Put Yourself Out There

Social media is loud. Everyone is certain they have the right opinion, and they are all too excited to share that opinion, loudly. As agriculturalists, it is vital to find a way to rise above the noise without shouting at people. Social media can be divisive, and it should be the goal to have accurate agricultural information out there without causing more division. This may not feel easily to accomplish when certain agricultural topics have been turned emotional by some. To guide consumers to accurate, non-emotional information about agriculture, we must begin by building relationships and making people feel a connection to farmers as individuals and with the agriculture community.

To build relationships, people must be able to recognize your voice as trusted, which means you must know who you are and how to present yourself as a reachable professional in this space.

A sure way to do this is by knowing how to present yourself to the online world, starting with crafting your personal brand. A professional online brand is more curated than your current personal page. To have a professional, trusted presence online, it is important to create a consistent space with a respectful voice. This does not mean that content must be only dry and educational – in fact it should be the opposite. Share fun and funny moments. Be real. Be authentic. Show consumers who you are and what is important to you.

The goal with building your brand and gathering a following, is that consumers now think of your name first on a certain topic and check your page for the latest updates. In reality, you cannot be everything to everyone so pick an audience you want to reach and learn what makes them tick. How do they consume news? How do they talk to each other? What social media platforms are they on? How do they like to be entertained? What is trending in their own lives? Use all this knowledge to make yourself someone consumers want to turn to because it feels like you are talking right to them about things they want to know about – and you are. Because you care about them and you care about agriculture. And you care about helping these consumers, now your followers, find their own connection to agriculture.

There is a balance in sharing information loud enough to be heard, but gentle enough, and interesting enough that people will want to listen.

Once you have established your brand and start to gain followers, it is time to talk directly to the audience you have been working hard to get in front of. Charm followers to draw them in. Share your version of a relevant funny meme or share a day in the life of what you do. Then find your voice and share factual, educational information about topics that are important to you and that you know you are an expert on. Then charm some more to keep them interested in you. Then you engage some more. Charm. Engage. Charm. Engage. Before you know it, you are charming and engaging them in the same sentence and they may not even recognize it, but that is what influencing is. It’s like early dating – be yourself but be aware of how the other person in front of you is responding. Adjust the way you tell stories to get that second date if you have to. Don’t be fake, just be your charming self. Soon your online brand will be known among the masses and you will be a vital part in engaging consumers on important modern agricultural topics and sharing your story of Illinois agriculture.