Young Farmers told to harness power of social media

Young farmers have been urged to embrace social media to promote agriculture and counter negative publicity in the media.

Attendees of the Agri Forum at the NFYFC convention heard about the potential of social media to inform the general public and promote the British brand.

AHDB chief executive Jane King said young farmers have an important role to play in this respect to help counter the negative attention the agricultural industry receives on a daily basis.

See also: News, photos and video from YFC AGM 2017

Keyboard warriors

She dismissed suggestions that organisations such as AHDB should provide “keyboard warriors” to defend the industry, adding that responding to every attack is neither sustainable nor helpful.

“Why don’t we talk about things before they become negative issues? Social media is the number one weapon we can use in a constructive and thoughtful way,” she said.

“The whole industry needs to own issues that attract attention, such as calf hutches or use of antibiotics.

“I don’t think a set of ‘keyboard warriors’ is the answer. What people want more than anything is to know there is a real person at the end of the keyboard,” she added.

“Let’s use platforms to put authentic messages out there. If the public learns more about agriculture on a daily basis they will understand it.”

Integrity and passion

Alexia Robinson, founder of British Food Fortnight, agreed, saying: “Keyboard warriors are a default mechanism and are fake. If we engage as a community we will do it with integrity and passion.”

Social media guru Simon Haley said having the right strategy was key to success, as without this social media had the potential to be a “huge waste of time”.

“Getting a message direct to the right people is easier than you think. Let’s be clever about how we use analytics to target certain sectors,” he said. “The information needed is provided by these platforms.

“Facebook has been around since 2013, it’s not a fad anymore. If your audience is on snapchat, why wouldn’t you be there?”

Top 5 tips for marketing yourself

• Follow people who use the media platforms effectively to learn tips and tricks
• Go where your audience is
• Separate personal and private accounts, but make sure to show your personality
• Review your settings page on social media; see what is publicly available.
• Social media is a waste of time without the right strategy – make use of analytics tools to target the right audience