I’ve got questions. So do 70 million others.

Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category

I’ve got questions. So do 70 million others.

Thursday, December 8th, 2011

Generation Y has left quite the mark on our society – haven’t we?

For those of you who just clicked on the link above- yes, I just cited Wikipedia. And yes, I can do that because I am Generation Y. I’m independent. I make my own rules. Sometimes I follow the rules of those that I respect highly. Furthermore, I’m both “high-performance and high-maintenance,” as this USA Today article put it.

If you aren’t one of us, we’re easy to spot. Harry Potter was our Peter Pan. Eminem is our comeback kid and the names Blink-182, Britney Spears and Creed all have a special place in our hearts.

But that’s all in the past now. What does a Gen Yer like me do now that Britney’s back at the gym and Harry Potter has come to an end? I do just what everyone else does. I juggle a career in agriculture, a husband, a house, time at the gym, volunteering, spending time online and whatever else I need to do.

While I don’t spend every second online like some of our youngest Gen Yers, it’s a part of my life I couldn’t live without and it has hugely impacted my “agvocacy”, advocating for agriculture. Aside from agvocacy, it’s my direct link to answering questions, a lip-smacking recipe for dinner and a community of people who care about me. I explore topics that interest me on blogs, Google, Facebook and Twitter. I’m always looking for new ways, like Pinterest or Google+, to organize my overload of information. But to be honest, I don’t have the time to get to know technology or every topic as good as I should.

So what do I do? I rely on an online network of people I’ve built to provide me with trustworthy information. I seek out blogs that I trust, people on Twitter I’ve had meaningful conversations with, and webpages or Facebook pages that give me a glimpse into things I don’t understand.

Most recently, I became involved with a group of Rockin’ Rural Women that are on both Twitter and Facebook. There are about 800 of us nationwide. We come together to celebrate all things are rural- our livelihoods, our dreams, our values. Simply put, you don’t need to be a cowgirl but do you need to love dirt under your fingernails. Last week we had a chat on Facebook and Twitter about holiday stress and how we (as women) de-stress. It’s always a great time. Such good people. Such good prizes.

So what does this mean to you? To me? To agvocacy?

We need to consider taking time to break out of our everyday routines and to be a part of online relationships- not just conversations. The relationships need to be honest, transparent and meaningful, just like offline relationships are.

Twitter is a great place to do this type of online relationship building. While there millions of more people still on MySpace compared to those of us on Twitter, I have found Twitter to be a highly influential and engaged place to build relationships. Pick a TV show, hobby or interest you enjoy and follow the Twitter hashtag. Connect with a few new people every week and grow those relationships. This will allow you to go “beyond the choir” that you engage with daily or weekly and truly reach people outside of agriculture circle you already know well.

Do you blog? Find a new blog or two that shares a common interest or hobby and comment on those blogs. Establish a relationship with the blogger and invite them to read your blog. It’s amazing how these connections can go so deep.

I tend to find, when a non-agriculture person I have built a relationship with online has a question about food or farming, they often will think of me as a resource to go to with their question. It’s just one way my agvocacy impacts the online relationships I have built.

Take it from a Gen Yer, I understand it’s easy to get caught in our own world and our own circles- days are long, time is short, and even the lowest maintenance, “high-maintenance Gen Yer” has too many things to do. But there are 70 million of us Gen Yers out there and we all have questions about everything from fashion to food. Do you want to help answer?

Jodi Oleen is a thirty-something Floridian-turned-Kansan. She is recently married and works for a farmer led organization in The Little Apple. She has a undergraduate degree in Animal Science with an Equine Option and a Master’s degree in Food and Resource Economics, both from University of Florida. Find her on Twitter or Facebook, or check out mycousinisvegan.wordpress.com.

Tags: Advocacy, Agriculture, agvocacy, Facebook, Food, Generation Y, Social Media, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Social Media, Technology | 2 Comments »

Leveraging the spirit of agvocacy; it’s bigger than you!

Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

How many voices in the conversation?

The last month has been spent on leveraging efforts to connect farm and food through the AgChat Foundation’s Agvocacy 2.0 Conference. 115 farmers, ranchers and ag professionals from the U.S. and Canada were invited to take part in ACFC11 at the end of August. Not a huge number. But I figure they each are capable of reaching at least 1,000 people with their own story. Which means the reach will likely be at least 115,000 – far more than any singular voice (unless you sing or dance, which I don’t).

One such case – a small producer and processor in Kentucky. We asked Amy Sipes to be a part of ACFC11 panel on how to reach beyond agriculture. She expressed a great deal of concern about having to speak in front of people – many can relate to this fear. But she really wanted to help other agvocates, so she took the risk (with a few promises on my part). I was so proud of her as a very well-spoken, intelligent woman stood on stage. She brought wonderful authenticity and communicated so effectively from both a processor’s and producer’s viewpoint. I didn’t ask her, but am certain that her presentation would never had happened without the confidence social media has given her. That’s the power of the community in action. Watch her and see what you think…I KNOW she touched a lot of hearts that day in Nashville (and you might be surprised at what she has to say).

If you want more, you can follow Amy on Twitter – and get some humor in the mix. Another person who always brings levity to any conversation is the CNN-famous Steve Tucker from the middle-of-nowhere Nebraska. After hundreds of conversations, I finally met Tykerman1 (and hugged him instead of shaking his hand). A few months ago, I noticed he was in NYC and wondered what a farmer was doing there and tweeting about Central Park when he should have been in the field. As you can see in this clip, he apparently was the comedian of the New York 140 Conference - and did an incredible job of bringing agriculture top-of-mind in a very personable way.

There were many highlights from ACFC11 – from having a refreshing few minutes sitting with a newer agvocate to teach him Twitter (shout out to @SDgriller) to laughing with friends while listening to nails-on-the-chalkboard music in the evening hours. One highlight was the panel of mom bloggers we brought in; these ladies really cemented the necessity of the conversation – and the difficulty agriculture has in hearing “outside” perspectives without getting defensive. Another – and the most meaningful time I spent at the conference – was a small group discussion on how to lead people to social media. We went well beyond the allotted time, simply talking and exchanging ideas about the challenges of getting the hard-headed ag community to understand this “new” tool. It was a great reminder of the spirit of agvocacy and the diverse interests we have in agriculture – and the power of us coming together!

Thanks to Amanda Sollman, Kathy Swift, John Blue, Drew Bender, Jeff Fowle, Ryan Weeks, Mace Thornton, Dan Toland & Chris Raines (not pictured) for serving on the Training Committee.

Hundreds of volunteer hours made that happen…a training committee that planned the entire conference virtually. You can see we like to have a bit of fun – but I hope those involved will take a moment to thank them for all of the time and talent they invested. Over 25 speakers and moderators volunteered their time and talent to deliver best-in-the business content and many others contributed so graciously.

In the last decade, my role in agricultural advocacy has changed from being in front of the pack to trying to “herd” agricultural advocates in the same general direction. This conference was a good reminder of that; empowering people with the right tools and engaging a community is so much bigger than any one individual.

It’s exciting to see agvocates come into their own, step out of their comfort zone, find a place they can really make an impact – and then help others do the same. That leads to more people talking about food and farm – and everything in between – which is a far larger conversation than I could have accomplished. How are you leveraging your efforts?

Tags: ACFC11, Advocacy, AgChat Foundation, agricutlure, Agvocacy 2.0 Conference, agvocate, farm, Food
Posted in Agriculture, Farmer, Food, Moms, Motivation, Social Media, Technology | 4 Comments »

Insider’s Scoop on John Deere & Social Media

Wednesday, June 8th, 2011

~ guest blog post by Tara Saylor Litzenberger

I should probably start this post with a confession: even though many of you probably know me as “that gal from John Deere on Twitter,” social media is not part of my day job at John Deere. My day job is Internal Communications, which involves everything from video shoots to presentations, but almost exclusively for other employees. I blog (and Tweet and Facebook and even Gowalla) because I love my job and I love telling stories.

Still, being involved in social media while working for a company the size of John Deere is different than what many other agvocates do. For one thing, I don’t get to spend as much time around cows and tractors as many of you do. And yes, there are company rules and policies that I have to follow. But mostly, it’s a lot of fun. I get to connect with great people in nerdy new ways.

So what’s it like working for John Deere in the online era?

We have a great Social Media policy.
Short version: be transparent, don’t lie, follow communication policies and don’t be a jerk. The communication guidelines are the same ones I’d be following if I met you at a farm show, so that’s not hard to do. I do have to tack a disclaimer on posts* to clarify that I’m sharing my views, but that’s easy to do. There are people within the company who monitor brand activity online and they’re supportive of what I do.

We learn from you.
Although many people at John Deere do have an ag background, there are others who don’t know much about farming. Social media makes it easier than ever for employees to understand the more about agriculture, from YouTube videos of equipment in action to hashtags for current events.

We’re using social media around the world.
John Deere has official Twitter accounts in Brazil and Mexico, and we have a German Facebook page. I love seeing them, even if I need Google translate to tell me what’s going on.

We’ll keep growing from here.
I know that there are still things that we could do more effectively online. I recently heard Jeremiah Owyang of the Altimeter group say that most companies have been engaged in Social Media for less than five years. Considering that we’ve probably been running print ads for well over 150 years, I don’t feel too bad that we haven’t got all the answers online. And the best part is that we’re here and connecting with you to figure out how to make it happen.

Speaking of connecting and learning from you, I share stories of how farmers use social media with other people in the company. I’d love to hear your stories in the comments.

*including this guest post. These are my own opinions and views and may not represent or reflect the opinions or views of John Deere.

Tara Saylor Litzenberger is an all-around nerd who works in Corporate Communicatons at John Deere. She grew up on a small farm in Pennsylvania, married a country boy from Florida and now regularly spends time in three different Midwestern states. She shares her journey on her blog, Adventures in Ag.

Tags: Agriculture, agvocate, John Deere, Social Media, social media policy, Technology, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Farmer, Social Media, Technology | 3 Comments »

Agvocating: Quick, Short & to the Point

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011

~ guest blog post by Wayne Black

Just over a year ago my wife (@JenniLeeBlack) convinced me I should be involved with social media. Not being a fan of Facebook, I was skeptical. For me it had to be quick, short and to the point. Then I read about Twitter. A limit of 140 characters it suited my style.

I spent about two weeks reading up on Twitter before starting. I would encourage everyone to do the same thing. Since then I have found many websites that have it summed up on one page or in one picture. A great example of this is one developed by Ogilvy’s 360 Degree Digital Influence group: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27132029@N06/3022781883/

Wayne is an avid agvocate for agriculture through both social media and with his involvement with various agriculture groups.

I have learned a lot from being on Twitter. The first is that we, as farmers, have to be involved with social media. It doesn’t really matter whether it is Facebook, YouTube, Twitter or whatever the platform of the day is. There is a conversation going on. We must be involved.

The second thing I’ve learned is no matter what you do, each message is more effective if you “market” that message to the right people. I do that by using hashtags or #.

Hashtags are a sales pitch for each tweet I send and the most effective for getting noticed. People search out tweets of interest by searching hashtags. One that got me involved with a lot of new followers and finding new people to follow was #agchat. Since then I have discovered other hashtags that interest me such as #food, #moo, #corn and other #agriculture identifiers. Locally we have developed #HuronCty (for our Huron County), #Ontag (Ontario Agriculture) and #GGA (a part of Huron County termed Greater Goderich Area). There are no limits to hashtags; they can be whatever you’d like and can help you find the conversations you need to be involved with.

And finally, the biggest reason to be on Twitter or any type of Social Media is for advocating (or in my case, agvocating). Twitter has offered me an excellent venue for agvocating for Ontario Agriculture. It has generated a lot of discussion with politicos, foodies, urbanites and also fellow farmers. My personal use has generated media articles that promote the positive aspects of agriculture and farming in Rural Ontario. People who read my tweets can place a name to a person which adds value to the message.

The joy of Twitter is that it gives the opportunity to get engaged in a conversation if an issue comes up. You have the opportunity to learn why they have created the negative or positive thought about agriculture. You can walk through a process with the person on the other side to get them engaged in conversation, rather than preaching or appearing to sell the idea. A lot of times people just want to hear from a farmer. They want to hear what my farm practices are. Understanding why I do what I do gives them further depth to knowing and the ability to question the negative aspects.

Social media allows me as a farmer to become engaged with non-farmers and politicos. We need to become engaged in conversation to get our story out, make it believable and to be truthful. Twitter allows me to do that from where ever I am, in the field, in the barn, in the Boardroom or in my home. People are engaged on the go, even in Rural Ontario.

You may think social media is not for you, but I encourage you to look around. Most likely you’ll find a conversation going on that you’ll want to weigh in on. Pick a platform and speak up. Let your voice be heard.

Who is @waynekblack?

Wayne is a cash crop farmer with a passion for agriculture. He also works with his father on the original farm that has been in the family since before 1867. He is on the Board of Directors for the Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Agricultural Adaptation Council. Locally he is engaged with various Committees working on Economic Development opportunities and sustainability efforts. In his spare time, he enjoys life with his wonderful wife & 3 amazing children (http://abearaladybugandapeanut.wordpress.com).

Tags: Advocacy, Agriculture, agvocacy, Facebook, Farmer, Social Media, Technology, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Social Media, Technology | 1 Comment »

Communicating with Impact & Influence

Thursday, March 17th, 2011

The Lost Art of Face-to-Face Communications

~ guest blog post by Stacey Hanke

Face to face communications vs. electronic

Are you losing the ability to connect in real life?

Communicating meaningfully is becoming more difficult than ever before. While technology has created an ever increasing number of ways to communicate, many people are now insulated and protected. Consequently we’re losing the skills and abilities to communicating in the most influential way – face to face.

There’s a real danger to the maintenance of meaningful communications and personal and professional relationships. If you become overly dependent on email or text messages, you focus on the object, not the person. If you can’t keep the attention of your listener for them to understand your message, you won’t influence them to take action. (*note from MPK – this means that ag folks can’t dump science and ag lingo on our listeners)

Failure to communicate effectively face to face has a phenomenal impact on business and success.

Miscommunication and understanding.
Wasted time.
Loss in profits.
Minimize ability to effectively project trust, confidence, credibility to build relationships.

Communicating face to face with impact and influence requires discipline, and self-awareness. Begin with these eight must-have steps.

Make your conversation count. Everyone has the right to speak. Earn the right to be heard. Think about what you want to say before you say it. Every word counts. Tailor what you say to meet your listener’s needs.
Pay attention by listening for the unspoken emotions. Do not let your eyes dart away since that signals you’re no longer paying attention. Wait to speak only when the person has finished what they want to say. Listen and read their expressions to gain maximum understanding of the why behind their words.
Honor the other person’s time. Prepare and get to the point quickly by speaking in short and concise sentences. Replace your non-words (“uh,” “um,” “so,” “you know … “) with a pause to find your thought. Avoid rambling and cluttering your message with unnecessary points. Ask for a clear and specific action. Don’t take 20 minutes when you only asked for ten.
Prepare for your face-to-face conversation with K.N.O.W.
- K – What does your listener know about your topic?
- N – What does your listener need to know to take the action you want them to take in the time frame you have?
- O – What’s your listener’s opinion about your topic?
- W – Who is your listener? What additional information do you know to tailor your message?
Avoid non-verbal abuse. Your behavior and non-verbal cues are as important as the words you say. Don’t fidget, act nervous or allow your posture to convey uncertainty, insincerity, or dismay.
Be sincere and authentic. Speak in your authentic voice. Be genuine and allow others to see the real you.
Maintain control of the conversation. Be interesting. If you see the signs that you’re no longer the center of attention:
- Your listener begins working on their Blackberry, iPad, IPhone, etc.
- Your listener begins to have side conversations.
- Your listener interrupts you.

Stop. Break the flow. Earn their attention. Get back on track.

Ask for specific feedback about your key points, the manner in which you presented and the way you responded. Ask for balanced feedback about how to improve and immediately begin applying this feedback.

Technology-driven communication will improve if you first focus on improving the most important method first – face-to-face communication.

Stacey Hanke is co-author of the book; Yes You Can! Everything You Need From A To Z To Influence Others To Take Action. She is also the founder of 1^st Impression Consulting, Inc. She helps individuals communicate with impact and influence. Her client list is vast from Coca-Cola, Kohl’s, United States Army, Navy and Air Force, Leo Burnett and the FDA. She has been a featured guest on media outlets including; SmartMoney magazine, Business Week, Lifetime Network, Chicago WGN and WLS-AM. Stacey grew up on a farm in Wisconsin and cherishes the time with her family when she returns to her rural roots. You can find her on Twitter.