20 pages., via online journal., For over 70 years the use of opinion leaders in a two-step communication process has been employed and validated. However, despite the accepted importance of communicating with opinion leaders as a means to cascade information to opinion leaders’ networks of influence there have been few empirical studies specifically examining agricultural and natural resource opinion leader communication channel preferences, particularly from an audience segmentation perspective. The results reported in the study capitalize on previous research data examined from a unique perspective. Specifically, communication channel preferences were analyzed according to opinion leader self-reported demographic categories serving as audience segments. Associations between sex, age, level of employment, level of education and geographical region and communication channel preference were analyzed. The results of the study are descriptive and foundational in nature. Overall, the results indicate a dedicated web page or blog is the most preferred communication channel across all audience segments and conference calls are the least preferred communication channel across the majority of audience segments. The Facebook group communication channel had the most variability between audience segments and the LinkedIn group communicational channel had the largest observed effect sizes among audience segments.
Villar, Ricarda B. (author), Grande, Elmer Harold O. (author), Sandoval, Robert Jr. (author), Fadri-Francisco, Rosa Pilipinas (author), Suva, Madeline M. (author), Barroga-Jamias, Serlie (author), Custodio, Pamela A. (author), Mercado, Heidi Daniela L. (author), and Department of Development Journalism, College of Development Communication, University of the Philippines at Los Banos
Format:
Report
Publication Date:
2011-12
Published:
Philippines
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 186 Document Number: D00695
16 pages, Social media are currently not only used for communication between individuals but an increasing number of companies use these means as simple and fast sales and communication channels. The importance of communication with consumers through social networks, such as Facebook, is essential in today's marketplace for small businesses, for which this tool is one of the cheapest alternatives to communicating and selling products. This trend did not escape agriculture-specific local farmers who process fresh local products. The study's objective is to highlight the importance of social media communication in the agri-food sector, specifically in the sub-sector of local fresh products, as well as to determine which consumers are most interested in local products from farmers communicated through Facebook. We conducted the research using our Facebook page called Ours-Yours (in Slovak Naše-Vaše). This account was created for research purposes and has a clearly defined objective of supporting and promoting local fresh products from small Slovak farmers. Research involved 42 small farms that sell fresh local dairy products. From these farmers we discovered what form of marketing communication they had used in the past. Afterwards, we visited eight selected farms, took professional photos of their products, and promoted them under one brand using our Facebook page Ours- Yours (Naše-Vaše). The methodology of the research was based on an analysis of Facebook posts, which were visualised, uniformly graphically processed photographs of the products. Contributions were advertised on radio located 50 kilometres from the farms to ensure local marketing of the products. We measured demographic factors (gender and age) and users' interaction with individual posts. Research has shown that women between the ages of 45 -- 64, who follow Facebook mostly from their mobile phones, are most interested in Facebook posts with local fresh products (and information about them)
Souza-Monteiro, D. (author), Hooker, Neal (author), and School of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Newcastle University, Newcastle, United Kingdom
The John Glenn College of Public Affairs, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2017
Published:
United Kingdom: Emerald Group Publishing Ltd., Bingley, UK.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 162 Document Number: D08103
12 pages, via online journal, This study, underpinned by the Resource-Based View and its association with the Relational View, contributes to the existing cross-disciplinary literature involving economic geography, tourism and marketing by extending the current understanding of the relationship between firms' value co-creation activities and sales performance in the context of rural wine producing firms. Specifically, by investigating how a firm's competitor orientation (possessing and acting upon knowledge of competitors) affects the relationship between firms' capabilities to engage in value co-creation activities and sales performance. This investigation utilises a multi-level qualitative investigation within small-to-medium-sized, New Zealand wine producers engaging in various value co-creation activities (wine hospitality and tourism such as accommodation and restaurants through to wine sales, including at cellar doors). The methods employed involved 40 interviews across 20 businesses; observations of cellar door employees in all 20 firms; and collection of archival data. The findings reveal that by having a high degree of a competitor orientation, the enhanced value co-creation activities can help individual companies improve sales performance and support cluster sustainability, including via repeat tourism. However, results vary among competing businesses based on the product-markets served, where illustrations of potential tensions highlight the need for the management of complementary relationships, within and across clusters (the latter typically being to serve overseas markets). This study consequently offers new unique insights that explain strategies affecting not just an individual firm's performance, but also, the sustainability of other businesses.
