FlourishFiles

In Memory of a Client

 

Richard Stanton 1965 - 2015

Richard Stanton, the National Secretary of Australian Forestry Standard Ltd, died in a tragic accident just over a week ago.

I didn’t know Richard long. I met him in 2012 and had been providing him with ad hoc communications services since 2013.

So how do you deal with the death of a client? 

The relationship is an unusual one.

You are contracted as a supplier. You’re not staff. You’re not really a colleague.

But you see a side of clients that many others may not.

You see them at their most vulnerable, when they’re under attack in the media. You see the professional pressure they come under when they can’t get traction on an issue. You absorb their anger when activists misrepresent their industries. 

And you can be a sounding board for ideas not well formed enough to take to their colleagues or boards. That level of trust is a gift.

But you don’t really know them.

I had some long, meaty and hilarious conversations with Richard. I’m talking laugh out loud stuff. We’d dissect policy, politics, consumer behaviour, activist tactics and the changing media landscape.

I would be thrilled when our media releases got a run verbatim. He would screw up his face and warn me that cuts to newsrooms would impact the quality and transparency of the public debate. Tough crowd! 

A generous spirit, fierce intellect, astute political mind and a dry (often wicked) sense of humour, I never finished a conversation with Richard without having learned something new and having had a good laugh.

But he didn’t really talk much about himself. Sure, he dropped the occasional family anecdote, but he wasn’t the type to tell me about his weekend.

So my grief is a strange thing to pigeonhole.

As an expression support for his family, I made a donation to their nominated charity, and I contributed to the online condolences book. But I struggled with whether to go to his memorial service.

I’ve learned more about Richard through the media and chatting to his colleagues in the last week, than I knew beforehand. And in some way, it feels intrusive.

I wasn’t sure if I should go to where his family, friends and colleagues would be grieving for the man they new so well.

In the end, I made a snap decision to go to the memorial service. And I’m glad I did.

I knew Richard was a husband and father.

But I learned he was a cyclist, a runner, a swimmer and in his youth, a mixed water polo player (to meet girls, his friend suggested?).

I learned he had run 24 consecutive Sydney half-marathons, still had the friends he made when he was 7 years old and fought the 2003 Canberra bushfires.

I learned that he and a friend recently cycled from Canberra to Cootamundra and that his riding song was “Beautiful Noise,” by Neil Diamond.

I learned that hundreds of people so loved and admired Richard that it was standing room only at his service at the Australian National University, where he had studied Forestry.

I was glad to learn that everything I thought about Richard, his humour, his generosity, his intelligence and his quiet, dependable and reserved nature were reflected in the tributes from his family and friends.

I am glad that even if I didn’t know Richard well, he was a client who had obviously shared his authentic self with me.

And that too, is a gift. 

 

Other lessons for agriculture from US brands

 

I've already blogged about what I think agriculture can learn from Coca-Cola.

But what other lessons can we learn from US brands?

 

Let me share some more ideas picked up at Ragan Communication's Social Media for Corporate Communications and Public Relations Conference, in Florida earlier this month.

Celebrate diversity – Whole Foods Markets

Whole Foods have over 300 stores in the United States, each with its own Twitter and Facebook account. Yes, that’s right 600+ social media accounts not managed by Head Office, but under the Whole Foods brand.

When asked how Whole Foods manage a consistent voice and narrative across so many accounts, their Social Media Director, Natanya Anderson, said the company values diversity and considers diverse voices a strength. Therefore, the stores are allowed to manage their social media accounts autonomously.

Choosing to have a range of voices telling the Whole Foods story reflects the diversity of their customers and ensures a better chance of engaging widely.

(In fact, Whole Foods know their customers so well, they don’t post photos of meat to their Facebook pages, as that is where the majority of their vegan customers are! They find Pinterest audiences much more receptive to the promotion of meat.)

We hear talk of Australian agriculture needing a common narrative, a consistent voice, a brand. But should we promote industry diversity instead?

Will diverse voices provide higher levels of engagement with metropolitan communities?

Provide a service. Help your customers – Whole Foods Markets

Whole Foods specialise in natural and organic foods.

When customers started asking questions about GMOs, Whole Foods decided to provide information to assist purchasing decisions.

This was in the form of infographics titled “How to eat if you’re avoiding GMOs” which were shared through social channels and in-store displays.

Note there is no judgement of GMOs in the infographic title.

Whole Foods, while wanting to promote their brand, were careful to ensure that the information they provided was neutral, again noting the diversity of their customer base.

Customers not only appreciated the information about GMOs, but that it was relevant to the products they were purchasing in Whole Foods Markets.

Do we in agriculture help our customers understand issues of concern to them?

Is this information provided in neutral terms, free of judgement?

 

Celebrate your heritage, but move forward – American Airlines

Even in Australia, the steel “unpainted” livery of the old American Airlines will be familiar. But American Airlines filed for bankruptcy in 2011, then merged with US Airways in 2013 to create the world’s largest airline.

 

The challenge was to build a new airline, with a new fleet of planes, while restoring the somewhat damaged American Airlines brand.

Jon Bird, from American Airlines says the brand has so much heritage (for example, as this video shows, Charles Lindbergh was chief pilot for the early incarnation of their airline) that they were keen to restore its prestige.

But, they also knew that they needed to take the brand into the future, not only with a new look and new flight offerings, but also with a new voice in social and digital media.

Welcome #newAmerican. A new voice for an old brand, that engages in the cultural life of its customers (they sponsored SXSW in 2013) and uses social media to share their business story.

(A new plane livery was needed not least because new aeroplanes are made of composite materials meaning unpainted they would be a tacky green colour!)

Has agriculture got the balance right between promoting our heritage and being a modern, high tech industry?

Do we go where our customers are, and engage with them there?

Celebrate connections – FedEx

FedEx. They deliver parcels. All around the world. They’re a logistics company.

But FedEx manage to tell a story that goes beyond their business model to promote that what they really sell - connections.

They connect businesses with their customers, families with each other, patients with medical supplies, zoos with exotic animals, through deliveries all around the world.

Digital team members Michele Ehrhart and Victor Reiss asked us to identify the deeper connection we have with our customers.

Is saying farmers feed and clothe the world akin to FedEx saying they deliver parcels?

What is the deeper connection we have with our customers?

 

Have others tell your story - FedEx

People engage with other people, not brands.

FedEx staff and customers are invited to tell the FedEx story in order to build support for their brand.

Examples include a staff member sharing how FedEx supports their charity work, a customer explaining the importance of FedEx to their business or a driver sharing how the timely delivery of a parcel made a difference to the life of their customer. These stories are used in advertising and in online campaigns.

Does agriculture facilitate enough opportunities for our customers to tell our story?

Well, I know of one great example! I love MLA's competition to send a lucky person to a remote cattle station to learn about the northern beef industry and then present their findings at TedX Sydney this month. Having a customer speak to other customers is great peer-to-peer engagement, allowing others to tell the beef industry’s story.

We need more of this!

Food for thought.

 

What can agriculture learn from Coca-Cola?

 

When you visit the Coca-Cola (US) website, you don’t get an ordinary, company website.

Instead you find yourself at Coke “Journey” which looks and feels like a lifestyle magazine. And that’s the point.

This is no bland, corporate site. This is brand journalism.

Coca-Cola is a 120 year old company and in 2010 made the decision to change its communication style to remain relevant in the age of digital media.

They hired journalists for their social storytelling skills and created an internal newsroom; a media entity covering Coke, not Coke PR. In 2012 they launched “Journey” as their corporate web presence.

Don’t talk about yourself all the time

Interestingly only half of the “Journey” content is about Coke, the other half covers topics aligned with their brand and business, that interest their customers.

 

Coca-Cola’s tip: Find the top 10 search keywords that relate to your brand and take ownership of them – for Coca-Cola, this includes food, business, sports, careers, innovation, history, sustainability and brands.

These keywords underpin story development to ensure they are publishing interesting content for readers.

Are we in agriculture talking about the things that are important to our customers? Or are we only talking about ourselves?

Find your stories from within, but always focus on your audience

Developing content that does not explicity pitch, or sell, is the next challenge.

In sourcing story ideas, Coca-Cola often use their staff to provide inspiration or content but not in the way you might expect.

Check out the contributors to “Going Big in Dallas:  15 Insider Tips on Traveling to Texas."

Interested in the mocktail trend? So is Coke…

Tough Mudder? Coke is there too.

Earth Hour? Yep.

All of these stories are entertaining, informative and focus on the customer.

And talk about great SEO! You will find these articles without Googling anything to do with Coke.

How can we tell agriculture’s stories without them being about farming practices, weather or landscapes?

Who are the farmers doing interesting things outside agriculture that create a new audience for our industries? 

Join the conversation

Along with publishing content based on their customers’ interests, Coca-Cola also participate in a range of social communities including Throwback Thursday (#tbt) on Instagram and Twitter where they share images from their archives.

They actively engage in conversations happening elsewhere, even if they are not specifically about their brand.

 

Are those farmers who post old photos of machinery and on-farm practices tagging them #tbt?

Could we be doing more to engage different audiences in non-agricultural hashtag conversations?

Stop begging the media, BE the media.

This is the catch-cry of content marketers, led by Mark Ragan.

Coca-Cola proactively develop “Journey” content to pitch journalists. If it doesn’t get a run in the media, they still have content for their site.

They also go online to respond to negative media. This gives them the chance to respond to issues quickly, in their own words and without the need for press conferences or media releases.

See this example and note they make them highly shareable, enabling their message to be spread more widely than if it just appeared in news outlets.

This is not an “anti-media” approach as it assists journalists prepare their own stories with publicly available comment from the company.

Should agricultural peak bodies and agribusinesses be opening digital newsrooms and covering their industries as journalists, instead of doing industry PR?

Could agriculture’s concerns about metropolitan media coverage of the live export ban have been countered by having our own digital newsrooms? 

Food for thought.

 

I heard the Coke Journey story when I was in Florida attending the Ragan Communications Social Media for Corporate Communications and Public Relations Conference at Disney World, 2-4 April 2014.

The presentation from Coca-Cola was by Jay Moye, senior writer and editor of Coke Journey.

 

What the media think of farmer advocacy groups

 

Today I attended an Australian Farm Institute (AFI) seminar to hear the results of their research underpinning the report “Opportunities to Improve the Effectiveness of Australian Farmers’ Advocacy Groups – a Comparative Approach.”

The central theme was that unless farmer advocacy groups change, they will die. This conclusion won’t surprise anyone in agriculture.

The launch of the report was covered by the media HERE and HERE.

But what got me thinking was the session on journalists’ perceptions of the effectiveness of Australian farmer advocacy groups.

The AFI surveyed journalists in the national press gallery, most of whom worked for larger media outlets such as the ABC, Fairfax and News Corporation. It should be noted that 55% of the journalists specialised in agricultural or rural issues.

Journalists rated the Australian Consumers’ Association (CHOICE) the most effective advocacy group, based on their capacity to achieve policy change and the quality of their materials and research. In second place, was the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) followed by the Australian Food and Grocery Council and the Minerals Council of Australia.

(Interestingly the RSPCA seems to be rated as having an equal capacity to achieve policy outcomes as the NFF, but their media materials and research reports were rated lower in quality.)

This is a great result for agriculture, or is it? The NFF brand might be strong, but what about agriculture more generally?

The AFI asked journalists which sectors of the economy had the propensity to achieve positive policy outcomes and they rated consumers’ groups and labour unions as the most effective.

While union links to the ALP will strengthen their position when the ALP is in power, their well-documented declining membership would provide an interesting comparison to farmer advocacy groups.

So while the NFF was the second most effective advocacy group, agriculture as a sector was considered unsuccessful in achieving positive policy outcomes.

As a sector it rated lower than all others, including manufacturing, IT and big (and small) business.

The AFI speculates that this is due to the declining number of agricutural specific policy issues, meaning more competition in the policy space.

But that doesn't really explain the difference, does it?

Is it harmful to agriculture that press gallery journalists think the sector is poor at achieving positive policy outcomes?

As a communicator, the challenge becomes positioning agriculture as a sector that does achieve success to a press gallery that doesn't believe it...

 

2013 - The Year of the Farmer (on Twitter)

 

While the number of farmers using social media has been steadily increasing over the last few years, I think last year was when their collective voice started to have an impact.

Many farmers tell me that Twitter, in particular;

• Enables them to communicate with farmers in other parts of the country (through hashtags they’ve created like #harvest13),
• Provides a tool to participate in conversations in urban areas (via hashtags like #qanda and #Ashes),
• Keeps them up to date with relevant news affecting their industry and region, and
• Allows them to share their stories (and amazing sunsets!) with people living elsewhere.

And in 2013, I noticed not only a larger number of farmers on Twitter, but their voice on a range of issues was amplified by clever targeting of their audience.

My favourite tweets were from farmers who engaged consumers in simple, honest and demonstrative ways about how agriculture relates to our daily lives.

This is not a criticism of farmers who don’t wish to communicate with consumers.

I know many prefer to use the medium to communicate with other farmers, or (like me) use it to create a record of their year for reflection at a later date.

But I think those farmers who directly engage with (urban) consumers are quietly creating the next wave of positive attitudes to food and fibre production.

As an example, check out these (anonymous) tweets:

                

                

There is absolutely nothing “wrong” with these tweets.  They tell a story to a specific audience.

Now, take a look at the following tweets and see if you can spot the difference:

 

                 

        

       

         

        

Here's what I think these farmers are doing well: 

• They link what they do on farm with the items or activities (urban) consumers will recognise
• They keep the descriptions simple and accessible to a non-farming or non-science audience (without being condescending)
• They also tweet for a more technically-aware audience as well, creating multiple "entry points" for gaining information
• They show things on-farm urban consumers may never see
• They explain how their products get from farm to consumer
• They are letting their personalities shine through, creating opportunities for real connections with their followers

So thank you to the many farmers who actively engaged with consumers in 2013! Here's hoping they continue to share their farm stories with us this year.

 

Which other farmers use Twitter to promote agriculture in a way that would appeal to an urban audience? I’d love some recommendations to follow!

 

MDBA and the lessons learned from Basin Plan implementation

 

Some have said that since Craig Knowles was appointed Chairman of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA), there has been a subtle shift in the way they do business.

He presented a strident case for that himself at a talk given at the University of Canberra, at the invitation of MDBFutures.

MDBA Chairman, Craig Knowles speaking at the University of Canberra

 

In his speech on the implementation of the Basin Plan, Chairman Knowles included the standard rhetoric and political sniping we expect from this savvy former politician.

His speech also included a run down of the processes in play for the next couple of years – determination of Sustainable Diversion Limit offsets, work on constraints, the debut of new water trading rules, sorting the Environmental Watering Strategy – noting that a lot of these are new and untested, so present their own challenges.

But what I found interesting were his reflections on the lessons learned from the ill-fated release of the Guide to the Basin Plan in 2010 and how they inform the MDBA’s operations today.

Here is what Craig Knowles says the MDBA has learned:

Science and evidence are crucial to making the broader case

Each State still asserts they have the best system, but Chairman Knowles says they can’t all be right. Not at the same time.  Therefore evidence and science is crucial to underpinning the basis of the Plan.

But without community support, science and evidence are not enough

Community support can be built through a range of mechanisms, from demystifying river operations through media and school programs, to placing localism at the centre of implementation; empowering local communities to take ownership of the change.

Policy makers must look at the totality of the picture, not be sidetracked by sectoral interests

Chairman Knowles stated that communities could see through the “large stakeholder groups” messages that resist change. And State Governments traditionally protect their own turf. But policy makers must rise above the political, or State driven issues to create a Plan for the nation. Chairman Knowles reiterated the Basin Plan is something we should ALL do, not something the federal government should do. 

Time is important

And the time for people to adapt to change is crucial, recognising change is going to be very difficult for some communities.

People count! 

And they should be heard. Policy makers should at least consider, and where possible, incorporate their views. People must be engaged with in ways that mean something to them.

Never waste a crisis

A crisis creates urgency that can have the effect of shifting people from entrenched positions to find a solution.

Leadership and bipartisan behaviour are crucial ingredients to framing the debates.

Strong leadership and bipartisanship take the heat out of the debate. It also sends a signal to stakeholders that the debate must move on from ingrained views.

 

So what do you think? 

Has the MDBA learned lessons from their early efforts to develop the Basin Plan?

Or is it business as usual, dressed up as change?

 

 

What can Agriculture learn from Cirque du Soleil?

 

When thinking about how to build audiences and engage consumers, what better sector to study than the Arts?

They live or die based on community buy-in to their products. They’re often maligned when seeking government assistance and the community has strong ideas about how “art” should be made, even with no experience in artistic practice themselves.  Sound familiar, agriculture?

So, I attended the Australia Council’s Marketing Summit to see what they know!

What a treat to hear from Andy Levey from Cirque du Soleil (currently based in Las Vegas) who spoke about their digital engagement strategy.

Cirque du Soleil’s digital strategy has evolved from a transactional one (selling tickets / earning “likes”) to one that fuels and builds relationships – creating a “family.”

Here are some lessons I took from Andy’s presentation that I think apply to promoting agriculture:

Learn from the audience. Find out what matters to them and address those interests.

Cirque du Soleil uses an engagement cycle that includes plenty of listening, observing and then responding. This helps keep their content relevant and targeted.

In agriculture we talk about ourselves a lot – we defend ourselves, explain ourselves – but are we talking about what matters to consumers?

And it's crucial to understand WHO the audience is before you can effectively engage. Should agriculture spend more resources engaging with animal activists or supermarket shoppers?

Think like a “fan.”

People are talking and they want to be heard. Andy asks how you want to be treated by your favourite brand?

There’s a strong undercurrent in agriculture’s engagement that focuses on “educating” people, particularly urban Australians. Would you like to be educated? Or would you like to feel involved and valued?

 

Invite them behind the curtain.

Cirque du Soleil employs a range of strategies that lift the veil of secrecy and show people what goes on behind the scenes. It makes fans feel part of the process, and by extension, the family. They then become your greatest ambassadors.

This is where agriculture is making huge gains.  Social media has given us the power to invite city people on to farms to see how we really grow food and fibre, without them having to leave the couch. There are some great examples of people doing this, but could we do more? Are we converting urban consumers into ambassadors?

 

Humanise the brand and speak in language they understand.

People engage with people, so ensure you engage authentically.

Again, we have this in spades – lots of fantastic people in agriculture who can add a human dimension to our production methods. We just have to remember to drop the jargon and scientific terms to engage at our audience’s level of interest.

 

Context, not content, matters.

A really great point! We’ve all been told content rules, but as Andy points out the context for that content is important to activate your audience. Don’t just post because you can. Make sure it’s meaningful. 

I guess it’s like us posting photos of outback sunsets as the debate rages around live export. Where’s the relevance?

In the end, Andy said it’s simply about remembering:

 

It’s not about YOU it’s about your AUDIENCE

 

What do you think Agriculture does well?

How could we engage better?

 

"Money Smart" not so Smart!

 

In politics there’s a saying:  “every generation is up for grabs.” 

While some adults may write young people off as "radicals" or "immature," smart political parties know that by winning the hearts and minds of young people they can create strong brand loyalty, which may last for decades. 

Of course, this concept is not unique to political parties.

In agriculture many industries promote sustainable food and fibre production to primary and secondary school students as an investment in the next generation of consumers -  knowledgeable about and supportive of Australian agriculture - in the hope this will translate into purchasing decisions in support of Australian farmers.

A LOT of farmer money and time has been spent over MANY years on programs aimed at engaging school students in fun and innovative ways to learn about Australian agriculture.

Now more than ever, in the middle of the “milk wars," this engagement is critical.

Imagine my dismay then, when I discovered the government funded “Money Smart” program, which appears to be promoting no-name products as smart choices to Year 3 students!

Currently being trialled, “The House of Needs and Wants” unit asks students to plan and budget for a healthy breakfast. They must decide what is healthy and what they can afford based on their budget.

The learning outcomes include:

 

Students will develop the skills to compare no-name and brand-name products for affordability and sustainability. They will interview an adult to determine reasons for choosing no-name or brand-name breakfast items, conduct an investigation to test affordability and sustainability of a breakfast item and cost the breakfast.

 

One of the activities is as follows:

 

The killer is that last section where students have to re-visit their shopping list to figure out what they could replace with no-name brands to save money. And note that the commentary already includes "milk" in the no-name products people may commonly buy, which would not have been the case 2 years ago I'm sure.

Ok, but maybe it's not so bad? After all, they use the word "sustainability" and suggest there might be consequences in buying no-name products. I wondered how they would test that in a way that would resonate with 8 year olds?

A taste test maybe?

An examination of supply-chain payments?

A consideration of overseas farming practices?

The answer?

An experiment on the relative strength of branded versus no-name paper serviettes.

Yes, in considering the most important meal of the day and all the Australian grown produce that goes into a healthy breakfast, children are studying SERVIETTES.

 

So, I'm guessing the branded serviette will be stronger. Which probably teaches a lesson about value for money. Which is what Money Smart is all about after all.

But what are they teaching tomorrow's consumers about WHAT to value? 

How can students do a similar experiment on branded versus no-name milk? They can't, because quality is not the issue in the current dairy pricing fiasco.

How are these children learning about the value of a sustainable, Australian owned and grown dairy industry? Or grains industry, or horticultural industries, or livestock industries? Where does human health come in to play?

Are programs like this "normalising" the idea of no-name brands as better choices?

What hope do we have to build trust and faith in Australian grown and branded products when government funded programs are promoting the very products causing hardship to Australian farmers?

The full resource is available HERE 

If it makes you cross too, you can email Money Smart Teaching and tell them why at [email protected]

Remember, a generation is up for grabs!

 

The Story of Rice - Easter Show Style

 

When I joined the Ricegrowers' Association of Australia (RGA) in 2005, the decision had already been taken to stop attending the Sydney Royal Easter Show. This was a budget decision mostly, as the drought was starting to bite and priorities (and funds) were reallocated to maintaining the industry's base. It was probably wise timing, as the drought continued (got worse in fact!) and water allocations fell to 0% resulting in historically low plantings. 

A decade later and I'm pleased to see the seasons have returned and the rice industry is back at the Easter Show!

I took my four-year old Food Farm veteran along to road test the exhibit.

A largely misunderstood crop in Australia, rice is a fascinating industry - with unique agronomic characteristics and a variety of end uses. It's also great example of a grower-owned, high value, branded, vertically integrated industry.

Not only do Australian growers own the popular and familiar brand SunRice, but as you discover in this exhibit, Australian rice pops up in unlikely places! 

 

Growing Rice in Australia

Contrary to popular belief, rice is actually a perfect fit for the Australian environment!

Australians don't grow tropical varieties, rather we specialise in medium grain, temperate varieties. 

Medium grain rice is not suited to tropical climates, but the Riverina’s dry hot summers and heavy soils provide ideal growing conditions.

Australia's competitors in the medium grain market include California and Egypt. 

See, rice is not just an Asian crop!
 

A close up of the mighty grain growing at the Easter Show!

 

A healthy environment is a focus for Australian rice growers who take pride in their contribution to biodiversity outcomes. You can read more here.

 

Milling

One of the most popular misconceptions about white rice is that it is bleached brown rice, when in fact it is all natural. The outer layer of bran is merely polished off leaving the perfect white grain ready for consumption.

And the really exciting thing is, no part of the grain is wasted! There is a use for the bran and any broken grains.

Products made from Rice

We're all familiar with the SunRice pillow packs in our supermarkets, but Australian rice is used in a range of products, including snack foods, cereals, beverages and pet products - many of which are probably in your pantry right now!
 

 

 

And this is what it's all about folks, engaging with consumers. Telling the story of rice, one conversation at a time.

 

You can learn more about the Australian rice industry at the RGA website.

 

Imagine this...

 

You’ve been feeling crook for two days…. At least, you think it’s been two days.The waves of nausea, smacking headaches and crazy hallucinations followed by long periods of semi-consciousness mean it could have been longer.

You’re not feeling any better, in fact if anything, you’re feeling worse. Maybe, you’re thinking, this isn’t the “24 hour bug” after all….?

 
It’s Friday.

 
You can’t take much more of this, so you struggle to the phone and ring your GP to beg for an appointment before the weekend.

What would you like to hear?
 

Sure, I’ll stay late today! No patients = no money! And I’m in this game to make a profit like everyone else. 

or

Sure, I’ll stay late today! You sound terrible and my mission is to heal people. I care about you.

 

Almost 2 years after the live export ban debacle and with all the work around “values-based engagement” since I’m surprised farmers are still saying to me: 

“Of course I look after my livestock/environment! I wouldn’t make any money if I didn’t! I’m here to make money, just like everybody else.”

There is a base understanding in society that everyone needs to earn an income in order to support themselves, or their families.  I think we accept that as a given – it doesn’t need to be spoken. It certainly doesn’t need to be spoken first!

At a base level, you know the doctor has to see patients in order to make money. In this example, you’ll probably even accept that you have to pay extra to see the GP after hours.

And because you are so sick, you may even feel relieved to get the first response!

But what perceptions are you left with about the doctor’s motivations? What will you tell your friends and neighbours about their attitude, when you’re well again?

It’s the same with agriculture. Everyone knows you’re in business to earn an income to support yourselves, or your family.

What people want to know is your mission. And that you care.