Survey examines social media use by farmers

A good post from the AgWired blog provides a few details on farmers' use of the internet and smart phones based on a survey conducted by Nicholson Kovac. (Information on the full report is available here, while a news release on the report is here.)

A few of the details from the news release:

• 62 percent of large acreage, U.S. corn and soybean growers have sent or received text messages during the past year
• 48 percent of those texting send five or more text messages a day
• 63 percent of respondents indicated they have taken pictures with their mobile phones
  
• 47 percent spend five or more hours per week online, and 23 percent spend 10 or more hours online
• Besides utilizing e-mail, accessing weather and market reports are the highest ranked in terms of Internet use for their business/farm
• In addition, 85 percent of respondents indicated that they visit web sites related to their farm operation, and 76 percent check manufacturers' web sites

In a podcast on AgWired (link above), you can hear Chuck Zimmerman interview Nicholson Kovac's Sheree Johnson about their findings.

"While there appears to be some confusion and lack of familiarity about social networking, blogging, etc., when social networking brands (ie., such as Facebook or Twitter) were mentioned, many respondents confirmed they are actively using these sites," Johnson in the news release. "The early adopters and growers who are influencers in their communities are already engaged in exploring new media platforms."