Agricultural Experiences and Social Media.

Social media has proven to be one of the most cost efficient and effective tools for promoting important messages to your target consumers. This presentation will discuss how agronomy researchers can use social media to both promote their research and extension programs. We will cover the key features and success factors of using LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat. Additionally, we will look at successful examples of agronomy researchers using these tools to help promote their research and extension programs.

LinkedIn is the best social media tool to bring together business professionals and help everyone become better and more informed in their business circles. Agronomy educators should be thinking about how to grow their following on this platform and using the blog feature to keep everyone up-to-date on current research and programs. Facebook is the most widely-used social media platform and is a great tool to tell a story and depict the benefits of research and educational programs using still images and video. Twitter is a place that people go for quick news and exchanges. It is a great platform for piquing people’s interest about your research and programs and getting them to click on a link to obtain more information. Instagram and Snapchat are newer, quickly growing social media sites popular with younger generations that allow you to show the fun side of your research and programs. Together, these tools can help you bring entirely new audiences to help you grow your enrollment and research following.