Soft Management

Today I had the great pleasure of speaking at the Diversified Agriculture Conference in Layton, Utah.

I met so many nice farmers and ranchers, it was my pleasure to discuss one of my favorite subjects: Social Media!

Below is my Prezi and I made a SWEET handout which is downloadable in PDF format. I've also included my talking points:

Everybody Eats
• This is what we all have in common: Farmers, Hippies, City Slickers, Urban Cowboys
• However, views are distorted because Ag is so removed from consumers

Is There a Disconnect Between Consumers & Farmers?
• Farmers are now <2% of the population
• Does the average consumer know where their food comes from?
• Who’s got some funny stories?
• Homer Simpson Video on: bacon, pork chops & ham
• See how far Ag has come over the years with Monsanto Video

WTF?
• Without The Farmer…There Is No Food!
• If you’re not in it for the money, why do it?
• Farmers work because of: Tradition, Passion, Fun & Price in feeding the world

What’s the Issue?
• There is currently a BATTLE for INFLUENCE on the Internet
• Most of Ag does not even know it’s going on because they’re so busy PRODUCING everyone’s food
• Right now Ag is the Silent Minority

Anti-Ag Groups
• These groups have an AGENDA: Peta, Humane Society, Greenpeace, Farm Sanctuary, Sierra Club
• They have great POWER & INFLUENCE online throughout social media forums. 
• But do they see the big picture? Think about horse harvesting laws?
• They are controlling the image of Ag & making it harder for Ag to feed the world

Is Social Media a Fad?
• So what if Anti-Ag groups are big in Social Media?
• Does this really matter?
• Is it a bubble? Will it go away?

Social Media Stats
• FYI: It’s here to stay
• BTW: the world is going MOBILE
• If you disagree, throw your cell phone in the trash on your way out because Facebook reached 50M users 3x faster than cell phones did

Mass Influence
• Social Media is now the “Great Equalizer”
• This is how Obama won the Whitehouse in 2008 & how his campaign raised over $750M to defeat Clinton and McCain
• This is how Obama will raise $1B in 2012
• Liken Social Media adoption unto adoption of Telegraph: LINCOLN vs. LEE

1. Lincoln used the telegraph, Lee did not
   
2. Lincoln controlled all battles through quick communication with his generals, Lee wrote letters 
   
3. Lincoln nationalized railroads and mobilized troops faster, Lee struggled to keep up and went on the defense
   
4. The North beat the South
   

Old Media
• TV & Newspapers are losing their footing, struggling to adapt, fighting change
• Declining in trust and credibility because they’re really slow compared to news from blogs and social media networks
• Learn about the “New Media” – watc the  AgChat Video

What is #AgChat?
• This is the most important takeaway: Join the Conversation
• From 6-8pm MTN time in Utah
• Tip-toe in first, listen + learn…then share
• Twubs.com/agchat click on the links, read, learn the issues
• Get comfortable and eventually participate!

Now, Tell Your FARM STORY
• This is how we can influence the conversation
• Consumers deserve to have farmers answer their questions about food...right?
• How else can you contribute?
• Farmers know what BS smells like…so DISPEL MYTHS
• Start with ONE Social Media tool and get to work

Thank You

I've found Twitter most useful for professional networking with fellow Cooperative Extension/4-H professionals across the nation. I think I have three friends that are actually on Twitter, so I don't use it to post about my personal life. 

Here's a Prezi I used to teach about networking through Twitter at a recent conference.

Also, I made my handout downloadable below.

Start tweeting, it's really fun! Never in history could a young geek like me converse with nationally recognized CEOs, large corporations, celebrities and really anyone with similar interests from around the world. 

Drop me a line and let me know if you have any questions.

I have shared in Gary Vaynerchuk's conviction for a very long time. He breaks it down:

• The battle of marketing is now going to be individual. We are in the dawn of one-on-one marketing.
  
• How ironic: the internet has brought things back to "small town roots" - most people have forgotten about this and what the world was like before the Internet was in our pockets.
• Businesses are not running the marathon, they're running the sprint. So they fail because they are not worried about the lifetime value of the customer and customer retention.
• Businesses are treating social media like a one night stand, trying to close on the first transaction.

If you haven't already noticed, in today's economy you actually have to do the right thing and care about people...I like how Gary said "It's like the force."