It looks like we’ll have another study out next month on how farmers use media, especially “digital.” The American Business Media’s (ABM) Agricultural Council and Readex Research will conduct a major agricultural research study that will explore the use of digital, mobile and social media channels by farmers and ranchers. I hope they survey some AgChatters! There has been a lot of this research done in the past couple years. It will be interesting to see how this study compares to the others.
The study’s objective is to gain new insights into how specific digital channels fit into the overall behavioral pattern of farmers and ranchers and to understand how these channels layer onto other traditional channels in terms of influencing behavior.
“We believe this research will add significant new information to the industry’s knowledge base and enable Ag media companies to better serve the needs of Ag marketers,” said Bill Miller, vice chairman of Meister Media Worldwide and chair of ABM’s Agri Council.
Some of the specific question areas the study will address include: how often farmers and ranchers view, visit, attend or use different Ag media or information sources; what media and information sources farmers and ranchers use at different points in the decision-making process; and how the importance of various media and information sources is likely to change in the next three to four years.
The study is currently in the field, with results available in April 2010.