“Social Media 101: What you wanted to know but where afraid to ask,” was the title of the afternoon session today at the Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference. The interactive session was given by Staci Garcia, Public Relations for United Dairy Industry of Michigan and Sara Long, Michigan State University Communications Manager. The session was given to dairy partners of …
Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference Kicks Off
Greetings from Grand Rapids, Mich. I’m attending and speaking at the 2009 Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference, a conference that has been serving the needs of dairy producers since 2003. The conference center is packed with producers who are seeking solutions to the rising challenges facing them in 2009. I’m happy to be a part of the equation, and I …
Do you iGoogle? I do!
When I was working as an intern in Minneapolis this past summer, one of my co-workers would always stop by my office to share her latest techno-gadget love. I will admit that I’m not often at the front of the pack when it comes to technology, and I often avoid trying something new if I’m not sure of the benefits. …
Super Bowl Ads
Whether or not you’re a fan of football, I’m sure that many of you took part in a Super Bowl party last night. I met up with some college friends to watch the game, laugh at the commercials and eat lots of food! Although I’m not an avid football guru (I always cheer for the underdog), I LOVE watching the …
NCBA’s New Youth Focus
After spending a week at the 2009 Cattle Industry Convention, I’m pretty excited about the new focus on the youth in agriculture. 2008 NCBA President Andy Groseta was incredibly driven to invest in the cattle industry’s youth, and he accomplished those goals in three ways: NCBA’s Young Producers Council (YPC) and NCBA Youth Public Speaking Contest and the Team Marketing …
Ditchin’ South Dakota
Classes are in full swing, homework is piling up, I’m in my senior semester at SDSU, the snow is getting deep and I’m ditching school to head to sunny Arizona for the Cattle Industry’s Annual Trade Show and Convention. I’ll be catching up with Chuck in Phoenix as we gather with ranchers, industry professionals and friends for some good conversations …
God Bless Farm Gals
It is often overlooked that the female in a farming operation plays a crucial role in the success of that business. This ranch partner wears many hats including: hired hand, meals-on-wheels service, chauffer, maid, errands-runner, fix-it gal and chore help. She can be found in the kitchen, in the feedyard, on a tractor or in a repair shop. She keeps …
Argentina Trip Broadens Ag Horizons
This past June, I traveled with the SDSU Spanish Department to Buenos Aires, Argentina. For an entire month, we attended classes, lived with host families, explored the big city, traveled to vineyards, the Andes Mountains, the rainforest and Iguazu Falls, and learned a lot of Spanish along the way. The month was truly an experience of a lifetime, and I …
What’s the Job Outlook?
Despite icy roads and blizzard conditions, I made the haul from Brookings, S.D. to Lincoln, Neb. for a job interview. I decided that the poor economy and struggling job market was a lot scarier than a good, old South Dakota winter storm, so I made the 5 hour trip down to Neb. for the interview. As this is my last …
A Network Just For Ranchers
There are so many social networks out there, it’s hard to maintain them all! However, I have found a social network that might be perfect for you! It’s called CattleGrower, a network community for livestock producers to connect, collaborate and promote their operations. It’s a great way to make more connections, increase business in 2009, chat with like-minded producers, list …