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GROWING YOUR BRAND

MARKETING TOOLS FOR

MS AGRITOURISM & LOCAL FOODS

MARKETING & SOCIAL MEDIA

GUIDE

Mississippi State University Graduate Students

The Stennis Institute of Government and Community Development at Mississippi State University employs Graduate Research Assistants enrolled at Mississippi State University to provide assistance to the Institute to conduct research and to work with Institute staff to conduct a broad scope of work. Funding received by the Stennis Institute is used to provide graduate students with tuition and graduate student stipends, thereby enabling them to pursue graduate level course work at Mississippi State University. These students make a significant and important contribution to all research conducted by the Stennis Institute.

John Harper is from Braxton, Mississippi and graduated from Mendenhall High School in 2007. He

earned an associate’s degree in Business Administration from Copiah‐Lincoln Community College before transferring to Mississippi State University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Political Science. John began his work as a Graduate Research Assistant at the Stennis Institute upon entering the master’s degree program at Mississippi State University. He completed his master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration program in 2013. John is currently pursuing a doctorate degree in Higher Education Leadership to prepare for a career in administration at a college or university.

Kayla Lee‐Hopkins is a native of Brandon, Mississippi and graduated from Northwest Rankin High school in 2007.

Previously, she worked as a Program Support Clerk for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Jackson, Mississippi. Kayla

received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Mississippi State University and graduated summa cum laude in

2011. That year, she subsequently entered graduate level study with the Department of Political

Science and Public Administration at Mississippi State, and it was at this time that she began work as a

Graduate Research Assistant for the Stennis Institute of Government. In 2013, Kayla earned a master’s

degree in Public Policy and Administration in addition to the receiving the award for Outstanding

Graduate Student. Currently, she is in the process of pursuing a doctoral degree in Community College

Leadership from Mississippi State’s Department of Leadership and Foundations. Specifically, her

interests in a higher educational context include research and institutional effectiveness; assessment;

and data analytics, reporting, and governance.

Agritourism Marketing and Branding in Mississippi

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Contents

The Marketing Communications Mix ............................................................................................. 6

The Elements of the Communications Mix ................................................................................. 7

The Integrated Marketing Campaign ............................................................................................ 15

Social Media .............................................................................................................................. 15

The Website .............................................................................................................................. 19

Website Design .......................................................................................................................... 20

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ............................................................................................ 24

Using Social Media in the Landing Page ................................................................................ 24

Blog ............................................................................................................................................ 25

Direct Mail ................................................................................................................................. 25

Email/Enewsletters ................................................................................................................... 26

Direct Mail versus Email ........................................................................................................ 27

Advertising................................................................................................................................. 27

Public Relations ......................................................................................................................... 28

Important Partnership for Promotion Opportunities ............................................................... 30

Market Segmentation and Positioning ......................................................................................... 31

Research about Direct‐to‐Consumer Markets ...................................................................... 32

Research about Agritourists .................................................................................................. 33

Promotional Planning and the Use of Social Media for Events ................................................ 37

Worksheet ..................................................................................................................................... 40

Additional Resources .................................................................................................................... 43

About Farmers’ Market Permits ................................................................................................ 45

About Animal Health and Safety Guidelines ............................................................................. 47

Horse Show Planning Guidelines ............................................................................................... 49

Horse Show Check List .............................................................................................................. 54

Mississippi Media Contact Database ............................................................................................ 57


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Welcome to Growing Your Brand: Marketing Tools for Mississippi Agritourism & Local Foods! During this workshop you will be working towards developing a marketing and branding strategy for your business. The information contained in this workbook is designed to provide you with an overview for developing a brand and using social media to market your products and services within the broader framework of a comprehensive marketing and advertising plan. This workbook provides an introductory overview of the marketing communications mix and contains multiple links to online resources that will further guide you through the process of creating social media content. Customized socio-demographic data specific to your market area will be provided as a separate handout, this data will help you to develop a market segmentation and positioning strategy for the products and/or services your business offers.

Thank you for taking the time to participate in this series of workshops and we look forward to working with you to Grow Your Brand.


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Defining Agritourism:

Agritourism is generally defined as a range of recreational, educational, and other activities and

services provided by farmers and ranchers that are related to agriculture. Agritourism connects

consumers with agricultural heritage, natural resources, or culinary experiences that may take

place on or off the farm or ranch.

Agritourism includes:

On‐farm direct sales (roadside stands, you‐pick, community supported agriculture [CSA])

Off‐farm direct sales (farmers’ markets, fairs, festivals, CSA)

Hospitality or Entertainment services (guided tours, farm/ranch vacations, family

reunions/corporate retreats, farm‐to‐table community or private dining/catering,

hayrides, corn mazes)

Educational experiences (demonstrations or workshops organic/sustainable farming,

natural resource conservation, lessons or training [cooking], and farm‐work and “hands‐

on” experiences)

Outdoor Recreation (fishing, hunting, horseback riding, wildlife photography, field trials)

How Agritourism Fits into your Business

Agritourism can be a primary, supplementary, or complementary business enterprise.1

The primary enterprise — as the primary enterprise, agritourism would be the dominant

activity on your farm. For example, you may decide to open a winery on your farm and invite

guests to spend the day or the weekend tasting wine. As part of the wine tasting package, you

may include overnight lodging in a cottage on your property. You may produce grapes for the

wine on your farm to supplement your wine tasting activities. Because agritourism is the focus

of your investment in the farm and a large share of total revenues, it becomes your primary

enterprise.

A supplementary enterprise — as a supplementary enterprise, agritourism could be a minor

activity that would support the other products on your farm or ranch. For instance, if your

primary enterprise is livestock production, you may decide to invite school groups to your farm

several days a month to learn about your animals and your occupation. Occasionally hosting

guests on your farm would make agritourism a supplementary enterprise to your primary

enterprise if the share of resources invested, management effort needed, and total revenues

were fairly marginal.

1 Excerpted from “Agri‐Tourism” Virginia Cooperative Extension, Publication 310‐003, 2001.


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A complementary enterprise — as a complementary enterprise, agritourism activities would

more equally share the resource and management investments with other enterprises in your

farm or ranch product mix. For example, you may have a fruit or vegetable production

enterprise on your farm. If you were to sell half of your produce to a wholesaler and the

remainder to pick‐your‐own guests on your farm, then the two enterprises (the wholesale

market and the direct market) would be considered complementary enterprises.

Entering the Agritourism Business or Expanding Existing Agritourism Activities

If you are considering entering the agritourism market or trying to expand your existing

agritourism business, begin by evaluating the resources that will be required to achieve your

objective. This will require evaluating the physical, human, financial, marketing, and legal

resources that are available and those that will be required to create, expand, and sustain a

successful business. Factors that must be considered include:

Operational and Management Assets

Human Resources

Business Strategic Planning: Financial planning (business plan, cash flow, profit, and loss)

Risk Assessment, Safety, and Liability

Legal and Regulatory

Marketing Plan: Identify target markets, attract target markets to the enterprise, meet

the needs of target market, and create desire in the target market to return with

repeat business

This session focuses on developing a marketing plan.


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The Marketing Communications Mix

The success of an agritourism business relies heavily upon developing an effective marketing

communications mix. Marketing efforts may be targeted towards a range of different target

audiences that may include: tourists, local consumers, organizations, school field trips,

attendees, exhibitors, participants, sponsors, and advertisers. You will need to select the most

effective strategy to market the products and/or services you will offer and convey the

marketing message effectively to each potential target audience to achieve success.

The marketing communications mix is generally defined as all strategies, tactics, and activities

involved in getting the desired marketing message to intended target markets, regardless of the

media that is used. An effective marketing communication mix will create synergy across all

media to achieve maximum impact. The marketing mix includes advertising, public relations,

direct marketing, sales promotion, personal selling, and digital marketing. The marketing

communications mix plays a critical role in creating awareness and arousing interest in the

products or services your agritourism business offers; it stimulates, motivates, and persuades

customers to visit your agritourism business and/or to purchase the products or services you

offer.

In today’s world, people are inundated with advertising messages from different media such as

television, radio, newspapers, magazines, and online sources. As a result, they tend to screen

out a large part of the information they receive from advertisers and marketers. When a clear,

The Marketing Communication

Mix

Advertising

Public Relations

Direct Marketing

Promotion

Personal Selling

Digital Marketing

Figure 1: The Marketing Communication Mix


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consistent, and compelling message is carefully integrated and coordinated across all of the

elements of the communication mix used to market your products and/or services, this

integrated marketing communication approach is more effective at capturing the attention of

the intended audience, will have greater impact, and is more likely to influence or affect their

behavior.

The Elements of the Communications Mix

Advertising. Advertising is a non‐personal form of paid communication that is delivered

through selected media; the media most commonly used for advertising is television,

radio, newspapers, paid placements on the internet, billboards, magazines, direct mail,

and point of purchase materials. Each media type has strengths, weaknesses, and

different cost structures. Media costs are usually measured in “cost per thousand of

delivered audience” (CPM).

The effectiveness of advertising campaigns is frequently measured by reach and

frequency. Net reach is the percentage of the target audience that is exposed to an

advertising message one or more times during a specific time period (e.g., four weeks).

Net reach is a good measure when the target audience only requires one exposure to

the advertising message or when the objective is to reach as many people as possible;

however, it is not a good measure when a target audience needs to be exposed to an

advertising message more than once for it to be effective. Frequency measures the total

number of times a person or household is exposed to an advertising message.

There are four basic types of advertising: 1) image advertising, 2) advocacy advertising,

3) public service advertising, and 4) product/service oriented advertising.

Image advertising is designed to create a favorable mental picture in the minds of

consumers. Image advertising evokes positive attitudes about the advertised firm,

product, or service; it is usually designed to appeal to people with specific lifestyles

or values. For agritourism, this may mean creating a favorable image of the business

in general and/or creating a favorable image of a specific product, event, or activity.

Although image advertising does not focus on the functional attributes of your

business (i.e. visual appeal, safety, cleanliness, and building amenities), the

functional attributes of the products and services you offer all contribute to the

image of your business and the products and services that you offer. Image must be

integrated and consistent across all the marketing and advertising, from the name of

your business, your business logo, and particularly in the photographic images that

you use in advertising.


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Advocacy advertising is used to support a specific message or cause; it may be

integrated with advertising to promote products or services that you offer and to

promote awareness of a specific issue (e.g. organic, “free range”, sustainable

agriculture, or resource conservation). There are also many services that may be

provided by your agritourism business that provide societal benefits. Examples

include: therapeutic horseback riding programs for autistic children or for military

veterans; hunting programs that promote resource conservation, or cooking

workshops that promote the consumption of healthy fruits and vegetables.

Integrating advocacy messaging with your advertising and/or donating a percentage

of the proceeds of sales may increase consumers’ awareness of the societal benefits

your products and services provide.

Public service advertising focuses on the public welfare. Public service advertising

frequently receives free advertising space or time from the medium in which it is

featured and can be an effective approach to communicating information about the

public benefits of your agritourism products or services. Specific activities or events

being offered at your business may be providing a beneficial public service, be

directed towards a humanitarian cause, or a philosophical ideal that creates

opportunities for sponsorships by a nonprofit institution, business organization, civic

group, or other organization. Public service advertising can be effectively integrated

with advocacy advertising for specific activities; e.g., combining health screenings

with “healthy” cooking demonstrations.

Product/service oriented advertising is focused on the promotion of a specific

product or service.

Direct Marketing is generally considered a form of advertising. The primary forms of

direct marketing are mail, print, and electronic media. In 2011, an estimated $50.1

billion was spent in the U.S. on print direct mail for consumer direct marketing.

The Direct Marketing Association estimates that U.S. marketers spent $83.7 billion for

consumer direct marketing

in 2011 and an additional

$79.3 billion for business‐

to‐business direct

marketing; total spending

on direct marketing was

estimated to be $163.0

billion in 2011. Direct

marketing spending by media category is shown in the table above.


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The Direct Marketing Association Statistical Fact Book provides the following

information on direct mail:

Previous customers of an organization are more likely to respond to direct mail

offers

The average consumer receives 24.7 pieces of mail per week

Among all mail formats, postcards are the most likely to be read

Seventy‐nine percent of households either read or scan advertising mailings sent to

their household

Consumers respond best to timely, relevant information that caters to their specific

needs

Personal Selling is a form of communication with a potential consumer or buyer using

face‐to‐face communication for the purpose of selling a service or product. Personal

selling is an important part of the marketing communications mix; it is one of the most

effective forms of marketing, but it is also time consuming and expensive. Personal

selling allows the message to be specifically targeted and customized to meet the needs

of a particular consumer or buyer, and it allows for immediate feedback. For an

agritourism business, personal selling occurs during every face‐to‐face contact with a

customer. All personnel who are engaged in personal selling must be well trained,

knowledgeable, motivated, and customer oriented.

Depending upon the nature of your business, you may be frequently dealing directly

with customers e.g., a farm stand, you‐pick, or farmers’ market); some agritourism

businesses also market their products or services to commercial customers e.g., local

restaurants, hospitals, or schools. For operations that market to commercial customers,

personal selling will require significantly greater planning, as outline below:

Personal selling is comprised of seven basic steps:

1) Prospecting and qualifying to locate and identify potential customers, and then to

determine if the potential customer is in a position (able, willing, and authorized) to

buy;

2) The pre‐approach consists of researching prospective customers to understand the

needs of a potential customer and what benefits you can offer to the customer,

making sure that customer needs are addressed in any sales literature or

publications. The information in presentation materials should be complete and

comprehensive (how long, how much, how many), and the objective of the sales call

should be clearly established;


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3) The approach is the initial meeting. It includes making a good first impression,

introducing the products and/or services being offered, and striving to develop a

relationship;

4) The presentation includes a complete discussion of the product, the services being

offered, the benefits of the product or service to the buyer, and answering any

questions or concerns the buyer may have. Good presentations must attract the

attention of the buyers, stimulate interest, and motivate a desire to purchase;

5) Handling objections;

6) Completing the sale or closing; and

7) Follow‐up.

Public Relations is a form of communication that is designed to enhance an

organization’s reputation, to increase knowledge about what the organization does,

and to increase awareness of the products or services that are offered by your business.

Public relations depends upon “free” media coverage. Although the media coverage

that is generated by public relations is free, significant planning, time, effort, and

resources are required to support an effective and ongoing public relations

communication strategy. Public relations involve managing the flow of information

between the organization and multiple forms of media; this includes the use of social

media, press releases and announcements to the media, newsletters sent to customers

and other audiences, appearances at public events, and participating in local activities.

Sales Promotion is intended to create demand for a product or service by offering

incentives that drive sales during a short period of time. Sales promotions have a

limited duration and are designed to obtain a specified response in a short period of

time. Sales promotions are designed to generate excitement and a sense of urgency,

i.e. “for a limited time only.” Many businesses offer “early bird, senior citizen, or family”

discounts; these sales promotions are designed to generate revenues during off‐hours

of operations, generate an increased volume of sales, or increase market penetration.

In some cases, a “season’s pass” or “membership” may be offered over an extended

period of time to increase visitation and related sales. Sales promotion marketing

approaches may also include: contests and sweepstakes, product sampling, logoed

merchandise, and discount coupons/fees.

Promotional Items. A wide range of promotional items can be used to promote your

agritourism operations and may also generate additional revenues. Items such as t‐

shirts, caps, or other items emblazoned with your logo and the name of your

business promote your business and also increase awareness.


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Sponsorships. Sponsorship is the financial or in‐kind support of an activity used primarily to

reach specified business goals. Companies look to improve their image and brand by

shaping positive attitudes about their product or service. Sponsorship marketing is done

financially or through the provision of products or services to support an event, activity,

person, or organization where two or more parties benefit from the arrangement. The key

to building successful sponsorship programs is to match the correct products or services

with the organizations that want to be affiliated with these products or services (image).

Promotional activities augment communications with consumers and add value to the

consumption experience. Sponsorship provides an opportunity to engage the consumer

with a company, its brands, and the community. Because agritourism activities are “local,”

consumer involvement and associations with the products and services offered by the

“local” business may be higher, thereby creating a place‐based image for potential

sponsorships. Consumers are apt to be more receptive to marketing messages and images

associated with local business than they are to

those presented via other methods.

The Benefits of Sponsorship

Enhancing Image or Shaping Consumer Attitudes.

Often companies are looking to improve how they

are perceived by their target audience. Sponsoring

events that appeal to their market are likely to

shape buying attitudes and help generate a positive

reaction.

Highlighting Corporate Social Responsibility. Sponsorship enables a company to be seen as

a good corporate citizen and to be seen as supporting the community and contributing to its

economic development. Sponsorship creates goodwill within the community.

Driving Sales. Sponsorship geared towards driving sales can be an extremely potent

promotional tool. This objective allows sponsors to showcase the attributes of their

products or services. Food and beverage companies often use sponsorship to encourage

samplings and sales.

Creating positive publicity and heightening visibility. Every sponsor is seeking wide

exposure in all forms of media; this includes radio, television, and print media. Exposure

through social media to include websites, Facebook, and YouTube is an important element

of obtaining sponsorships. Positive publicity helps create heightened visibility of products

and services. Various media covering the event may include sponsors names and/or photos.

In addition, the kind of media coverage a sponsor may get is often unaffordable if the

company were to think of purchasing it, and if it were available. To maximize this objective,

In2013,NorthAmericanbasedcompanieswillspend$1.28

billiontosponsormusicvenues,festivalsandtoursSource:IEGResearch


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it is important to work with the sponsoring

company to develop a comprehensive media

campaign.

Differentiating from competitors. The mere act of

sponsoring an event, especially an exclusive

sponsorship, is a significant way to create

competitor differentiation. Sponsorship provides

the sponsor or the company with the opportunity

to stand out head and shoulders above the

competition. Sponsorship allows smaller companies

to compete with industry giants that have larger

advertising budgets.

Entertaining Clients and Enhancing Interpersonal

Business Relationships. Sponsorship that offers

hospitality opportunities is always very attractive to companies (e.g. a hayride, farm‐to‐

table dinners, or family outings for the sponsor’s business clients).

Recruiting, retaining, or motivating employees. Providing tickets and opportunities for

employees and their families to participate in agritourism activities or teambuilding

activities enable the sponsoring company to reward employees.

How Sponsorship Works

What attracts a sponsor is "eye balls." The more people or targeted impressions you can deliver to a sponsor, the more funding you will be able to attract. Success depends on what your organization does, who your customers are, and how you structure the exposure for the sponsor.

Events Most Attractive to Sponsors

The top five events that companies tend to sponsor are sporting events, entertainment events, educational events, arts‐related events, and events that benefit non‐profit organizations.

Getting Started—Eight Steps to Building a Sponsor Program

Create a Prospect list. The development of a list of prospective sponsors requires identifying what product or service is well aligned with the image/product/service of the sponsor.

Define Your Product and Service. Be as specific as possible about what you have to offer.

Researchsuggeststhatasponsor’scommunity

involvementismorelikelytopositivelyenhanceconsumers’perceptionofthesponsor’s

brandandthispositiveopiniontowardsthesponsor’sbrandisassociatedwithheightenedintentionstopurchasethe

firm’sproducts


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Define the Target Market. A sponsorship marketing strategy will only be successful if it is aimed at the appropriate group of people. You can quickly identify your target market by looking at your current customers and considering common factors that they share. Demographics such as age, sex, marital status, occupation, ethnic group, religion,

education, etc. Psychographics or behavioural groups, such as hunters, fishermen,

conservationists, or families Geographic location (local, regional, national)

Set Your Objectives. A clear, documented idea of what your organization is trying to achieve is needed. Do you want to have your advertising/marketing costs covered by a sponsor, increase your advertising buys, or maybe have the cost of your next special event covered?

Develop a Marketing Strategy. When your objectives are clear, the next step is to develop a marketing strategy to help achieve those objectives. If you want to have the cost of maintaining your website or developing social media content, your strategy may revolve around selling advertising in it. If, on the other hand, you want to cover the cost of your next special event, you need to use different strategies, such as emphasizing how the sponsor will be represented in promotional materials and advertising. Remember, the more people you can deliver to a sponsor, the more valuable they will find your program. Use whatever means it takes to do that, including: newsletters, signs, radio, TV spots, press releases, websites, and social media, etc.

Develop an Action Plan. Once you know what you want to do, it's time to actually do it! The key to a good action plan is to outline the activities to be achieved—assign people to get the tasks done and make sure to set a realistic deadline. Don't forget to set up a reporting process so you know what's done and what might need extra attention.

Build your Sponsor Packet. The Sponsor Packet is what you will use to communicate your sponsor program to prospects. In its most basic format, a Sponsor Packet would include: Description of who you are and what you do Description of the target market you can deliver to sponsors, i.e. 25 – 35 year old

family heads of households Summary of your marketing objectives, i.e. to expand marketing exposure Marketing strategies, i.e. online and offline marketing activities The Sponsor Packet should contain a one page, attractively designed summary that

includes an overview of the business, demographic and psychographic information on your customer base, a description of the reach and frequency of your marketing activities, a description of alternative sponsorship opportunities, the cost to the sponsor for each opportunity, and a brief statement or two about how the sponsor will benefit from sponsorship.


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Describe the opportunity, provide information about the audience, explain the benefits to the sponsor, and make a call for action.

Package it. You'll be asking a lot from your sponsors so make sure your presentation represents you well. Be accurate and concise with your content. If possible try to have it professionally printed and include photographs to enhance the presentation. The use of special paper and covers can also enhance the presentation.

Putting Sponsorship to Work

After you've completed your sponsor packet, it's time to put it to work.

1. Identify your sponsors. Determine the companies that are best suited as a sponsor to your event. Create a contact list that includes as much information as possible.

2. People. Find out who you should address the sponsorship proposal to (usually the Marketing Manager) and include their proper title and position. Ensure you have the correct spelling.

3. Contact. Speak briefly with them on the phone to let them know you will be sending a proposal.

4. Timing. Present your sponsor packet proposal well in advance. Businesses budget for sponsorship annually. They can also take a while to approve sponsorship proposals, particularly if they have to be cleared by the General Manager or Board of Directors.

5. Follow up. Allow a week after you have sent a proposal before making a follow up call. The sponsor may not be able to answer at that stage. However, it provides an opportunity for them to ask any questions. Offer to come into their office to speak to them if they so desire. Ask them when you could expect to receive an answer.

6. Reporting. Once a sponsorship has been negotiated and secured, keep in regular contact with your sponsor. It is a good practice to send a letter, e‐mail, or to phone the sponsor at least once a month to keep them updated and informed. Any materials that use the sponsor’s name, logo, photographs, or promotional information should be sent for review and approval by the sponsor.


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The Integrated Marketing Campaign

Creating an effective integrated marketing campaign requires continuous attention and

frequent updating, attention to detail, and commitment to the process. Maintaining an

integrated marketing scheme isn’t something that can be done on a whim or at the spur of the

moment; it is an involved and encompassing process—but, with proper planning, it is an activity

that owners and staff can certainly learn to master. An integrated marketing strategy should

consider the use of the following media:

Website and Social Media

Direct Mail

Email

Advertising (print and electronic)

Public Relations/Outreach

Partners in Promotion

Social Media

With the explosion of technology in recent years, social media has been widely adopted as a

critical component for marketing products, services, and business activities. Working with

social media can involve an array of components; some prominent social media mediums

include:

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/

Twitter https://twitter.com/

YouTube https://www.youtube.com/

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/

Flickr http://flickr.tumblr.com/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/

Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com

Snapchat https://www.snapchat.com/

Google http://www.google.com


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Facebook—Most people today are at least somewhat familiar with Facebook, but the

individuals who aren’t should both know and take heed to this: Facebook is arguably the

most important social media tool that can be used to communicate with an audience of

over six billion users and with approximately 1.59 billion active monthly users, it has

potentially infinite value as a marketing tool. Specifically, it is a social networking site

where users can create personal profiles, add others as “friends,” send them messages, and

post status updates about themselves. They can also join pages, groups, or networks

owned by businesses and organizations to access news, event information, photos, and

videos. One in every seven people in the world have a Facebook profile, and this is why the

site is such an effective method for marketing and advertising.

Remember, the Facebook market is primarily looking to socialize, not to buy. Facebook is

primarily used to drive traffic to your website and/or to convert your Facebook audience to

subscribe to your e‐mail list.

Facebook for Business https://www.facebook.com/business/goals/increase‐online‐sales/

Twitter—Twitter is a social networking website that functions as a micro‐blogging service.

It is a great communication tool as it allows for the exchange of quick, brief messages. Users

can write and view “tweets” of all the accounts they follow. “Tweets” can only be up to a

maximum of 140 characters, which makes expression via posts conveniently short. Creating

a Twitter account will enable a business to keep customers, sponsors, suppliers, and others

(i.e., followers) updated on any relevant events and activities that may be ongoing. Having

a Twitter account also allows you to receive feedback from customers and to answer any

questions they might have. Ideally, a facility’s Twitter page should have an instantly

recognizable “handle” or display name so that it can be found with ease. Aside from just

having a standard page, facilities might also consider having their own “hashtag” to use at

the end of every tweet. The “#” symbol followed by a word represents a hashtag, which

becomes group subject matter that can be searched for in the search box on the Twitter

home page, as well as through Google. Using a hashtag will help interested parties (who

might not be following an organization’s page) access it, and it will also enable potential

customers to easily keep track of activities.

Also consider keeping a running Twitter feed on the side of your Facebook page or your

website. Linking multiple social networking profiles and pages more effectively leverages

the presence of your agritourism business in the social media environment: it expands a

company’s voice, the number of people it reaches, and collates it into a format that has all

of the best features of each website. Sign up to join Twitter at https://twitter.com/. To get


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a further introduction to Twitter, watch the following video:

http://www.commoncraft.com/video/twitter

YouTube— YouTube is a video sharing website known for a wide variety of videos that

originate from all over the world. Users can upload, share, and watch videos, which makes

YouTube a very powerful visual medium. Registered users are allowed to upload an

unlimited amount of content, which can then be viewed by anyone else on YouTube

(registered or unregistered). The “comments” section featured under uploaded content

offers viewers a forum for discussion of the various clips they watch. YouTube can be used

to engage and inform potential customers through narratives about your business, to

include the history of your farm, unique characteristics of your business, videos of activities,

customer interviews, or event previews and re‐caps. In order to ensure and build a public

presence on YouTube, create a channel on the website.

YouTube viewers seek meaningful content and engagement with real people and their

stories; the site is relationship driven. The audience is not captive and can quickly stop

viewing, so content must be delivered clearly and quickly; play rates tend to drop

significantly after approximately 45 seconds. Content should provide a real story that

engages the audience and encourages them to learn more. Provide the next step that

customers should take upon watching your video. A quick guide to creating a YouTube

channel can be found via the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4jFd40Wcmg

LinkedIn—LinkedIn is different from Facebook because it is a social networking site with a

more business‐oriented focus. It is generally used as a tool for professional networking, but

has recently become an important social media content site for business to business

marketing. Creating a profile on LinkedIn is a great way of promoting any facility or

organization, gaining an online presence, building credibility, networking with countless

industry sponsors and exhibitors, and maintaining an equal presence with existing

competition. There are numerous free features available that can help to promote your

business, and LinkedIn also offers paid ads that can help to promote your website. Create a

LinkedIn profile at: https://www.linkedin.com/

Flickr—Flickr is a social media site that is similar to a virtual scrapbook. With millions of

photos and videos shared from all over the world, it is a website for image and video

hosting and an online community for networking. Users can upload pictures or videos, view

the content uploaded by other users, comment on that content, and interface with people

they choose to be “contacts” with. Flickr is a great resource for social media marketing

because, like YouTube, it is visual. This allows you to tell a story in pictures. Flickr offers


18

proof that “a picture is worth a 1,000 words.” To sign your business up for Flickr visit:

http://www.flickr.com/

Instagram — Instagram is a free photo‐sharing application that allows users to take

photos/videos with their mobile phones and then to share it with others. As with other

social media, Instagram is used to enhance engagement with followers by providing value.

Photos and videos that evoke emotion – e.g. humor, happiness, nostalgia, fun, or

motivation – are effective for capturing attention. Instagram allows you to seamlessly share

visual content across other social networks. To learn how to integrate Instagram with your

Facebook page visit the following link:

http://facebook.about.com/od/PagesGroups/fr/How‐To‐Add‐An‐Instagram‐Tab‐To‐Your‐

Facebook‐Page.htm

Pinterest — Pinterest is a social media website that functions as an image sharing bulletin

board. An image is a “pin” and a collection of images is a “board;” board names (the title

given to each “board”) serve as tags to create and indexing system. Pinterest allows users

to follow, “like,” and “repin” other people’s images to their Pinterest board — “likes,”

comments, and “repins” are measures of content popularity. To explore ideas for group

boards and board names you can use either PinGroupie or BoardDeck. Pinterest has gained

increased influence as a social shopping media with featured “Buy” buttons located on the

pins of products sold by retailers. For more information on setting up a Pinterest account:

http://weblogs.about.com/od/choosingabloghost/p/What‐Is‐Pinterest.htm

Google AdWords https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayuUQQQe6NY is a fee based online

advertising service that charges on a “cost‐per‐click” process that only charges when

someone clicks on your ad; it enables you to set a maximum price on the cost‐per‐click and

a daily budget for the total amount you are willing to spend.

It is desirable to use social mediums that are best suited to the usage patterns of the target

market. This means that an organization’s social media strategy may change or vary depending

on the products, services, and activities offered. For instance, LinkedIn could be a resource for

business communication, while Facebook might be ideal for reaching individuals on a personal

level. Whatever social medium is brought into play, a wider audience can be reached. The use

of online social media expands the reach and scope of communicating with a range of potential

Organic versus Paid Advertising


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customers. Social media can reach new audiences and target markets, and it is an effective

method for enhancing relationships with customers. It also can provide feedback on what is

being said about your agritourism business.

The Website

In addition to social media, there are multiple online marketing and promotional opportunities

that can be used to maximize communication with your customers. An agritourism business

must have an effective website; this means creating a centralized site for the business that will

showcase the products, services, and amenities offered, and all of its various upcoming and

ongoing activities. In web design, this includes the creation of a landing page. Also called a

destination page, a “landing page is any page on a website where traffic is sent specifically to

prompt a certain action or result.”2 The landing page is a crucial element of marketing because

it is frequently the first encounter between your organization and the public.

If the business has no website, one can quickly be created through any webhosting service.

Webhosting services provide the relevant business website data and place the page on the

internet. Once a webhosting server has been chosen, the actual page can be created with the

help of any one of the many companies selling domain names. These companies will help build

an organization’s page and provide it with the ownership of a domain name of its choosing,

(assuming it is available); these companies typically sell the names for 2 years at a time and

provide website maintenance services to customers.

To create a website without paying a professional, there are many do‐it‐yourself options

available. There is so much information available about getting a website up and running and

so many aspects to website design, the task may seem to be overwhelming. Fortunately,

creating a website is now easier than ever — make sure to comparison shop and look for

connectivity across social media channels. The following list provides an example of the

names and website addresses for website builders:

1. www.wix.com

2. www.web.com

2 Copyblogger.com accessed April 1, 2016.


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3. www.webs.com

4. www.squarespace.com

5. www.weebly.com

6. www.webhostinghub.com

7. http://www.1and1.com

8. http://www.sitebuilder.com

9. http://www.homestead.com/

10. http://www.buildyoursite.com/

Source: http://www.top10bestwebsitebuilders.com

Website Design

The design of a website for an agritourism business should meet the standards of any

professional business: it needs to be professional, well‐organized, provide all required

information (particularly contact information that is easy to find on the website), and provide

easy accessibility for all users to navigate. You may select to design your own website, or, if you

are unskilled in this area, you may opt to seek the help of a graphic design professional. In

many cases, college students with experience in graphic arts may be a source of cost effective

assistance in this process.

The website should contain all pertinent information related to the business. This includes:

Pictures of the facility, the products, and/or illustration of services

A description of your facility

A description of all on‐site amenities, products, and services

A fee schedule for products and services

A calendar of events/availability

Contact information, including names, alternative telephone numbers, and e‐mail contact

information


21

The website should showcase pictures of the products offered and/or pictures of activities. The

goal is to highlight a variety of the products or services you offer.

Other information that may be posted on the website to facilitate the attraction of tourists may

include:

Nearby lodging

Restaurants

Museums

Places to shop

Local/regional events, things to do, and local attractions

Pictured on pages 22 and 23 are examples of the landing pages and website design of two

agritourism businesses in the state of Mississippi. Each of the example pages exhibit the

following key elements of a website:

Images of the facility and facility events embedded and displayed

Drop down boxes and links to additional information

A photo gallery to access more pictures related to the facility, products, services, activities,

and/or events

A tab including pertinent contact information

A list of products and/or services with pricing information

A link to view the calendar of events

Icons and links to facilitate access to social media network pages (e.g., Facebook, Twitter)

Directions and/or maps

The facility’s email/link to sign up for the facility’s newsletter

Choosing a Domain Name

Make it relevant to your business, content, or service

Keep it short and memorable

Get it right the first time!


22

The landing page for Cedar Hill Farm: http://gocedarhillfarm.com/

Note links to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest


23

Pictured below is the landing page for Seward Farms in Lucedale, Mississippi

http://sewardfarms.com/

Figure 2

Note sponsorships on this website


24

When designing the website, there should also be a focus on optimizing its use on multiple, if

not all, browsers—including mobile devices. The number of people who use these devices to

search the web is continually growing, and it is important to be able to engage these audiences

through suitable channels. Another important point to consider in website design is the

integration of pertinent keywords to naturally boost the page’s search engine rankings. This

process is explained in more detail in the following section on search engine optimization.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

To ensure people actually see the website, it is important to take measures that will gain the

landing page hits (visits). This can be achieved through what’s called SEO, or Search Engine

Optimization. This is the process of “improving the volume or quality of traffic to a Web site

from search engines via unpaid or organic search traffic.”3 Basically, this means identifying key

words that people will type into Google in order to access the facility’s website—whether on

purpose or inadvertently. The use of SEO makes whatever text appears on a landing page

important, which is why it is crucial to make sure all of the facility’s site pages are optimized.

A quick guide to walk you through this process can be found by reading an article entitled:

Seven Ways to Optimize a Web Page for the Search Engines, on Aspire Internet Design’s

website. This is a link to the article: http://aspireid.com/search‐engine‐optimization/7‐ways‐to‐

optimize‐a‐web‐page‐for‐the‐search‐engines/

Using Social Media in the Landing Page

Optimizing web content is not only important for helping to increase traffic to the landing page,

it is also important for generating traffic to all of the center’s various social media channels.

Once the keywords that users will most commonly search for to access a facility’s landing page

have been identified, they should be included and cross‐linked to all pertinent social media

platforms. This is a way to get visitors to access the main website as well as social media pages,

expanding the potential points of access and increasing the number of opportunities to gain

exposure for the center.

Using social media links in the landing page is an equally important step in this process. It is

essential that all of the social media icons for the facility appear on the home page of the

central website. Social media links to the expo’s Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. should all

clearly be displayed by these icons for easy access. Similarly, all social media should have a

direct link to the landing page. Promoting pertinent information through social media will drive

customers to the facility’s website and help showcase all of its content.

3 Source: Blog.HubSpot.com


25

In addition, it is recommended that other pertinent or related websites that will be useful to

customers and/or visitors to the website be linked to under a “Links” tab. Examples of other

places within the community you could include on a “Links” page: tourism offices, the chamber

of commerce, local Main Street associations, hotels or motels, restaurants, veterinarians, feed

supply stores, local farmers’ markets or agricultural co‐ops, farriers, and other products or

services that visitors may be seeking. These links provide a valuable source of information to

visitors, and may also be a source of advertising revenue for your organization. Your website

should also contain the logo and links to sponsors, but only you have received approval by the

sponsors.

Blog

In addition to social mediums and websites, blogs serve as valuable digital media tools that can

be used in any marketing campaign. The following definition was taken from

Blog.HubSpot.com:

A blog is a word that was created from two words: “Web log.” Blogs are usually

maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events,

or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse‐

chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add

content to a blog.

Given this definition, agritourism operators can begin to see why creating a blog for their

business would benefit them. Doing so could effectively draw attention to your business, the

products and services you offer, as well as its features, events, and benefits. Like social media

platforms, a blog is a way to keep people “in‐the‐know” about what’s going on. Therefore,

when creating a blog, it is important to integrate it with corresponding website and social

media accounts. This will allow any new blog entries to keep social media channels updated

regularly and to engage its existing audience and to reach new audiences.

Three Tips to keep in mind when creating a blog:

Allow for users to subscribe to it via email

Make it easily shared through social media

Allow for easy interaction/feedback through comment boxes on posts

To learn more about creating a blog, visit:

http://weblogs.about.com/od/startingablog/u/StartingABlog.htm

Direct Mail

Personalized direct mail can be a highly effective mode of advertisement, and unlike the

previous channels that have been discussed, this one is not electronic. Research shows that


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each mailing sent to a prospective customer increases the response rate greatly. Another

advantage to sending direct mail pieces is that they also offer a portal to other digital channels

used by the facility, such as the website, blog, and social networking pages. This added benefit

is the very cornerstone of why an integrated marketing approach should be used to begin with:

to be able to reach a wider audience and target the right demographic, in addition to increasing

overall response rates.

Although direct mail can be a very effective mode of advertisement and marketing, it is an

expensive form of advertising and requires the development of a strategically targeted mailing

list database. These databases may be developed using lists of regular customers or by

developing a list of carefully targeted potential customers.

Email/Enewsletters

Email represents another tool for communicating with a specific audience via the Internet. No

matter how great a website, social networking profile, or blog may be, it’s simply impossible to

always keep these tools on an audience’s mind. Email marketing has the ability to effectively

communicate with a wide range of customers and targeted markets. It also provides you with

the ability to develop unique content for different market segments. For example, your

customer database may contain customers that purchase only specific products, seek specific

benefits, or local schools/teachers that have brought students on field trips to your farm; each

of these target markets might be sent e‐mail/enewsletters with a different marketing message.

Integrated marketing that uses email as a part of a campaign strategy requires careful design. A

poorly composed, colorless email is more apt to end up in the “trash” folder of the recipient

rather than getting the intended message across. For this reason, the facility should design a

quality email template that complements its website—this contributes to a comprehensive

marketing strategy. It is also essential that emails relay useful, pertinent information on a

recurring basis and provide links to other media sites.

Drawing from the principles of integrated marketing, it is possible to see how email marketing

can leverage other social media as part of a coordinated marketing strategy. Emails promoting

products, service, or facility activities can also be carefully timed to coincide with direct mail to

reinforce the marketing message of your business.

Collecting contact information is of great importance, particularly email addresses. The website

landing page needs to be able to collect the email of visitors to the site. A link on the landing

page to “Join our Mailing List” allows people to sign up to receive updates and newsletters via

email. The development of email contact lists can be done in a variety of ways, such as

promotional giveaways that create value and drive traffic to subscribe to an email list. Contact

information should be collected from customers on‐site and by feedback from all social media


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being used. All of the emails obtained from any source should be maintained in a database

(and properly categorized whenever possible).

Direct Mail versus Email

The use of direct mail can be very effective because it is focused and personal. Although high

returns are usually seen on direct mailings, they also come with relatively high costs. Email

communication production is inexpensive and immediate, meaning it could potentially be more

cost effective than direct mail. Thus, when marketing your business, it will be less expensive

and more efficient to communicate via email. However, not everyone uses email; this is

specifically true for some demographic segments. It is important to be able to substitute the

use of direct mail by communicating via email (by sending a newsletter, for example) when

appropriate. It may take time for an agricultural business to develop a clear perspective on the

effectiveness of direct mail as compared to email; at minimum, when sending email, a policy of

verifying that the email is being opened by recipients should be adopted.

Advertising

Advertising can be online or offline and it is vital because it creates market awareness of your

business. Any paid method of non‐personal communication about an organization, product,

service, or event by a business is considered advertising. Before embarking on an advertising

campaign, it is important to consider which type of ads will be used. There are multiple forms

of advertising, that when effectively used, can contribute to the success of your business.

Different forms of advertising may be required depending upon the audience (market segment)

that is being targeted. Forms of advertising include:

Digital advertising (social media, email ads, newsletter ads)

Print advertising (newspapers, magazines, brochures, fliers)

Television advertising

Music in advertising

Radio advertising

Online advertising (Banner Ads, search marketing)

Product placements

Physical advertising (bulletins, billboards, posters, transit)

Press advertising

Mobile billboard advertising

In‐store advertising (external store signs, in‐store shelf sign, shopping cart ads, in‐store

radio/TV ads)

Celebrity branding


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Public Relations

Public Relations (PR) is a very important component of an effective integrated marketing

campaign. Businesses and companies worldwide use public relations to create a positive

image, to create market awareness, and to reinforce their marketing strategies. This is because

the practice of PR is primarily aimed at maintaining public image and the nature of publicity an

organization receives. There are multiple public relations instruments that may be used by an

agritourism business, to include: press conferences, press kits, press interviews, and

newsletters. These tools may be used to increase market exposure and awareness and to

promote upcoming events. It is important to develop a good relationship with the media.

Historically, media relations have been the heart of public relations. There is no direct payment

to the media for providing publicity, which is why PR is often viewed as the most credible

marketing element to consumers. When working with the media, it is important to know how

to successfully capture their interest and attention. Many visitors attend an event to see or

experience something that is “new” or “exciting.” The concept of “new” also happens to be

one of the most effective strategies in communications. Thus, communicating the message of

“new” events and conveying a sense of “excitement” to the media should be considered when

trying to get coverage.

If the facility is planning to announce a new event, a press release on “what’s new” should be

prepared. News releases should be full of facts and omit any opinion. Group all of the key

information into the leading paragraph. In addition to the news release, press kits feature

more detailed information such as the event or facility background, biographies of key

spokesperson and other supporting materials that may be useful to journalists.

Owners/managers should make certain their press kits are simple and focused on the topic at

hand—most reporters just want to receive the news and nothing extra. To cost effectively

release information to the press, consider building a press release database (a press database

with contact information for Mississippi newspapers is provided in the Additional Resources

section of this manual; a linked electronic version of the database is also available from The

Stennis Institute of Government & Community Development – to receive a copy email:

[email protected]

When holding a press conference, make certain the announcement has value for the media,

meaning they should have solid news for the media that will generate interest. When holding a

press conference, the owner/manager or staff must take responsibility to arrange a location

and to personally invite press contacts to attend. Alternatively, individual interviews may be

scheduled with certain reporters.


29

Newsletters, whether in print or electronic format, are another key tool for promoting a

business. Knowing the names and contact information of customers and potential customers

enables regular contact with a target audience that can be delivered by mail, via email, or via

links in social media. Newsletters should be simple and full of content that is of interest to the

audience, and should have visual appeal. The following link provides a guide to writing

newsletters and for using other public relations tools:

http://www.iaee.com/downloads/1373403056.70290100_c07bd310c7/Public%20Relations.pdf

Partners in Promotion

It is important to note the integral role that Partners in Promotion play in an integrated

marketing strategy. A partnership in promotion is an agreement between businesses to co‐

promote a product or service. For example, Payless and Gamestop were two companies that

formed a promotional partnership during a holiday season, and both gave customers coupon

discounts to be used towards the other’s merchandise. Because many of these stores are

closely located to one another, both benefited. Another example is a promotional partnership

between Coke® and Fox Films, with Coke® agreeing to compensate Fox to show a beverage in

an upcoming movie. If you visit the website of the Professional Rodeo Association

(http://prorodeo.com), you will notice that the landing page of this website has links to the

websites of multiple commercial sponsors and to the pages of affiliated organizations (i.e., the

American Quarter Horse Association); this website is an example of partners in promotion

because the websites of all of these organizations are cross‐linked and the links to social media

also cross‐link to those of commercial sponsors and affiliated organizations.

Partnerships in promotion are an excellent integrated marketing tool; they leverage the impact,

increase the reach, and enhance the effectiveness of all the mediums discussed in previous

sections (i.e. websites, social media, advertising, direct mail, e‐mail, etc.). Capitalizing on the

potential for partnerships in promotion means working with multiple agritourism stakeholders

Public relations is inextricably linked to establishing partners in promotion — develop relationships in your community and with other organizations to enhance your business image and increase awareness of your agritourism business — this includes your neighbors, community leaders and local organizations, and state or national groups. Your local Chamber of Commerce, Visitors Bureau, and Cooperative Extension office are invaluable partners in promotion.


30

and making certain to provide partners in promotion with the tools, information, and

encouragement that they need in order to promote their participation.

You may also consider forming partnerships with other agritourism businesses in your

geographic area or partnerships with other agritourism businesses that offer similar products,

services, or amenities. These partnerships can expand your reach and may also create

opportunities to share the cost for creating and maintaining content on social media platforms.

Your local farmers’ market may also provide opportunities to partner for promotion.

Important Partnership for Promotion Opportunities

Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce —

http://www.mdac.ms.gov/agency‐info/programs/mississippi‐agritourism/

o Agritourism registration and venue listings with links to websites

Example: Brownlee Farms — http://brownleefarms.com/

o Mississippi Agritourism Signage Program —

http://www.mississippitods.interstatelogos.com/state/

o Farmers’ Markets in Mississippi — http://farmersmarkets.msstate.edu/

o Mississippi Market Maker — http://ms.foodmarketmaker.com/

a. Make Mine Mississippi —

https://www.mdac.ms.gov/bureaus‐departments/market‐development/make‐mine‐

mississippi‐program/

Mississippi Tourism — http://www.visitmississippi.org/trips/step1

Mississippi Agritourism Association — http://www.mississippiagritourism.org/

Mississippi Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association — http://msfruitandveg.com/

Other online marketing directories

o www.pickyourown.org

o www.agritourismworld.com

o www.farmstayus.com (Serenity Acres, Wiggins, MS; Oakdale Farms, Brandon, MS)

o www.ruralbounty.com (Seward Farms http://www.sewardfarms.com/ , Lucedale, MS)

o www.chefscollaborative.org

o www.localharvest.com

o www.sleepinthehay.com

o http://www.farmstayus.com/

o http://www.growingmississippi.org/

o http://agrilicious.org/home


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Market Segmentation and Positioning

Generally, to simplify the answer to the question “what are you selling?,” begin by breaking

down your answers between selling experiences and/or selling goods.

Experiences may include:

connection to nature/rural/outdoors

romantic/healthy/quiet/adventure

education/learning/conservation

Goods may include:

Food

Specialty products

Crafts/artifacts/art

What are you selling and who are you selling it to?


32

Research about Direct‐to‐Consumer Markets

Consumers want to purchase locally grown fresh produce.

Opportunity exists, but depends upon effective marketing

and advertising to achieve visibility and increased

accessibility. Major trends that impact direct‐to‐consumer

markets include:

The “Locavore” Trend

Concerns about Health and Obesity

The Environmental or Green Movement

Going back to basics

Greater concern about food safety and seeking healthier food

Food safety preferences for produce include three segments:

1. Concern about pesticide and hormone use – “safety seekers” or “Health and Natural

Consumers”

2. Concern about price and quality – “price pickers” or “price conscious consumers”

3. Concern about quality and service – “Brand Buyers” or “Quality Seekers”

Consumer Issues:

Nutrition, quality, and safety is a personal benefit.

Supporting local agriculture or environmental conservation is a societal benefit.

Potential antibiotic resistance or the unknown effects of hormones is a general public

health concern that combines personal and societal benefits.

Consumer concerns about nutritional content, purity, freshness, and social concerns about

the public good.

Publically oriented food attributes such as “free range, organic, natural, and locally

produced.”

The “taste of place” – local foods that reflect a unique local character, that tell the story of a

place, or bring the taste‐history‐culture of a region to the consumer.

Research helps us understand

“who we are selling it to”


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Types of Direct Consumers:

1. Well‐organized Eco‐families — support local and sustainable agricultural practices (civic

agriculture)

2. Strugglers — consumers who are low‐income and price sensitive

3. Rural traditionalists — consumers with traditional agrarian values who have historical ties to

agriculture

4. Professionals — consumers without children and singles in urban areas with a focus on

quality and image

Research about Agritourists

The primary types of agritourism sites visited are: Food/Culinary, Heritage, Agricultural

Education, and Recreational Experiences. Types of agritourism travelers include:

Out‐of‐State Activity Seekers. Generally, middle‐ to upper‐middle income bracket, travel in

small parties, enjoy active – recreational‐type agritourism, and take longer trips where

agritourism is often unplanned. They plan their travel mostly by internet and choose

activities revolving around culinary events and on‐farm or heritage activities.

In‐State Explorers. Are predisposed to a variety of agritourism experiences, but most

activities are unplanned. Generally plan their trips based on past experiences or

recommendations from friends and family.

Family Ag Adventurers. Generally choose activities revolving around educational

experiences and active recreational experiences. Plan trips based primarily on past

experience and personal recommendations. Advertising through links with the Mississippi

Office of Tourism and links to the websites of family‐oriented businesses such as children’s

museums, local parks, or libraries can increase connections to this market segment.

Mississippi Enthusiasts. Primarily in‐state travelers and are parents or couples who return

based on past experiences and plan their trips based on personal web searches. The

primarily select activities that revolve around culinary experiences.

Accidental Tourists. Travel primarily without children or by themselves, and may be visiting

for non‐recreational business, educational, or convention activities. Are in the state for a

few days with a small window of time for leisure, but may be seeking activities to occupy

their free time. May represent an opportunity for enterprises located close to major

transportation corridors and population centers. Make spontaneous decisions based upon

road signage, brochures placed in visitors’ centers or hotels, and referrals from other

businesses.

The methods that agritourists use to plan their travel include:

Past experience


34

Arranged by hotel

Travel website

Personal web search

Travel agency

State tourism office

Welcome Center

Magazines

Direct Mailing

Signage

Travel Association

Park brochures

Regional brochures

Personal recommendations/word of mouth


35

Content and Keyword Development for Social Media

Content development is an important element of advertising. Essentially, it uses content to

draw the attention of potential customers. Content development is integral to using social

media to market your agritourism business because the Internet is comprised entirely of

information, i.e., content. Content development is driven by the target market (needs, wants,

desires, interests, and benefits). You must know what your customers want and engage them

in the content that you provide. When people search for information on the Internet they use

keywords, the relationship between these queries and the keywords you select to use for the

content you provide is at the heart of using social media to market your products or services.

Your keywords should mirror the different types of user queries that may be used when people

are trying to find a product or service that you offer.

You might begin developing a content strategy by conducting a keyword analysis with a list of

phrases that you believe your audience is using to find the types of products or services that

you offer and by visiting the websites of similar businesses to obtain ideas. You may also view

the HTML Page Source of similar businesses by going to their website landing page and

examining the keywords used. Once you have arrived at the website landing page, you may

view the keyword used by clicking on View – Page Source (or right click and select View Page

Source in Safari or Google).

You can then examine the <title> and “keyword” terms used as shown in the screen shot

below (e.g., strawberries, pumpkins, Fresh Vegetables and Fall Fun in Red Banks,

Mississippi.)


36

You may also use Google AdWords

(https://adwords.google.com/)

to examine keywords by entering a

relevant website address and then

selecting “keywords” to evaluate the

popularity of keywords. As shown in

the screen shot at right, the keyword

blueberry has received 246,000 clicks

and is more popular than berries.

Long‐tail keyword phrases result in

more specific searches and potentially

reduce the number of clicks, but are

going to increase your quality ratings and placement on Google. Adding geographic limiting

terms to your keywords will increase specific searches and may increase your placement,

but will also exclude other geographic areas (e.g., this may be negative for tourism focused

businesses, but positive for “you‐pick” businesses). Keywords with five or more words have

been found, on average, to drive less than half the volume of clicks and impressions when

compared to shorter keyword phrases.

Once you have developed keyword search terms, enter them into an Internet search engine

and examine the resulting search results and placements

The keywords you select to use may differ based upon your marketing objectives, the social

media type, and specific campaign strategies; for example:

Are you selecting keywords for your Internet website, your Facebook page, or YouTube

page?

Are you trying to increase your reach to have more people seeing, liking, sharing, and

commenting on your home page or Facebook content?

Are you seeking to drive traffic to your home page, get people to view your videos, product

page, or calendar of events?

Are you trying to make a sale, increase awareness, and/or promote your brand image?

Do you want to increase your e‐mail contact list, promote a newsletter, and increase

subscribers?

Are you having a special event or are you offering a “special deal” that you want to

promote?

Examples of content development or approaches to content advertising include:

Posting articles to the facility’s own blog or content website


37

Submitting/posting articles to Squidoo, Hubpages or Blogger

Issuing press releases

Reviews appearing on other people’s websites

Yahoo answers

Social bookmarking at Digg, Pinterest, etc.

Posting videos on video sharing sites (i.e. YouTube)

Posting comments in any online forums in the agritourism community or related industries

When utilizing content advertising, traffic can be generated from different sources. Traffic can

be drawn from the website where the content is posted and from the search engine being used

to find the content. The real challenge lies in getting “outside” traffic from the search engine.

The ultimate objective is for the website to obtain a high ranking in search results from the

search engine(s) that are being used. In addition, it should also direct traffic from those search

engines to your website landing page. This is accomplished through the process of careful

keyword research and SEO, or Search Engine Optimization.

Promotional Planning and the Use of Social Media for Events

Every business is different, and the planning timeline for promoting your business will be

specific to that organization; within this context, the following section provides a sample

timeline for engaging an audience online prior to an event.

Planning. This is the time period when the goals, objectives, and strategies are established; this

planning focuses on the target market you are trying to reach — the defined target market will

drive all marketing and advertising decisions.

Determine goals and audience needs

Develop your marketing strategy, the elements of the communication mix you will use, and your social media strategy Design Website, Facebook, and Event pages Create Linkedin groups and subgroups Identify partners in promotion Distribute pre‐show e‐mails announcing activities/events on various community

networks

E‐mail social media opportunities to sponsors, advertisers, vendors, or exhibitors

Begin relevant discussions and daily posts

Identify participating blogs

Start and continue Twitter blitz

Create Facebook fan page and invites

Send e‐mails about event


38

Promote contests; start a picture contest

Distribute press release(s).

Announce blog posts about any Webinars, events, etc.

Begin Twitter/Facebook/Social Media community outreach. During the Event. During the event, share information on a frequent and ongoing basis –

involve the audience by encouraging feedback; include quotes from participants, pictures, send

links to videos on the facility’s website, and use YouTube to share event activities. Social media

can increase the excitement about your event and enable you to directly interact and receive

feedback from your target market(s).

Post‐event. Continue engagement through all social media and marketing channels and evaluate feedback. Send links to website and social media via e‐mail Continue to provide content to bloggers Track your online and offline presence and evaluate the success of different media Post an online survey on your website to track audience feedback, ask for comments about

attendees’ experiences at the event Maintain communication on social media, post updates, and encourage attendees to post

their own content on Facebook Continue to engage through Twitter Announce contest winners Continue to engage people and to post information about the event for a long time after

the event (keep content fresh and interesting) Focus on building relationships by being responsive to your online audience

Social media is an important element of your marketing communications

strategy. Social media can dramatically impact your success. Use a customer‐

centered social media strategy – provide useful information, promote others,

share news, involve the community, and connect at a deeper level with your

audience.


39

Abrosial Creole Flavorful Kneaded Piquant Solid

Amazing Crispy Flavorsome Kosher Pleasant Soufflé

Aphrodisiac Crispy Folded Laced Powdered Sour

Appealing Crumbly Fondant Laden Powdery Sparkling

Appetizing Crunchy Fra diablo Laiche Potent Spicy

Aromatic Crusty Fragrant Layered Preserved Spirited

Aromatic Crystalized Feathery Lemony Puffy Spongy

Au fromage Cuisine Fresh Light Pulp Spread

Au gratin Curd Freeze dried Lip‐smacking Pulverized Sprinkled

Au jus Cured Fricasseed Liquid Pungent Spritzed

Balsamic Curried Fried Low‐Fat Puréed Steamy

Barbecue Decadent Frosty Luscious Ragout Stewed

Battered Deglaze Frozen Lusty Rare Strong

Béarnaise Dehyrated Fruity Lyonnaise Raw Stuffed

Bite‐size Delectable Fudgy Marinate Redolent Subdued

Blackened Delicate Full‐bodied Marvelous Refreshing Subtle

Blanched Delicious Full‐flavored Mashed Relish Succulent

Blended Delightful Garden‐fresh Meaty Rich Sunnyside up

Bold Deluxe Garlicky Mellow Rib Sticking sugar‐coated

Bolognese Dense Gingery Melting Ripe Sugary

Boned Deviled Glazed Melt‐in‐your‐mouth Roasted Sweet

Braised Dietary Glossy Mild Robust Sweet and Sour

Brewed Diluted Golden Milky Rolled Syrupy

Briny Dipping Good Minced Roux Tangy

Brittle Distinctive Gooey Minty Saline Tantalizing

Broiled Divine Grainy Mixed Salted Tart

Browned Doughy Granulated Mixture Salty Tasty

Bubbly Dredged Grated Moist Satisfying Tempting

Bursting Drenched Gratifying mouth‐watering Saturated Tender

Buttercream Dripping Griddled Natural Sauté Texture

Butterflied Drizzled Grilled Nectarous Savory Thick

Buttery Dry Gustatory Nourishing Scented Titillating

Candied Dry‐Roasted Heady Nutritious Scrambled Toasted

Canned Dulcet Heavy Nutty Scrumptious Toothsome

Caramelized Dusted Healthy Oniony Seared Tumaceous

Charcuterie Earthy Hearty Oozing Seasoned Vanilla

Charred Enjoyable Heavenly Organic Sharp Velvety

Cheesy Enticing Herbaceous Packed Shredded Vegetarian

Chewy Escalloped Herbal Palate‐pleasing Silky Vinegary

Chili Etouffee Homemade Pan‐fried Sizzling Warm

Chilled Excellent Homestyle Paprika Simmering Watery

Chipotle Exquisite Homogenized Parboiled Skimmed Whipped

Chocolaty Fat‐free Honeyed Parched Slathered Wholesome

Chopped Fantastic Hors d’oeuvre Parfait Sliced Wild

Chowder Fermented Hot Pasteurized Slivered Wonderful

Clarified Fiery Hot Sauce Pâté Smokey Wrapped

Classical Fine Icy Penetrating Smooth Yummy

Comfort Food Finger Licking Good Infused Peppered Smothered Zest

Condensed Fibrous Intense Peppery Snappy Zestful

Condiment Filled Inviting Perfumed Snappy Zesty

Creamed Fiery Juicy Piccata Soaked Zippy

Creamery Flakey Julienne Pickled Soft

Creamy Flambé Kick Piping soft‐boiled

Example Words Used to Describe Food


40

Worksheet

Executive Summary: Provide a brief explanation of what your business does (one or two

sentences). Company Overview: Provide a brief history/description of your company.

Include information about when your business was formed and unique or exceptional

characteristics of your business (e.g., family farm/3rd generation farm family, organic or

free range, scenic/picturesque landscapes, lakes/streams, exceptional facilities). What

type of legal entity is your business (sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or

limited‐liability). What are your accomplishments to date?

Describe each product that you sell: Begin with the name of the product, list the price

of the product, and then describe each product. Use descriptive terms to describe you

products; think in terms of using appetizing words to describe crisp, garden‐fresh

lettuce; ripe, sweet, and juicy tomatoes; or golden sweet farm‐raised corn. A list of

words is provided on page 40 to help you think about how to describe your products.

Describe the services or activities that you provide: Begin with the name of the

service(s), amenity, or activities; list the cost of use in relevant terms; e.g. hourly, daily,

fixed price; and then describe each service. Make certain to identify any free amenities

your facility offers, e.g., a free shaded picnic area with barbeque grills; overlooking

scenic water views; accessible, lighted free parking; or free dog park area for your family

pet. Also think about other special attractions that are nearby that may attract visitors

to your area; for example…”within two mile of the Red Gate Bison Ranch.” Do you offer

unique amenities or services? Make certain to use descriptive terms.

Identify target markets: Precisely define your current and/or intended customers. Use

the data handout for your community to create a demographic profile for your target

customer(s); describe your customers and your market using appropriate geography,

age, income, household status, etc. Identify the potential size of your target market,

and when appropriate, define their spending patterns.

Define customer needs: Describe why customers want or need your product and/or

services. What is important to your customers – quality, price, location, service,

educational/learning experiences, or relaxation/recreation?

Industry Analysis: Relevant market size is determined by the number of customers who

may purchase your product/service multiplied by the amount these customers may

spend on your products and/or services on an annual basis.


41

Example: Based upon data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 2011 and 2012

Consumer Expenditure Surveys, there are approximately 22,879 households with a

median household income of $37,625 within a 30‐minute driving radius from Poplarville,

Mississippi. The average annual household spending on fruits and vegetables is $664.37

for food at home, indicating a potential market of $15,200,042. These households also

spend approximately $1,304 annually for snacks and other food at home, indicating a

potential market of $29,853,837. (insert name of farm) will capture one (1%) percent of

the households within a 30‐mile driving radius and induce expenditures equivalent to

approximately ten (10%) percent of annual household spending on fruits and

vegetables. Based upon these projections, it is anticipated that approximately 228

customers will spend an estimated $66.40 on the purchase of fruits and vegetables at

(insert name of farm), yielding annual sales of approximately $15,191. In order to

maximize revenues, (insert name of farm) will also sell locally made jams, jellies, and

baked goods. Assuming a capture rate of one (1%) percent of its customers’ spending

on snacks and other food at home, it is projected that 228 households will each spend

$13.04 annually, thereby generating additional sales of $2,983. Based upon these

projections, annual sales are estimated to be approximately $18,175.

Things to think about:

• Special offers or discounts, e.g. family package, quantity discounts, or memberships

• Convenient to use • Convenient to purchase • Gift wrapping, shipping • Product quality • Payment terms/credit cards • Hours of operation • Delivery • Other locations where your product is sold


42

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43

Additional Resources


44

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45

About Farmers’ Market Permits

The information in this section is provided courtesy of the Mississippi Department of

Agriculture and Commerce and is sourced from an article in Agricultural Law entitled: “Farmers’

Markets Rules and Regulations and Opportunities,” written by Neil D. Hamilton. The full article

is available at: http://www.nyfarmersmarket.com/pdf_files/fmruleregs.pdf

“Imagine the possibility of success in trying to operate farmers’ markets without any form of

written rules or policies for the vendors, it would not be long before a market would face

difficult issues – such as someone wanting to sell things other than farm products, or someone

deciding to come an hour early to get more sales.”4

The rules provide transparency for many reasons, such as: who can be a vendor, what products

can be sold, when and where the market will operate, how much it will cost to be a vendor, and

what the market experience will be like for shoppers. The rules are also important from a legal

perspective in that these rules become part of the agreement between the vendor and the

market, providing each party with clear rights and obligations within the parameters of the law. 5

According to Neil D. Hamilton in the article “Farmers’ Markets Rules, Regulations and

Opportunities,” there are issues that market organizers must address. The goal is not how

many rules govern the market or how thorough the rules may be transcribed, but how well

these rules address the varying issues within the market.

Thirteen Provisions Commonly Found in Farmers’ Market Rules:

Organizer or sponsor – identifies who runs the market and sets out the philosophy and

purpose of the market.

Market manager ‐ identifies who makes the decisions on day‐to‐day operations.

Statement of the rules – makes the rules part of the agreement between the vendor and

the market.

Defining key terms – explains what key phrases, such as vendor, allowable goods, categories

of products, etc., will mean in context.

Approval of vendors and products ‐ defines who can sell (farmer/non‐farmer distinction),

and what can be sold (produce‐craft‐food distinctions).

4 Information is adapted from the National AgLaw Center Publication. Article is entitled: “Farmers’ Markets Rules, Regulations, and Opportunities.” 5 An Agricultural Law Research Article: http://www.nyfarmersmarket.com/pdf_files/fmruleregs.pdf


46

Criteria for selecting vendors – establishes any priorities or preferences, the basis for

selection criterion, and allocates market spaces.

Categories of products – rules for items such as baked goods, nursery plants, eggs, cheeses,

meat, and processed foods, commonly related to inspections and handling.

Changes in ownership and vendors’ rights – addresses issues such as transfer or change of

business and seniority for market spaces.

Carrying rules – may allow farm vendors to sell products raised by other farmers.

Application process and fees – provides for the timing of application, selection, and

notification of vendors, sets the amount and payment of fees, and allocates market spaces

and locations.

Types of vendors and length of market – creates categories of seasonal and daily vendors

and guidelines for sampling, if allowed.

Other provisions – labeling, posting farm name, using legal scales, accepting nutrition

checks and food stamps, pricing guidelines, farm visits, and gleaning excess food.

Signature line – creates a binding agreement between vendor and market.”6

The Mississippi Farmers’ Market was created to provide facilities efficient handling of farm

products in the interest of the farmer, consumer, general public, and the State of Mississippi.

Farmers’ markets offer a variety of items: farm‐fresh eggs, jams, jellies, baked goods, fresh

fruits, vegetables, etc. Not all items at farmers’ markets require a permit or license, but there

are regulations for particular items sold at farmers’ markets. The following resources provide

guidelines for farmers’ market vendors and managers for determining the types of permits and

licenses that may be needed for specific products:

http://www.mdac.state.ms.us/departments/ms_farmers_market/pdf/frm_mkt_permit.pdf

http://www.mdac.state.ms.us/departments/ms_farmers_market/pdf/CottageFoodFAQs.pdf

http://www.mdac.state.ms.us/departments/ms_farmers_market/pdf/frm_mkt_egg_vendor.pdf

http://www.mdac.state.ms.us/departments/ms_farmers_market/pdf/SalesMeatPoultry.pdf

6 Source: Agricultural Law Research Article: http://www.nyfarmersmarket.com/pdf_files/fmruleregs.pdf


47

About Animal Health and Safety Guidelines

Work with local veterinarians and animal health inspectors to ensure that your facility has

policies and procedures in place that coincide with all county, city, state and federal

regulations. Below are some basic guidelines and tips to help you develop an animal health and

safety plan.

When hosting events for the public, it is vital that your facility has health and safety guidelines

in order to minimize risk and keep your visitors safe.

When events take place that involve animals, managers must make certain that rules and

regulations to maintain animal health and the health of any people that come in contact with

animals be followed. The following materials have been adapted from information provided by

the National Children’s Center for Rural Agricultural Health Safety.

Hand Washing is a key way to minimize exposure germs and disease.

The following tips can aid a manager in maintaining a clean facility:

Health Tips 1. Have a hand washing policy for all employees and visitors. 2. Make sure your event staff reminds visitors to wash hands after handling animals and

before handling food. 3. Provide access to hot and cold running water to all employees and visitors. 4. Keep soap dispensers full and post signs in all food, restroom, and animal areas,

reminding visitors and employees to wash hands. 5. Provide paper towels in hand washing areas for drying hands. 6. Inspect and clean restrooms on a regular basis. 7. Make sure that sinks and toilets are all low enough for children to reach. 8. Make sure that hand washing and restroom areas are handicapped accessible.

More signs to post in animal areas are available at:

http://www.nasphv.org/documentscompendiananimals.html


48

The Centers for Disease Control provides extensive information on the measures that should be

taken to prevent disease associated with animals in public settings; these guidelines are

available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr6004a1.htm?s_cid=rr6004a1_w

and should be read and reviewed by facility managers and event organizers. The table below

provides basic health and safety tips for handling animals in a public setting that were

excerpted from the Centers for Disease Control:

Health and Safety Tips for Handling Animals in a Public Setting

Visitors should be informed of the risks for disease and injury when handling animals. Even healthy animals can carry disease.

Young children, pregnant women, and those with weakened immune systems are more at risk.

Hand washing can remove most germs that can be acquired while handling animals.

Wash hands for at least 20 seconds under high pressure warm water and soap.

Dry hands with a paper towel.

Do not eat or drink in animal areas.

Have a hand washing area that is accessible when exiting animal areas.

Closely supervise children.

Keep animal areas clean.

Require proof of rabies vaccination for all animals on property.

Require proof of negative Coggins test and health certificates for all equine animals entering the property. Check papers prior to allowing an animal to enter facility grounds.


49

Horse Show Planning Guidelines

Contributed by: Sherry Smith, Extension Agent IV Lee County Extension Service

Mississippi State University Extension Service

In order to have a well-planned show, it is suggested to begin at least nine months to a year in advance of the projected date.

The initial meeting should be with the show manager and other committee members.

The Show Manager

The manager is responsible for the overall operation of the show and coordination of all show plans and details. They do not have to personally handle all show duties and details. However, the manager should clearly communicate directions and requests of all show personnel, officials and volunteers. They should follow up on delegated tasks to ensure all show details and jobs are carried out as planned.

Other possible committee members:

Secretary Show Grounds/Stall Manager Ringmaster Chair Announcer Gate Attendant Chair Arena Crew Chair

Determine the type of show and complete necessary approval papers with any associations. Set the date and location of show and advertise as early as possible. Determine what classes you will offer and the class schedule.

Establish a budget. Determine entry fees and project income. Consider expenses, such as judges, ribbons, awards, insurance, facilities, printing, supplies and advertising. If expenses are larger than income, you might consider securing sponsors.

Meet with facility personnel to discuss needs for the show. Check with them on stalls, camper/RV hookups, parking policies, clean-up requirements, food and refreshments, etc. They will need a list of show day needs such as tables, chairs, PA system(s), schedule for arena work and watering needs.

Initial Planning (9-12 months before show)


50

Obtain qualified judge(s)

The type of show will determine how many you will need. Some judges prefer to be paid total per day, which usually runs around $250 - $300, while others may charge $100 - $150 per day plus meals, lodging, and mileage.

Secure a signed agreement with the judge as soon as possible. It should include: date and location, expenses that are covered, the name and phone number of person to contact if questions arise, and a self- addressed, stamped envelope for returning the signed agreement.

Make lodging reservations for the judge(s) if needed. At least four to six weeks prior to the show. Send an information packet to the

judge including: confirmation letter, directions to the show, names and phone numbers of key contact persons, rule book, and any additional guidelines or information. Requests or considerations for patterns should be sent well in advance of the show. Clarify specific patterns needed or to be approved by the judge and specify date to be returned for the show.

Keep accurate records of all show expenditures and income.

The show committee should take necessary action to ensure safety of exhibitors, horses, spectators and all show participants when planning and conducting a show.

The decision to have EMS or medical personnel on the grounds usually depends on the number of exhibitors and spectators. As total number of individuals increase, so does probability of illness or injury. Another factor to consider is distance from a medical facility. If medical personnel will not be present, compile a list of phone numbers in case of emergency.

It is preferable for a veterinarian to be present throughout the show. If this is not practical, a veterinarian should be contacted prior to the show and arrangements made for the veterinarian to be “on-call”.

Obtain the services of a farrier who should be present or “on-call.” A first aid kit and fire extinguisher should be located in the show office. All health requirements for animals should be specified on show flyers and/or

entry forms.

Prepare and distribute a flyer. Possible items to include: Name of show Location

Safety Planning

Six Months Before the Show


51

Starting time/class schedule Type of Show Day and Date(s) Name of judge(s) Entry fees (pre fees and deadlines, refund policy) Awards Rules Who to call for more information Release of liability clause

If pre-registration is required, have a place for exhibitor/horse name, classes to be entered, address, phone and age.

Order back numbers, ribbons, trophies, judges’ cards, etc. Line up needed volunteers

Process entries Check with all personnel, judges, volunteers, etc. Contact local newspaper/media Work with secretary to secure supplies and equipment Secure all equipment needed for patterns and classes Make a list of all job assignments needed for show day. Have a schedule and

have people sign up for jobs in advance.

Check grounds for safety, designate parking areas, post signs Check arena set up Organize show office Designate area for ribbons/awards Set up announcer table/booth Organize equipment for arena Develop a plan that will allow ample room for horses at the in-gate and avoid

crowding that can lead to a hazardous situation. Plan to keep spectators away from the in-gate to further minimize hazardous situations.

One Month Before the Show

Week and Day Before the Show


52

Processing Entries

Some shows use a computer, others do them by hand. Some entries are required ahead of time, while some shows allow contestants to enter the day of the show. Whatever system you use, have a method of keeping track of who is entered in each class.

Prepare a sheet for each class being offered. At minimum you will need to list the contestant’s name, number, and placing in the class. For larger shows, it is helpful to have three copies: one for the office, one for the gate, and one for the announcer.

High Points and Scoring If you choose to present high points, you will need a method for keeping track

of the placings and/or scores. Whether done by computer or hand, have forms prepared ahead of time. The more information you can enter in advance, the easier it will be on show day.

Set up check-in area at least one hour prior to start of show. Have organized plan and forms for checking in exhibitors, collecting fees, providing exhibitor numbers.

Secretary is responsible for: Organizing distribution of ribbons and trophies Organizing class entries for the announcer and gate crew Recording class placings Prepare judges’ cards Paying the judge Score sheets for pattern classes for judges

Post any warning signs, safety and emergency numbers. Post patterns at least one hour prior to the start of respective class. Post any other signs or information needed throughout the grounds. Post schedule of workers throughout the day. Provide a 10-20 minute gate call before starting the show. Attend to the needs of judges, ringmasters, and other show officials. Ensure

that all have food, drinks, chairs, etc. Have a list of equipment needs, patterns for each class for set-up crew

Day of the Show


53

Follow up on any clean-up agreements with facility Submit bills to Secretary Send thank you notes to appropriate personnel/volunteers/exhibitors Conduct a short follow-up meeting to evaluate the show

Present final income/expense statement Project expenses for future shows, make necessary adjustments to fees Record suggestions for improvements for next year

After the Show


54

Horse Show Check List

Horse Show Check-List

The following is a comprehensive list for all types of shows. Depending on the type or size of your show, all items may not apply.

Manager Association Sanctions Date/ Book Facility Show Schedule Judge(s)/ Written Contract Class Patterns Insurance Health Requirements

Staff

Announcer(s) Secretary Gate Attendant(s) Ringmaster(s) Ribbon Presenter Speed Event Timer(s) Arena Set-Up Crew

Stable Management

Lights/ Breaker Boxes Keys/ Locked or Unlocked Stalls Bedding/Delivery Manure Removal Stall Chart Trailer Parking Wash Racks Water/ Hoses

Awards

Secure Class Ribbons/ Awards Champions/Other Awards Table/Presentation Area Sponsor Information for Announcer Photography Area Class Winner/Champion Signs

Staff (Optional)

Hospitality Coordinator Stall Manager Grounds Maintenance Parking Attendant(s) Security Farrier Veterinarian Photographer Media Relations

First Aid

Ambulance Protocol EMT Equine Injury Transport Plan First Aid Kit Post Address/Directions to Hospital

Ground Preparation

Horse Show Office Table/Chairs for Check-In Hospitality Area Announcer Stand/ Chairs Ring Fencing RV Parking Spectator Seating Trash Cans Shading Tents for Outside Arena Set Up Holding Areas Toilet/Shower Facilities

Ring Management

Schedule for volunteers to work

Horse Show Check-List


55

Arena Maintenance Equipment/Driver

Measuring Tape Place to Post Patterns PA System: Arena and Paddock Timers/ Stop Watches Extension Cords Walkie-Talkies Cones, Trail Obstacles, etc. Flour/Marking Item for Barrels/Poles

Concessions

Adequate locations for show size Food/Drink Vendors

Office

Programs Time Schedules Patterns (Post and/ or Copies) Entry Forms Add/Scratch Sheets Class Sheets/ Placing Form Judges’ Cards Exhibitor Numbers Office Supplies (Pins, Pencils, etc.) Petty Cash Box Clipboards for Officials Computer Petty Cash Award List Association Rule Book Pattern Diagram for Set-Up Crew Water/Refreshments for Officials

Miscellaneous

Directional Signs Exhibitors Party/Hospitality Tool Box for Equipment Repair Hotel/ Transportation for Judges Measuring Stick/ Forms (if needed) Ground Clean-Up Procedure Web Site/Pre-registration information


56

Agritourism

Marketing and Branding in M

ississippi

57

Mis

siss

ippi

Med

ia C

onta

ct D

atab

ase

Nam

eAddress

City

Zipcode

Phone

Fax

Email

Freq

uen

cy of Publication

Monroe Journal

115 South Main St.

Amory

MS

38821(662)‐256‐5647

662

‐256

‐5701

[email protected]

advertising@

monroecountyjournal.com

[email protected]

new

[email protected]

weekly newspaper w/ daily online updates

The Itawam

ba County Times

106 West M

ain St

Fulton

MS

38843662

‐862

‐3141

662

‐862

‐7804

web@itaw

ambatimes.com

advertising@

itaw

ambatimes.com

classifieds@

itaw

amba360.com

circulation@itaw

ambatimes.com


The Pontotoc Progress

PO Box 210

Pontotoc

MS

38863662

‐489

‐3511

662

‐489

‐1369

pontotoc.news@

journalinc.com

p [email protected]

[email protected]

pontotoc.news@

journalinc.com

Northeast M

S Daily Journal

1242

South Green

St.

Tupelo

MS

38804662

‐842

‐2611

662

‐842

‐2233

[email protected]

www.djournal.com

daily journal new

spaper along

w/ 8 sites

Chickasaw Journal

225 E Madison St.

Houston

MS

38851662

‐456

‐3771

662

‐456

‐5202


Southern Sentinel

1701

City Avenue North

Ripley

MS

38863662

‐847

‐8111

662

‐837

‐4504

[email protected]

advertising@

tippah360.com

[email protected]

new

[email protected]

weekly newspaper

New

Albany Ne w

s Exchange

PO Box 87

New

Albany

MS

38652(662) 538

‐6868

(662) 538‐6867

na.news@

journalinc.com


Choctaw Plaindealer

48 Louisville Street

Ackernm

an

MS

39735662

‐285

‐6248

662

‐285

‐6695

reporter@

choctawplaindealer.com

published each Wednesday

Winston

County Journal

119 N Court Ave

Lousiville

MS

39339662

‐773

‐6241

662

‐773

‐6242

new

[email protected]

classifieds@

winstoncountyjournal.com

bookkeeping@

winstoncountyjournal.co

published each Wednesday

Webster Progress‐Times

58 N Dunn Street

Eupora

MS

39744662

‐2587532

662

‐258

‐6474

[email protected]

published each Thursday

Panolian

P.O. Box 1616

Batesville

MS

38606662

‐563

‐4591

662

‐563

‐5610

publisher@

panolian.com

new

[email protected]

[email protected]

advertising@

panolian.com

classifieds@

panolian.com

[email protected]

accounting@

panolian.com

[email protected]

published every Tuesday and

Friday

Sea Coast Echo

P.O. Box 2009

Bat St. Louis

MS

39520228

‐467

‐5473

228

‐467

‐0333

[email protected]

gbelcher@

seacoastecho.com

[email protected]

classifieds@

seacoastecho.com

[email protected]

published sem

i‐weekly on Wednesday and

Saturday

Belzoni Banner

P.O. Box 610

Belzoni

MS

39038

‐0610 662

‐247

‐3373

662

‐247

‐3372

[email protected]

published (online an d

in print) on

Wednesda

Agritourism


ississippi

58

Gulf Coast New

s184 Iberville Drive

Biloxi

MS

39531

228‐374

‐7535

GCNwebmaster@

gulfcoastnew

s.com

news@

gulfcoastnew

s.com

sales@

gulfcoastnew

s.com

Sun Herald

P.O. B

ox 4567

Biloxi

MS

39535

228‐896

‐2100

228‐896

‐0503

mynew

[email protected]

soundoff@

sunherald.com

dladner@

sunherald.com

daily new

spaper published online and

in prin

Daily Leader

128 North Railroad

AvenueBrookhaven

MS

39601

601‐833

‐6961

601‐833

‐6714

rachel.eide@

dailyleader.com

zane.brown@

dailyleader.com

anna.montgomery@

dailyleader.com

a five day new

spaper in print and

online

Carthaginian

122 W

. Franklin Street

Carthage

MS

395051

601‐267

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601‐267

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news@

thecarthaginian.com

jimmy@

thecarthaginian.com

waid@

thecarthaginian.com

published weekly in print and

online

Press Register

128 East Second

St

Clarksdale

MS

38614

662‐627

‐2201

662‐624

‐5125

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pressregister.com

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pressregister.com

bkeller@

pressregister.com

published on Wednesdays and Fridays

Bolivar Com

mercial

P.O. B

ox 1050

Cleveland

MS

38732

662‐843

‐4241

662‐843

‐1830

news@

bolivarcommercial.com

advertising@

bolivarcom

mercial.com

[email protected]

publisher@

bolivarcommercial.com

published each afternoon, Tuesday –

Friday and Sunday mornings

Columbian

Progress

318 Second Street

Columbia

MS

39429

601‐736

‐2611

601‐736

‐4507

news@

columbianprogress.com

[email protected]

bi‐weekly new

spaper, online and print

The Columbus Packet

702 Hwy 45N #2

Columbus

MS

39701

662‐329

‐1741

columbuspacket@

cableone.net

columbuspacketm

[email protected]

weekly new

spaper

Daily Corinthian

P.O. Box 1800

Corinth

MS

38835

662‐287

‐6111

662‐287

‐3525

news@

dailycorinthian.com

advertising@

dailycorinithian.com

classad@

dailycorinthian.com

[email protected]

six day daily newspaper

The Commercial D

ispatch

P.O. B

ox 511

Columbus

MS

39703

662‐328

‐2424

662‐796

‐9016

[email protected]

[email protected]

custom

erservice@

cdispatch.com

news@

cdispatch.com

daily new

spaper and website

Scott County Times

P.O. B

ox 89

Forest

MS

39407

601‐469

‐2561

601‐469

‐2004

news@

sctonline.net

weekly paper online and

print

Delta Dem

ocrat Times

988 North Broadway Street Greenville

MS

38701

662‐335

‐1155

662‐335

‐2860

ddtnew

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

daily new

spaper

The Greenwood

Com

monw

ealthP.O. B

ox 8050

Greenw

ood

MS

38935

662‐453

‐5312

662‐453

‐2908

commonwealth@gw

commonwealth.co

m lalderman@

gwcommonwealth.com

kturner@

gwcommonwealth.com

published M

onday through

Friday

afternoond and Sunday mornings

Grenada

Star

50 Corporate Row

Grenada

MS

38901

662‐226

‐4321

662‐226

‐8310

[email protected]

[email protected]

New

[email protected]

[email protected]

published every Tuesday and

Friday

Agritourism


ississippi

59

Hattiesburg American

825 N. M

ain St

Hattiesburg

MS

39401

601‐582

‐4321

601‐584

‐3075

jhcasey@

hattiesburgamerican.com

lbeveridge@


tfow

ler@


daily new

spaper and website

Copiah

Coutny Courier

P.O. B

ox 351

Hazelhurst

MS

39083

601‐894

‐3141

601‐894

‐3144

[email protected]

[email protected]

press@

bellsouth.net

[email protected]

published every W

ednesday

South Reporter

P.O. B

ox 278

Holly Springs

MS

38635

662‐252

‐4261

662‐252

‐3388

southreporter@

dixie‐net.com

weekly new

paper and

website

Clarion

Ledger

201 S. C

ongress St.

Jackson

MS

39201

601‐961

‐7200

601‐961

‐7329

btolley@

jackson.gannett.com

rweeks@

jackson.gannett.com

publisher@

clarionledger.com

Ellen@

vipjacksonmag.com

daily new

spaper and website

Rankin Ledger

201 S. C

ongress St.

Jackson

MS

39201

601‐961

‐7382

thughes@

jackson.gannett.com

tapel@

jackson.gannett.com

btolley@

jackson.gannett.com

weekly publication of The Clarion‐Ledger

Madison

County Herald

794 U.S. 51, Suite B

Madison

MS

39110

(601) 961‐7053

[email protected]

news@

mcherald.com

bcash@

jackson.gannett.com


Clinton

New

s201 S. C

ongress St.

J ackson

MS

39201

(601) 961‐7066

[email protected]

rcum

mins@

jackson.gannett.com


Jackson Advocate

100 W

Ham

ilton St

Jackson

MS

39202

601‐948

‐4122

601‐948

‐412

thejacksonadvocate@gm

ail.com

weekly new

spaper

Jackson Free

Press

P.O. B

ox 5067

Jackson

MS

39296

601‐362

‐6121

601‐510

‐9019

[email protected]

ads@

jacksonfreepress.com

weekly new

spaper

Mississippi Business Journal

200 N Congress Street #40 0Jackson

MS

39201

601‐364

‐1000

601‐364

‐1035

[email protected]

ads@

msbusiness.com

photos@

msbusiness.com

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

tami.jones@

msbusiness.com

daily website, w

eekly new

spaper

Mississippi Link

2659 Livingston

Road

Jackson

MS

39213

601‐896

‐0084

601‐896

‐0091

admin@them

ississippilink.com

weekly new

spaper

Star Herald

207 North M

adison

St.

Kosciusko

MS

39090

662‐289

‐2251

662‐289

‐2254

ccom

[email protected]

[email protected]

ddabbs@

starherald.net

daily website, w

eekly new

spaper

Laurel Leader‐Call

318 N. M

agnolia

St.

Laurel

MS

39440

601‐649

‐9388

601‐649

‐9390

ads@

leader‐call.net

editor@leader‐call.net

classifieds@leader‐call.net

three day a week publication

Enterprise‐Journal

P.O. B

ox 2009

McCom

bMS

39649

601‐684

‐2421

601‐684

‐0836

news@

enterprise‐journal.com

published 6 times a week, M

onday through

Friday and Sunday

Meridian Star

814 22nd Ave

Meridian

MS

39302

601‐693

‐1551

601‐485

‐1275

publisher@

themeridianstar.com

hreynolds@

them

eridianstar.com

[email protected]

daily new

spaper

Lawrence County Press

P.O. B

ox 549

Monticello

MS

39654

601‐587

‐2781

601‐587

‐2794

[email protected]

published weekly on

Wednesday

Agritourism


ississippi

60

Natchez Dem

ocrat

503 North Canal St.

Natchez

MS

39120601

‐442

‐9101

601

‐442

‐7315

new

sroom@natchezdem

ocrat.com

sue.hicks@natchezdem

ocrat.com

kevin.cooper@

natchezdem

ocrat.com

daily newspaper

Natchez Sun

P.O. Box 17833

Natchez

MS

39122601

‐446

‐8803

natchezsun@

hotm

ail.com

Desoto Times‐Tribune

2445

Hwy 51

Hernando

MS

38632662

‐429

‐6397

editor@

desototimestribune.com

publisher@


lylamc@

phpublishingllc.com

editor@


published every Tuesday, Thursday, and

Saturday

Oxford Eagle

916 Jackson Ave

Oxford

MS

38655662

‐234

‐4331

662

‐234

‐4351

[email protected]

addirector@

oxfordeagle.com

new

[email protected]

published M

onday th rough Friday

The M

ississippi Press

P.O. Box 849

Pascagoula

MS

39568228

‐769

‐6777

228

‐934

‐1454

gulfnew

[email protected]

[email protected]

daily online and weekly Wednesday,

Friday, and Sunday

Gazebo Gazette

P.O. Box 358

Pass Christian

MS

39571228

‐363

‐1973

228

‐452

‐5756

editor@

gazebogazette.com

published every Friday

Neshoba Dem

ocrat

P.O. Box 30

Philadelphia

MS

39350601

‐656

‐4000

601

‐656

‐6379

[email protected]

jprince@

neshobadem

ocrat.com

mandy@

neshobadem

ocrat.com

weekly newspaper

Picayune

Item

P.O. Box 580

Picayune

MS

39466601

‐798

‐4766

601

‐798

‐8602

picayuneitem

@bellsouth.net

published five days a week, Tuesday

through Friday and

on Sunday

Madison

County Journal

P.O. Box 219

Ridgeland

MS

39158601

‐853

‐4222

601

‐856

‐9419

[email protected]

jprince@

onlinem

adison.com

tstribling@

onlinemadison.com

weekly newspaper

The Dem

ocrat

219 East M

ain St

Sentatobia

MS

38668662

‐562

‐4414

662

‐562

‐8866

reporter@

thedem

ocrat.com

pageeditor@

thedemocrat.com

[email protected]

printed each Tuesday

Starkville Daily New

sP.O. Box 1068

Starkville

MS

39759662

‐323

‐1642

662

‐323

‐6586

sdnpub@

starkvilledailynews.com

new

s@starkvilledailynew

s.com

ads@starkvilledailynew

s.com

daily newspaper

Tunica Times

P.O. Box 308

Tunica

MS

38676662

‐363

‐1511

662

‐363

‐9969

new

[email protected]

published every Friday

Vicksburg Times

P.O. Box 821668

Vicksburg

MS

39182601

‐636

‐4545

601

‐634

‐0897

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

new

sreleases@

vicksburgpost.com

daily newspaper

North M

ississippi Herald

416 N M

ain St

Water Valley

MS

38965662

‐473

‐1473

662

‐473

‐9133

dhowl@

bellsouth.net

[email protected]

[email protected]

published every Thursday

Wayne

County New

s716 South S treet

Waynesboro

MS

39367601

‐735

‐4341

601

‐735

‐1111

publisher@

thew

aynecountynews.com

editor@

thew

aynecountynews.com

advertising@

thewaynecountynews.com

published every Thursday

Agritourism


ississippi

61

Daily Times Leader

P.O. B

ox 1176

West Point

MS

39773

662‐494

‐1422

662‐494

‐1414

sdnpub@

bellsouth.net

[email protected]

news@

dailytimesleader.com

ads@

dailytimesleader.com

Tuesday through Friday and Sunday

mornings

Stone County Enterprise

143 First Street South

Wiggins

MS

39577

601‐928

‐4802

601‐928

‐2191

[email protected]

[email protected]

ads@

stonecountyenterprise.com

published once a week on Wednesdays

Yazoo Hearld

1035 Grand Ave

Yazoo City

MS

39194

662‐746

‐4911

662‐746

‐4915

[email protected]

[email protected]

The New

Southern View

PO Box 7962

Jackson

MS

39284‐7962 601

‐372

‐2679

[email protected]

Mississippi's first online magazine

Mississippi Sportsman

PO Box 1199

Boutte

LA70039

(800) 538‐4355

(985) 758‐7000

tonyt@

lasm

ag.com

alicial@

lasm

ag.com

kellyp@

lasm

ag.com

monthly magazine

Mississippi Outdoors

1505 Eastover Drive

Jackson

MS

39211

601.432.2249

601.432.2255

jimw@mdw

fp.state.ms.us

laceyk@mdw

fp.state.ms.us

bi‐m

onthly magazine

Campus Chronicle (Alcorn State1000 ASU

Drive 269

Alcorn State

MS

39096‐7500(601) 877‐6632

601‐877

‐2213

[email protected]

published in

print periodically; online

edition

The Reflector (M

SU)

PO Box 5407

Mississippi State

MS

39762

662‐325

‐8991

[email protected]

[email protected]

news@

reflector.msstate.edu

every Tuesday and Friday

Daily M

ississippian

(Ole M

iss)

201 Bishop Hall

Oxford

MS

38677

(662) 915‐5503

dmeditor@

gmail.com

published M

onday through

Friday during

the academic year


62

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E-Mail: [email protected]

Website: http://www.sig.msstate.edu

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