Completed Project Report


Business Planning and Marketing Education for Tennessee Farmers

  • Award Amount: $49,958
  • Regional Center: Southern Extension Risk Management Education Center
  • Grant Program: 2018 Education Projects
  • Project Director: Megan Leffew
  • Email: mleffew@utk.edu
  • Organization: Center for Profitable Agriculture

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Project Overview

The Business Planning and Online Marketing Education for Tennessee Farmers project provided educational opportunities to help participants manage financial and marketing risk by developing business plans and implementing cost-effective online marketing strategies. Tennessee farmers involved in value-added, direct marketing and agritourism enterprises were the intended audience.

The program included:

  • an 8-session seminar series, Building a Sustainable Business Workshop Series
  • 3 sessions on business planning in 2019 Memphis New Farm Academy
  • 2, day-long DeviceReady Workshops designed to help producers manage their overall online presence
  • 4, day-long, hands-on Facebook 101 Workshops
  • 12 month Online Marketing Webinar Series covering
     topics such as social media trends, e-mail marketing and effective use of social media platforms
  • 4 Farmers Market Vendor Boot Camp Workshops including sessions on business planning basics and digital marketing trends

A total of 516 people participated in the educational programs offered. A total of 235 participants reported their knowledge of marketing fundamentals, tools and/or techniques. Of these, 229 reported developing  written goals for implementing new or improved marketing strategies, and 51 reported implementing strategies learned to improve the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. Eighty-five participants reported increasing their knowledge of business planning to evaluate on-farm investment decisions, and four developed a business plan.

Number of Participants: 516

Outcomes

Project Steps

PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS

There are no promotional materials available for this project.

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

There are no educational materials available for this project.

REPORTS & EVALUATIONS

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DELIVERY AREA

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