Social media is kind of like a basement. When it’s filled with clutter, it’s a place you want to avoid. But when the junk is cleared out, you like to hang out there.
Today in agriculture, we are starting to see much wider use of social media by farmers and producers as younger generations begin to take over. According to a recent study by Connectiv, 40% of farmers 35 and younger are engaged in social media. When using social media for marketing in agriculture, you have the power to cut through the clutter and create a go-to space to connect with farmers. All it takes is a willingness to add the wow factor. Try these top 10 tips:
1. Remember--it’s not about you; it’s about your audience.
People are drowning in information and starving for knowledge. Social media posts shouldn’t be self-serving advertisements. What does your audience care about? Posts with the wow factor spark conversations that interest your target audience.
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2. Grab attention.
Scary but true—the human attention span has supposedly dropped to a mere 8 seconds, a second shorter than a goldfish’s attention span! To grab attention, understand the factors that motivate people:
- Make money
- Save money
- Save time
- Be comfortable
- Gain knowledge
- Be healthy
- Enjoy greater convenience
- Make work easier
- Be appreciated
Knowing this, you’d never accept this real-life example: “In an effort to highlight competitive salaries and benefits in the pork industry, a recent compensation and human resource practices survey was conducted by AgCareers.com.”
Remember how money is a motivator? Try this instead: “Want to earn $40,000 to $60,000 a year and enjoy the advantages of rural living? According to a recent study by AgCareers.com, you can as a swine farm manager.”
3. Put the good stuff up front.
Grabbing attention means spending 95 cents of your dollar on the lead sentence. Look for ways to surprise or intrigue the reader. This tip works for social media posts, e-newsletter subject lines, titles and more. Even if your information is much more detailed than a social media post, write teasers that encourage your readers to click through to your company’s website or blog with the complete story. Here are some examples:
- Want to know the 5 marketing must-haves you can't afford to ignore?
- Enjoy more peace of mind when you cut these 10 useless items from your to-do list.
- What’s zapping your productivity? Ditch these 3 distractions.
4. Add value.
Put yourself in your readers’ shoes. What tips would make your life easier? What stories would be fun to share with your colleagues, friends or family? Social media posts with the wow factor help your audience learn something new, give them an interesting tidbit of information or offer helpful hints that make your readers’ lives better.
5. Timing is everything.
Social media is a real-time environment. Consider pegging your posts to a news hook or current event. Also, avoid sales pitches. Hard sells are a guaranteed way to turn off followers.
6. Make it personal.
Instead of writing to a nameless, faceless audience, envision a specific person you want to reach. Imagine you are talking to him or her, face to face.
7. Write short.
Your first line must be compelling. This usually works best when you’re concise and leave a little mystery. Let’s say you open with, “It had to happen.” Perhaps your post starts, “There’s a quiet revolution going on.” Now you’ve captured their attention.
8. Show and tell.
Social media posts with relevant images snag 94% more views than content without images, according to the marketing firm HubSpot. Research also reveals that when people hear information, they're likely to remember only 10% of it three days later. If a relevant image is paired with that same information, however, people retain 65% of the information three days later.
9. Include hard numbers.
When you add numbers to prove how your solution makes your reader’s life better, you’ve just added the wow factor—and credibility—to your social media posts. Example: Wish you could save $50 a month? You can when you switch to our service. Think of what you could do with that extra money!
10. Don’t forget the call to action.
If you want people to do something (call for more details, visit your website, etc.) specifically tell them what action to take. Provide relevant links and contact information. Also, ask readers to share your post. When you add the wow factor, it’s easier to keep the momentum going.
Post Source Here: Beginners Guide to Social Media Marketing in Agriculture
In today’s world, video is a key part of content marketing in agriculture. Video is everywhere. It’s accessible. It’s engaging. And, it’s surprisingly easy to create.
