FACEBOOK FOR FARMERS!

November 16 Workshop: Facebook for Farmers: a Great Marketing and Educational Tool 7:00-9:00 pmAgriculture Building Auditorium Pittsboro, NC Register for this FREE workshop on-line at

http://ceres.cals.ncsu.edu/surveybuilder/Form.cfm?testID=8964 (Note: The workshop is NOT on-line, but the registration is!)

The Chatham County Center of North Carolina Cooperative Extension will offer a workshop entitled Facebook for Farmers: a Great Marketing and Educational Tool as part of its Enhancing Sustainability Series on Monday, November 16, 2009 from 7:00-9:00 pm in the auditorium of the Agriculture Building in Pittsboro. Directions: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/chatham/ag/SustAg/workshopdirections.html

Facebook can be a great tool for farmers who rely on direct marketing. Millions of folks are creating personal profiles on Facebook - did you know it can also be used to set up a business profile? No special software or expertise is required. All you need is access to a computer and the Internet! You can use Facebook to announce a new crop at the farmers' market, announce an event, post photos of things happening on the farm, communicate with your CSA and/or farmers' market customers, and so much more. Farmers' markets and agribusinesses can also use Facebook to communicate with customers! Facebook can be beneficial even to farmers who already have a farm website because Facebook pages are easy to maintain and allow for direct interaction with customers.

One local farmer who has a Facebook page reports that it has really helped with promoting on-farm events, noting that they start receiving reservations within minutes after posting an update. In this workshop we will discuss the many ways you can use Facebook to educate customers, strengthen relationships, and increase sales. Participants will become more familiar with social networking terminology and learn how to use these tools to enhance the sustainability of their business. During the workshop, we will actually create a business profile for a local farm so participants will see all of the steps involved (and how easy it is!).

The workshop will be taught by Neha Shah, Director of Travel and Tourism for the Pittsboro-Siler City Convention & Visitors Bureau, and Debbie Roos, Agricultural Extension Agent for the Chatham County Center of North Carolina Cooperative Extension. Neha won an Innovation in Tourism Award from the Destination Marketing Association of North Carolina for an earlier version of this workshop and her innovative use of Facebook and Twitter for marketing.

This workshop is free and open to farmers, farmers' market vendors/managers, and agribusiness owners. Register for this FREE workshop on-line at

http://ceres.cals.ncsu.edu/surveybuilder/Form.cfm?testID=8964

I am also collecting examples of NC farms that have Facebook pages so if you know of a good one, please let me know! Debbie

Debbie RoosAgricultural Extension Agent Chatham County CenterNorth Carolina Cooperative Extension
919.542.8202
debbie_roos@ncsu.eduwww.growingsmallfarms.org
twitter.com/GrowSmallFarms