The Human Element of Farmers: Sports Obsession & Oscar Dresses

Posts Tagged ‘Twitter’

The Human Element of Farmers: Sports Obsession & Oscar Dresses

Wednesday, March 9th, 2011

~ guest blog post by Zach Hunnicutt

The University of Nebraska is moving to the Big Ten next year. You likely knew that already, and if you follow me on Twitter, I did all I could to drill this information into your eyeballs last June while the whole conference realignment business was at its fever pitch. Because of the magical convergence of GPS autosteering in my tractor, a Blackberry and long days applying fertilizer, I could follow and share all the information the interwebs had to offer about which school was going where and which conferences might collapse. To say I was obsessed would be understating the fact; to say I was annoying wouldn’t be incorrect.

What does this have to do with agvocacy? Everything. Not because Nebraska is a top-notch land grant university whose agricultural research will be greatly aided by entry into the Big Ten, and not because some cutting-edge ag technology made it happen, but because it allowed my followers to see a human element to the farmer behind the smartphone.

Farmer talks Twitter & Commodity Trading CNBC

Zach recently appeared on CNBC to discuss his use of Twitter on the tractor. Next up he will be on a SXSW panel in Austin.

One of the chief aims of agvocates is to reconnect a disconnected public with their food production. At a basic level, this means making sure that people know that milk and eggs aren’t made at the grocery store, that field corn and sweet corn are different, and that somebody has to butcher the meat they’re grilling, to name a few issues (I can’t count the number of times I’ve explained that popcorn isn’t just yellow corn that pops). It also means explaining what we do and why, to clear up misconceptions and give the public a greater understanding of what we’re doing on the farm.

However, we need to remember that we’re not just connecting The Public with The Farm. Social media is about connecting Zach in Giltner with Jesse in New Jersey. Agvocacy becomes most effective when we add that human voice to the farm. For instance, I obsess over sports like a lot of my followers. I deal with the same joys and frustrations of parenting. Somehow, I even got sucked into watching the Oscars (and tweeting about a dress, no less…). Basically, I’m a human being like anyone else, I just work on the production end of the food supply. And once people know Zach the person along with Zach the farmer, I (hopefully) earn a higher level of trust when I talk about agriculture. Just as we trust offline friends to recommend things such as music and restaurants, developing online relationships builds a trust that can make all the difference in sharing your agvocacy story.

So there’s my deeply insightful advice for all you agvocates out there: tweet about your lives. Talk about your favorite music. Obsess over your sports teams. Share what you’re seeing while people-watching in malls and airports (just remember it’s a public forum…and hope that lady with the mullet isn’t on Twitter). Focus on making a human connection with your audience while you’re making an educational connection. And get ready for me to fill your Twitter feeds with Nebraska’s first year of dominating the Big Ten. Go Big Red! (insert picture of MPK vomiting here.)

Zach Hunnicutt is a fifth-generation farmer growing corn, popcorn, and soybeans near Giltner, Nebraska, with his dad, brother and a neighbor. He and his wife have a three-year old and a one-year old who will hopefully be the sixth generation one day. He’s also a proud Nebraska Cornhusker who can’t wait to see Michele’s Spartans come to town in October (MPK would like to note that she’s far more concerned about basketball season since that’s the real sport).

You can find him on Twitter at @zjhunn. He will be part of a panel at South by Southwest Interactive called “Agvocacy 2.0: Adding a Human Voice to the Farm”. Catch Zach’s CNBC five minutes of fame at http://www.cnbc.com/id/41948275.

Tags: Advocacy, Agriculture, agvocacy, Big 10, farm, Farmer, Nebraska, Social Media, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Consumer Trust, Farmer, Farming, Social Media | 5 Comments »

Growing Educated Opinions in FFA Leaders

Friday, February 25th, 2011

If someone had told me – oh, two years ago, let’s say – that social media would play a huge role in my professional career, I probably would have had a good chuckle. You see, I’m going to school to become a teacher. And not just any teacher, of course.

An agriculture education teacher.

Who would think that an ag teacher would use Facebook, Twitter, Skype and YouTube to help their students learn? I mean, come on, ag teachers help kids learn about tractors and soil and plants and animals, right? Not the Internet.

Well, sorry to break it to you, but this future ag teacher is going to shake thing up a bit!

Over the past two years, using social media has reminded me how much I can learn from others inside and outside of the agriculture industry. I never knew organic dairy farmers from Minnesota before social media. I’d never met any type of rancher prior to Twitter. I didn’t know the impact you could have through YouTube. Simply put, I’ve learned that social media is an unbelievably valuable part of the necessary relationships surrounding our food – from the farm to the plate.

So why shouldn’t our students learn about it and learn from it?

As we celebrate National FFA Week, it’s a great time to reflect on the experiences we had as FFA members, how our lives have been impacted by an FFA member or how we can continue to help current FFA members “develop their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success”. Social media fits in perfectly with that mission. I want my students to be able to become leaders who have an educated opinion and voice in online conversations about our food system. I want them to grow in their beliefs and opinions by interacting with others from across the country. I also want them to advance professionally because of the strong connections they were able to make with others through social media.

Those are all opportunities that these technologies have afforded me, and I can only hope that social media will enrich the lives of my students as well – exactly as the FFA mission says.

There’s still a bit of time until I have my own class, though, so for now I’ll continue to work hard to encourage FFA members, alumni and supporters from all over to ‘agvocate’ through social media and hope that you will too. Consider conducting a social media workshop with your local FFA chapter officers or maybe help an advisor get their FFA chapter Facebook page up and running. For many agriculture programs, they’d love to be involved in social media, but are just looking for some assistance. Can you be the one to bring social media to an agriculture program and FFA chapter in your area?

Amanda Sollman is a student at Michigan State University, majoring in Agriscience with concentrations in Education and Communication. Amanda is a former member of the Sanilac FFA Chapter and currently co-moderates #AgEduChat, a bi-weekly Twitter chat focused on agricultural education. You can find her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and at her blog!

MPK sidenote: As a product of the Michigan FFA program, it gives me great pride to have a Spartan student here who once wore the same FFA jacket I did as as state officer. And, before I forget – Go Green! Go White!

Tags: Advocacy, Ag teacher, Agriculture, Facebook, FFA, National FFA Week, Social Media, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Farming, Social Media, Technology | 2 Comments »

Agvocating from a FFA Advisor’s Perspective

Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011

When I first joined Facebook and Twitter it was because it was the “cool” thing to do. I really had no idea what I was getting into. Twitter at first seemed to just be like Facebook’s status updates. I signed up and then went 5-6 months without really using or checking it at all, but then I saw that one of my fraternity brothers was involved with this #AgChat thing and decided to give it another try. In those first couple #AgChats that I participated in, I was amazed. Since that time, I have been hooked.

I’m proud to say that many people in the #AgChat community my friends. I think we all feel this way – especially when it comes to agvocating. We are all there for one another as we try to relay the voice of true agriculture to others,. I know this gives me more confidence to speak out and share my story without worrying about interactions with people who challenge what I do or telling me how agriculture is wrong. When any one of us is getting “attacked” by someone, the #AgChat community will come and help you stand your ground. This is what makes our community stronger every day.

Drew Bender is a second year Agricultural Education instructor in Zanesville, OH. He also helps out on the family farm in Marion, Ohio with crop (soybeans, corn, and wheat) and livestock (market hogs and poultry) enterprises.

Being an Agricultural Education Instructor, I feel like I have to constantly be an advocate for my teaching profession. I not only need to be an advocate for agriculture but also for education and the need to teach kids about agriculture. When I tell my story and let my voice truly be heard, it is not only through the use of social media but mainly in my classroom through our daily lessons.

Unfortunately, Agricultural Education programs seem to be challenged every year. There’s on ongoing question of need and review of effectiveness of the programs in schools. Many programs are discontinued because of schools are no longer able to fund the programs. Other programs are discontinued because they lose the local community support. Many people who have not been in an Agricultural Education program do not understand how teachers put our heart and soul into our programs.

Our school day very often goes beyond the closing bell. We also incorporate an amazing student organization called the National FFA Organization, which provides many different opportunities for our students to get involved. From school trips to Indianapolis, IN for the National FFA Convention or to Washington D.C. for Washington Leadership Conference to competition opportunities for Agriscience Fair and Career Development Events, such as parliamentary procedure. There is a chance to involve for every student.

Teachers are in charge of students during these opportunities and encourage them to excel. One way I have advocated for the Agricultural Education profession is joining with teachers from all over Ohio for our blog called The Wise Owls – Tales from an Ag Ed classroom. This blog gives our side of the story about our profession and offer tips for teachers.

Other than blogging, Twitter has been my main social media tool of choice. By participating in #AgChat, #EdChat, and #AgEduChat, I have built a great Professional Learning Network (PLN) of farmers, agribusiness people, scientists, other educators and many others. While monitoring my Twitter feeds, I am able to take real-world examples and resources to use in my classroom. I have encouraged many of my students to use social media, using agvocacy as an example for a reason why.

Using the social media tools has changed my life and my teaching dramatically and it can do the same for yours too. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and join a chat community. They will welcome you with open arms.

Drew has served as a volunteer on the AgChat Foundation training committee and was a key part of the logistics for the inaugural AgChat Foundation Training Conference. He has since founded #AgEduChat along with Amanda Sollman for discussions about Agricultural Education/FFA Programs. Anyone is welcome to join the discussions on Sunday nights 7-8:30 p.m. EST. You can find Drew on Twitter and Facebook.

Tags: Advocacy, ag education, Agriculture, agvocate, Facebook, farm, National FFA Organization, Social Media, students, teachers, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Motivation, Social Media | No Comments »

Colliding Worlds: Cows, Microphones & Cute Shoes

Friday, February 18th, 2011

Agriculture is interwoven into my personal fabric. This passion led me to the world of professional speaking nearly ten years ago. Anyone can speak, but not everyone delivers the same impact. Continued education about the many facets of a speaking business, building expertise in a given topic area, and mastering the art of presenting a quality program are just a few of the areas expected by the National Speakers Association for professional membership. Some pundits like to make fun of my Certified Speaking Professional designation, but I consider it an honor to be one of less than 10% of professional speakers in the world with a CSP.

Wearing the shoes of a farmer or professional speaker?

Which shoes are you wearing? Realize you likely have different worlds that will intersect - and provide you with an opportunity to share your passion for agriculture.

While I’ve always been very proud to to be a farm girl and have frequently traded in heels from the NSA convention for dairy judging boots - my worlds were segmented. It’s embarrassing for someone who preaches ag advocacy to admit this, but I figured 99.5% of my fellow NSA members had no clue what it was like to work in agriculture and had very different priorities. I was very quiet about my work with other groups of speakers. I’m thankful to have built a successful business around my passion, but being the world’s most brilliant and wealthiest speaker has never been a priority. I speak to serve agriculture.

Fellow ag and food speakers like Jolene Brown, CSP and Donna Manring got me to open up a little bit at NSA events (imagine the hot air in a room of people who talk for a living). Thanks to communities like NSA XY, I connected with speakers who were on a similar journey. My speaking colleagues have taught me that passion translates into any world. Friends like Kim & Jason Kotecki also challenged me to be less defensive about agriculture and asked a lot of questions. After publishing weekly food facts on Facebook in 2008, I started to see other speakers sharing that information and asking questions about claims made by activist groups. The day that Eliz Greene wrote an unsolicited blog post about visiting a modern dairy farm was a real wake-up call about the opportunity that exists to connect these worlds.

Perhaps most importantly, I’ve discovered these speakers are an incredible resource. I’ve seen agvocates hug Scott Ginsberg after he wrote guest blog posts, watched the rousing response when Gina Schreck, CSP was one of the first special guests on #AgChat, have an article in the pipes on how to make smarter use of your time from Neen James, CSP and am excited to announce that Stacey Hanke is writing a guest blog on communicating more effectively. You might be surprised at how interested my speaking friends are in agriculture; there seems to be an intrigue with what we do as stewards of lands and animals.

A note from MPK: my heartfelt thanks to the more than 100 farmers, ranchers and agvocates who helped showcase how much you care to the NSA UnConference.

My two worlds will again intersect this weekend, when I speak at the NSA UNconference about lessons I’ve learned from building a Twitter community as a resource for those in agriculture. It’s a little unnerving to speak to speakers; I even went so far as to make a video of the top 10 reasons to not come to my session. However, I’m excited to showcase the people who are involved in the business of growing food, feed, fuel and fiber. I’ll be starting the workshop with pictures of our cows, cute new shoes and tweetchat on the big screen to showcase the engagement of the ag community.

The intersection of these worlds is a reminder that the opportunity to share your story is likely staring you in the face. I always say that agricultural advocacy isn’t rocket science, but apparently don’t listen to myself. Don’t wait until someone until asks you a question or has misinformation. Put your passion to work – and watch your worlds move closer together, rather than collide.

Tags: #agchat, Agriculture, Food, guest blog post, professional speaker, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Farmer, Food, Motivation, Social Media, Twitter | 4 Comments »

Can Social Media Protect Your Farm’s License to Operate?

Wednesday, February 16th, 2011

~ guest post by DeEtta Bohling

It’s no surprise we live in a changing world. Farmers are up to speed on the latest technology when it comes to tools such as GPS; but what about jumping on the social media bandwagon?

When I began working for Kansas Corn and Grain Sorghum a little over a year ago, my knowledge in agriculture was somewhat limited. I didn’t grow up on a farm or ranch and I don’t have a degree in Ag Communications. A great deal of what I have learned about corn, sorghum, ethanol, and livestock has come from the farmers and ranchers I interact with in person, on Twitter and on Facebook.

DeEtta Bohling is the Communications Specialist for the Kansas Corn Growers Association, Kansas Corn Commission and the Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association

I am not the only one who is forming opinions about agriculture through of social media. Youth and adults, alike, are absorbing the information they receive from social media sites. Studies show that four out of five online Americans are active in some form of social content at least once a month. The question is, are they getting their information from sources like PETA and HSUS or are they being educated by experts in their field, the farmers and ranchers? Today’s social media conversations are direct and concise. Agriculture loses when farmers don’t engage in those conversations.

In January, I had the opportunity to listen to speaker, Gary Maskus, Vice President of No Till on the Plains, Inc. One of the things he said was that agriculture was not a soap opera. Maskus went on to explain that you can’t tune in every three years and expect to be caught up. The same applies to improvements in technology and social media. Do you know what kinds of conversations are taking place regarding your industry?

I have heard all the excuses. “I don’t get it. I’m too old. I don’t have time.” Whatever your excuse, toss it out the window. Social media is changing the way people distribute and receive information. Whether you like it or not, social media will continue to change the way we communicate. Agriculture is missing an opportunity to be proactive if you don’t take the time to learn at least one of the many social media tools. There are all kinds of resources to help you get started in social media. Check out an endless list of resources at: http://www.causematters.com/.

Social media isn’t the end-all, be-all. Reach out to your schools, community organizations and your neighbors. Don’t ever assume that the folks in your rural community understand agriculture. Offer to give presentations, write letters to the editor, and offer to be interviewed by news organizations.

Farmers and ranchers, I challenge you to share your passion and your livelihood with the world. Don’t let your license to operate be taken away, simply because animal activists and environmental groups don’t understand what you do. There’s a great deal of business value in connecting with your consumers. Take the opportunity to share with them.

You can find DeEtta on Twitter at @ksgrains. Originally from a small rural community in southwest Iowa. DeEtta has her degree from Wartburg College in Communication Arts with an emphasis in Public Relations and minors in Leadership and Business. In her free time, Bohling enjoys volunteering with Habitat for Humanity of Franklin County and the 4-H program. She reached a personal goal of completing her first 5K in November, 2009 and is now training for a half marathon. A few of her favorite things include photography, Chinese food, traveling with friends and the Iowa State Fair.

Tags: Advocacy, Agriculture, agvocacy, Facebook, Farmer, Farming, HSUS, PETA, Social Media, Technology, Twitter
Posted in Advocacy, Agriculture, Motivation, Social Media | 2 Comments »