to very satisfied with our e-newsletter, a quarter of respondents (25%) were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. We need to do more to engage these readers.
• Only two-fifths of respondents (45%) were aware that GIA publishes two newsletters: 1) GIA eNews and 2) Your Levy at Work. Watch this space to hear how we intend to address this.
• Nearly one-third of respondents (29%) say the optimal time of day to receive our e-newsletter is between 7am-10am, whilst half of respondents (50%) had no preference. The early bird gets the worm it seems! Not surprising really in our industry.

One of the interesting challenges facing GIA is how to make our communications meaningful for our whole audience: for example, over half of all respondents (54%) would like us to share more information targeting growers whilst two-fifths of respondents (42%) would like us to share more information targeting retail nurseries and garden centres. These comments reflect the need for GIA to work extra-hard to ensure that information has meaning for all the stakeholders we serve. Please stay tuned.

I would like to thank everyone who responded to this survey. Your input really means a lot to us. Congratulations to the three winners of our survey competition. Cam Blakemore, Robert Megier, and Tracey Bool have each won a $200 Prezzee Smart eGift Card.

Remember, you do not need to be asked what you think to share your opinion. I am always eager to hear your views. You can reach me via e-mail: Jo.Cave@greenlifeindustry.com.au or mobile:  0468 368 961.

Regards,

Jo Cave

CEO – Greenlife Industry Australia