Dairy farmer Andrew Campbell explains how it only takes one minute a day to have your voice heard.
We had the pleasure of having Andrew Campbell, “The Social Farmer”, speak at this year’s BC Dairy Industry Conference. Andrew, being a dairy farmer himself, enthusiastically spoke to others on how we can improve our brand and build a stronger voice through the use of social media.
Social media can be overwhelming with all the options, including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, Instagram and Pinterest. The key for selecting which network works best for you has a lot to do with your target audience. As Facebook may not be the best way to connect with other producers, it is a great way to reach out to consumers. On the other hand, Twitter conversations spread like wildfire. Twitter can be used to advocate and start discussions with anyone from industry to political figures. And if you’re passionate about a discussion and want to expand passed 140 characters, creating and linking to a blog is a great way to educate people.
Andrew reminded us that it only takes one minute a day to make a difference. But the one minute that may go badly in your day is not the minute you want to be tweeting about! Tying in farm facts, emotions, or even a snapshot of the sunrise, are really the moments we want to be sharing. At the end of the day, people trust farmers and by collectively using our voice through social media, the story can be heard from our perspective.
Lastly, don’t forget to plan what you want to say before you say it, track your popular posts, think before you “tweet”, and be consistent so your audience knows what to expect.
In the words of the social farmer, “let’s get at it”!
