Direct Marketing via US Postal Service’s Every Door Direct Mail Program

In this paper I describe the US Postal Service’s Every Door Direct Mail program which delivers postcards inexpensively to residents within a ZIP code. Extension educators interested in making the most of their advertising dollars can use the EDDM program advantageously. Best practices for advertising campaigns employing this direct mail option are provided

Profiling the Evolving Characteristics and Needs for Risk Management Education of Commercial Agricultural Producers in the Intermountain West

The rural West has experienced dramatic demographic and economic transformations during the past several decades. The makeup of farm operators has changed significantly, and enterprises are increasingly at greater production, financial, marketing, human, and institutional risks. Given the importance of university outreach education to the future of agriculture, a better understanding of farm operators, including what they perceive to be the greatest threats to their operations, is required to effectively design risk management education. This project has resulted in improved understanding of agricultural producer needs for risk management education, through the results of two surveys completed over the past three years. These surveys targeted both small (<$50,000 ag sales) and large (>$50,000 ag sales) operators across three western states (WY, CO, and AZ). Results are generally much more descriptive of the educational needs, as well as suggesting mechanisms for delivery for Extension workers and others than the results available from the general agricultural census. More information at: http://RuralFamilyVentures.org.agricultural producer profile, risk management education, rural enterprises, western agriculture, rural family ventures, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Master Money Manager Coach: A Financial Literacy Train-the-Trainer Program

Master Money Manager Coach (M3C) is a 2-day in-person train-the-trainer program targeted to staff and volunteers at community-based organizations. The dual purposes of the program are to teach trainees how to teach money management using the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation\u27s Money Smart curriculum and to give trainees coaching tools they can use to reinforce positive behavior change in their clients through assistance with goal setting and one-on-one support. The program has been effective in helping engage an audience that ultimately can reach more individual clients than one project team can working separately and directly with end-user clientele

Community Directed Leadership Programs in Wyoming

Efforts to increase local support for community leadership programs have led Wyoming to develop a very heavy emphasis on local direction and delivery. The Wyoming concept features programs led by a volunteer steering committee and guided by general parameters

The Executive Institute for Commercial Producers Program

As the business environment changes, the long-term success of farming operations requires farm managers to develop better business management skills. The Executive Institute for Commercial Producers (EICP) program provided a comprehensive management curriculum of strategy, finance, business marketing, and human resources. The multi-session workshop stimulated commercial farmers to think about their business from a strategic perspective and make decisions about how to take advantage of business strengths. To further expand the educational outreach, teaching materials were converted into a Web-based format that includes text resources explaining and applying the concepts to today\u27s farm business, annotated PowerPoint presentations, and exercises

Reaching the Small Acreage Audience Through Collaboration: The Small Acreage Conservation Education and Outreach Project

The Small Acreage Conservation Education and Outreach Project is an inter-organization team of natural resource professionals that provides education to the growing audience of exurban and rural small acreage landowners on management of natural resources. This article outlines the effective and extensive collaboration as well as the three-pronged approach to land management education that has been developed. The model may be useful beyond the reported topic

INVenture: A Software-Based Model for Assessing Entrepreneurial Ventures

Relatively few new entrepreneurs develop business plans or they go about such planning in a haphazard way that invites errors and omissions. This article presents a systemized, Web-based venture planning model that collects appropriate information and assists entrepreneurs in evaluating new ventures. The model provides self-motivated feedback progressively over a series of stages. Each stage represents a unique level of analysis crucial to accepting or rejecting proposed ventures. In the process of completing the model, a detailed and systematic business plan is created

Farming Together: Developing the Next Generation of Management

Farming Together is a long-running workshop at Purdue University that assists farming families in developing a son, daughter, or partner in becoming a future manager in the business. The workshop provides information and work time to develop answers to common questions and begin making decisions together

THE MARKET FOR E-COMMERCE SERVICES IN AGRICULTURE

We report results of a survey of 608 Ohio agribusinesses in 1999 and show them to be divided in their attitudes and acceptance of e-commerce. Half of the respondents report that their business has a web site, although many had taken a negative stance toward such a move. Nearly all say that the internet will significantly change their sector, and the majority of managers report that e-commerce has significantly affected the way they view their business.Marketing,

Who Are Today’s Farmers and What are Their Educational Needs?

Labor and Human Capital, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,