WHAT IS OUTSKIRTS?

OUTSKIRTS is the new way to find local goods & services. It’s an online advertising community for local businesses and people who are looking to reach rural California customers who buy outdoor lifestyle goods and services.

OUTSKIRTS helps rural Californians gain greater access to the products, services & technology needed to increase the quality of their lives.

Based in central California, OUTSKIRTS [.COM] is partnered with California FFA to provide students with a safe method of raising funds for their local chapter and helping to provide additional opportunities for Student Agriculture Experiences, aka SAE’s.

OUTSKIRTS [.COM] was founded by Bobby Cabrera, owner and Publisher of Ag Source Magazine. Bobby was raised outside the small, rural town of Tulare, California, literally on the outskirts of town. At an early age he worked at his Dad’s tractor repair shop. Bobby’s hands on experience in the family business taught him not only the value of hard work but also how to reap the benefits of bringing together the buyers & sellers of farm equipment. It is this experience that gave him the idea to start a magazine that would accomplish the goal of bringing rural California buyers & sellers together. For more than 25 years Ag Source Magazine has been the largest printed publication to serve the agriculture and farming communities in California. The February 2021 issue was 620 pages.

As a successful magazine publisher, what inspired you to start OUTSKIRTS [.COM] ?

Ag Source Magazine, as a printed publication, has proven its 25 year track record of success and growth but we needed a solution with unique, updated technology to make a strong entrance into the new era of the 21st century. A solution that would enhance the stability, relationships & longevity of the magazine along with our family legacy. The result is OUTSKIRTS.com With the addition of OUTSKIRTS to the mix we have the best of both advertising worlds, print and online.

How long did it take to make OUTSKIRTS a reality? From the time you first had the idea to the time the business officially launched?

I began planning the Outskirts concept in 2018. But, the seed for the idea goes back to the mid 90’s when I had the idea for a fax-on-demand advertising system, even before I even started Ag Source Magazine in 1996. It’s something that’s always been on my mind but the timing never felt right. Now, with current technology, the timing was perfect for a strategy that taps local, rural lifestyle markets. A different strategy from Ag Source Magazine which taps California’s professional agricultural market and help to strengthen the local community.

Where do you see the future of rural America and the agriculture & farming industries in 5 to 10 years?

I am highly optimistic for a vibrant agriculture farming future. I am 100% committed to rural America and enjoy doing what I can to ensure its continued success and strong, local communities.

How will OUTSKIRTS help to play a part in that future?

Rural America needs both leaders and cheer leaders to help it move forward with encouragement and strength. I think OUTSKIRTS does a great job of fulfilling both of those roles.

HOW OUTSKIRTS HELPS LOCAL BUSINESSES: It showcases the products & services of local business to their qualified customers in both the local and extended communities. It’s a completely new way for business owners, to reach ranchers, farmers, outskirts livin’ do-it-yourselfers and outdoor weekend warriors.

It’s primary benefits to businesses include: Boosting customer phone calls, increased website traffic and increasing walk-in traffic to local business.

To kick off our California launch, we’re giving 2 months of Free advertising to any person or business who signs up. There’s no catch, no credit card needed, all they need to do is answer a few basic questions, snap some photos that showcase their business and we’ll do all the rest.

OUTSKIRTS offers 4 different types of ads to it’s customers; Photo Ads, Promotional, Storefront Profile and VIP ads for Ag Source Magazine customers. There are also local, FFA event and community promotional announcements that run within the regular feed at no charge.

How do the FFA students & chapters benefit from their relationship with OUTSKIRTS?

We see these students in FFA as the future of rural America, the next business owners and managers. There are currently 95,000 FFA students in the California and 760,000 students in the US who get some type of vocational experience in FFA. And the numbers are growing fast. We are committed to help provide solutions which help to strengthen both the financial and educational components of FFA. The fundraising and Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s), made possible by OUTSKIRTS to FFA are completely new and unique. No other print or digital advertising company can provide the same benefits to FFA as OUTSKIRTS.

While we’re still in our launch phase, we are providing 2 months of free photo ads to all rural California businesses. For each photo-ad posted, we pledge $1 to their local FFA chapter. The business pays nothing. If they post 100 ads, their FFA chapter gets $100.

In what ways does OUTSKIRTS help to give a voice to rural Californian’s?

We bring a powerful, new type of voice to small towns in rural California that no one else has been able to deliver, especially with the loss of so many small town newspapers. There are a large number of local businesses who need cost effective solutions to get the word out to customers about their unique products and services. We also serve the local farmer who may have a truck to sell and the teenager down the road who is looking to buy a good, used first truck. OUTSKIRTS is the “network” that brings those two together.

What areas are served by OUTSKIRTS?

Currently, we serve all the towns that are outside the urban areas of California. Our partnership with FFA will help to ensure our rapid coverage of the whole state. Once we have California properly situated, we’ll move to launch in the states that are most engaged in FFA such as California. Once those states have successfully launched we’ll look forward to taking the program to all 50 states.

If someone who owns a local business in rural California and would like to learn more about OUTSKIRTS and the offer of 2 months free advertising to support FFA, what should be their next step?

For a business, I’d recommend they visit www.outskirts.com/get-started They can learn more about the program and sign up for a free account with 2 months free advertising. If someone just wants to check out the site, just visit; www.outskirts.com