Building Community Is Not a Project, It Is a Process - John Blue. The AgChat Foundation (AgChat.org ) is focused on empowering farmers and ranchers to connect communities through social media platforms. The process of building and sustaining a community is not a project but a process, one that must evolve and adapt. In this session you will learn what engagement approaches have been tried, why partnerships are key, and how to utilize seasonal themes to support community involvement. You will also learn about specific tools (Like DataSift, ThinkUp, and APIs ) to help discover information of value for the community and how the AgChat Foundation evaluates what to use next. From the 2014 National eXtension Conference in Sacramento, California.

1. Building Community
Is Not a Project
It Is a Process
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Good morning,
Welcome to the session
Building Community Is Not a Project, It Is a Process

2. Truffle Media
Ned Arthur, Director of Sales and
Content Development
John Blue, Chief of
Community Creation
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Hi, My name is John Blue and I work at Truffle Media Networks, an agriculture media company focused on agriculture animal
health issues.

3. Thanks to the Extension team
running the National eXtension
Conference/National Extension
Directors and Administrators Joint
Meeting for the opportunity to
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Thanks to the Extension team running the National eXtension Conference/National Extension Directors and Administrators
Joint Meeting for the opportunity to provide you information you can use.

4. Empowering farmers and ranchers to connect
communities through social media platforms.
Wednesday, March 26, 14

5. Why do farmers and
ranchers need social media?
Wednesday, March 26, 14

6. Farming Mythology
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Farms have a mythology: Little House on the Prairie, Charlotte’s Web, Elsie the Cow, Chicken
Little, American Gothic all have implanted in our brain a vision of farms and farming that just
is not true today.

7. Smuggling cheese.
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Cheese smuggling from the US to Canada created this image of dairy that probably confused
many people.

8. PETA, HSUS, Mercy for Animals portray
any use of animals in any way is always
wrong all the time.
Wednesday, March 26, 14
These organizations receive lots of money and spend tons on advertising, media, and public
relations.

9. Lean Finely Textured Beef
Pink Slime
Wednesday, March 26, 14
ABC worked hard to create a story about lean finely textured beef.

10. Food safety in the news implies all food of
same type is now bad.
Wednesday, March 26, 14
When there is a bad burrito, cantaloupe, or spinach, consumers react by not buying anything
fresh or ag related.

11. Consumer observations of products in the
stores not always as they seem.
Wednesday, March 26, 14
People think organic is better for you so product companies will work on creating a food label
to fit. People feel better without hormones or antibiotics in their food so product companies
will create packaging to fit.

12. Science to advance growing more foods is opposed
by people wanting to not have science based
approach to growing food.
Wednesday, March 26, 14

13. What is Agriculture?
Wednesday, March 26, 14
What is agriculture?
Some traditional views are that it’s all about
growing corn, soybeans, cattle, chickens, and pigs.

14. Wednesday, March 26, 14
But agriculture is more than just growing
corn, soybeans, cattle, chickens, and pigs.

15. Wednesday, March 26, 14
There are many players in agriculture beyond the farm.
Farm products are transformed into various food products
delivered through a variety of outlets.

16. Wednesday, March 26, 14
And there are many constituents groups representing
the players in agriculture across a wide ecosystem.

17. US Population
Number of
US farmers
Wednesday, March 26, 14
farmers only represent ~1.5% of the US population.

18. Everyone eats
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Everyone eats

19. Wednesday, March 26, 14

20. Why: To empower farmers and ranchers to connect
communities through social media platforms.
Action: Training events, webinars to teach, share interviews of
farmers and ranchers, run campaigns tied to dates/events,
weekly chats, speak at events.
http://agchat.org/
Wednesday, March 26, 14
AgChat got its start as an experiment on Twitter, creating a Twitter chat around food and
agriculture. It evolved into a group of farmers and ranchers who wanted to help spread the
word on how to use social media to bring agriculture’s voice to a larger audience.

21. Why: with less than 2% of the US population actually
growing food, there is a disconnect to understanding
who does produce food.
Action: create a campaign on Twitter around #FoodThanks,
utilize a landing page to share info on how to participate,
include Twibbon on Twitter avatars, and talk with people to
encourage them to blog / thank farmers for our food.
http://foodthanks.com/
Wednesday, March 26, 14

22. Who are some Ag Rockstars?
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23. #oink
#moo
Organize ThankAFarmer
#FoodThanks
#FoodD
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24. Educate
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25. 140 Conferences
Opening up
their farms
Spread the word
Regular opportunities
to share
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26. Wednesday, March 26, 14

27. Under The Hood
Bring volunteers/partners
together to help
with programming,
training, & outreach.
Wednesday, March 26, 14

28. Under The Hood
Look at data
to help assess
ecosystem
Wednesday, March 26, 14

29. Under The Hood
Provide community
space for Q&A,
support, and
comments.
Wednesday, March 26, 14

30. Empowering farmers and ranchers to connect
communities through social media platforms.
https://www.facebook.com/AgChatFoundation
https://twitter.com/agchatfound
https://twitter.com/agchat
http://agchat.org/austin
Wednesday, March 26, 14

31. Thanks to the Extension team
running the National eXtension
Conference/National Extension
Directors and Administrators Joint
Meeting for the opportunity to
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Thanks to the Extension team running the National eXtension Conference/National Extension Directors and Administrators
Joint Meeting for the opportunity to provide you information you can use.

32. Contact Information
info@TruffleMedia.com
@TruffleMedia
TruffleMedia.com/Facebook
(877) 558-7833
TruffleMedia.com
Wednesday, March 26, 14
Contact Truffle via Phone: (877) 558-7833, Twitter: @TruffleMedia, Facebook: TruffleMedia.com/Facebook, and web:
TruffleMedia.com.