by Randy Happel (North Central NAMA)

Three diverse topics and equally diverse presentation styles, the three professionals who addressed the general sessions of the 2006 NAMA Agri-Marketing Conference certainly provided valuable insights and crucial considerations for the agri-marketers in attendance.

In his discussion titled “The Extreme Future: Top Trends that will Reshape Business and Society,” James Canton, PhD, Chairman of the Institute for Global Futures, outlined key changes likely to influence agriculture moving forward. “A new era is emerging that will demand you embrace learning more about the next generation,” said Canton. He sited changing demographics of both consumers and the workforce as a component of this new era, and suggested the importance of collaboration of people in different places in a different manner, including competitors, because doing so will benefit all parties.

“The combination of cross generations (Gen X, Gen Y and Baby Boomers) coupled with innovation will become a key opportunity to be exploited by all industries, but especially agriculture,” Canton stated. “Aging Baby Boomers will transform everything.” Canton believes “functional foods” and the convergence of trends are key opportunities for agriculture, where what we “eat” will predispose what we “treat” as foods with built-in attributes and will soon dictate customized diets.

Canton feels the acceptance of a culturally diverse workforce will be critical to the future success of agriculture-based companies and marketers. “They may not look like you, or act like you, but the future of your company can lie in your acceptance of their ideas and pre-dispositions because they represent the expectations of the future,” Canton said. “Industries and companies will disappear if they don’t change their mindset of the newly emerging workforce.”

The great challenge for agriculture will be to meet the need for increased grain production due to the demands of a growing world population. This will be especially difficult given the presence of certain threats … global warming, pollution, extreme weather conditions, water rights, food bio-terrorism, the end of cheap energy and increased competition.

Canton sees bio-fuels, Ethanol, Hybrid/Hydrogen power and bio-farming as great opportunities for agricultural interests. Nutritional discoveries converging with production agriculture also hold great promise, where nutrients specifically engineered for specific individuals will completely change the way food is produced.

Finally, Canton believes that adoption of changing technology will dictate how people make transactions in the future, and how marketers will interact with customers. “With over five billion cell phones worldwide, all functioning as transaction portals to buy, sell or be influenced in real time, what will be your strategy,” Canton asked.

Laura Ries, President, Ries & Ries, in her presentation titled “The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR” suggests it’s publicity that builds brands, not advertising. “It’s not enough to be first, but rather, to get into the mind and establish your brand,” says Ries. “And that can only happen with the credibility that publicity provides.”

Ries contends that the media doesn’t find value in writing about what products are “better” since doing so represents a subjective judgement. The real value in building a brand comes through word of mouth and third party endorsement, not what you are saying about yourself (i.e. advertising). “PR gets you into people’s minds, advertising re-affirms what PR establishes.”

Ries does believe that advertising is necessary, but can only be effective if the idea is already in the mind of consumer. “It’s the credibility factor … what you’re saying about yourself versus what others are saying about you that forms the distinction between advertising and PR. Advertising can only serve to reinforce what is already in the mind.”

Ries used an analogy of advertising and PR to a hammer and nail, where PR is the nail, the sharp object that penetrates the mind, while advertising is the hammer—the blunt force that pounds away but by itself rarely makes the impact. “PR establishes the brand; advertising maintains the brand and accelerates it.”

In order for a brand to be truly successful over the long haul, Ries encourages marketers to seek as much publicity and public relations exposure as possible. Word of mouth and third party spokesperson endorsements are critical, followed by company publicity and PR for your CEO. She contends that product hype is created by talk among customers resulting in media attention and subsequent publicity that reinforces brand credibility.

Ries also cautions that marketers should not use advertising in an attempt to counter negative PR. “You can’t fight adverse publicity with paid advertisements that ‘pound’ into people what you want them to believe,” Ries says. “Again, it all comes back to the issue of credibility.”

Dr. Barrie Richardson, Dean of the Frost School of Business at Centenary College, in his entertaining presentation comprised of parables and magic titled “The Plus 10% Principle—How to Get Extraordinary Results from Ordinary People” provided various concepts to assist managers in getting better performance from their employees.

“God made us all extraordinary, but the immense potential we have is limited,” contends Richardson. “The more competitive things are, the smaller the margin is to be in the winner’s circle. To be extraordinary, all you have to do is pull out of where you are and expect more.”

“If we have all this capacity,” Richardson asks, “why is it that our performance, on balance, is so ordinary?” Richardson cites the resourcefulness of individuals in devising different ways to accomplish things as the key. Opening the mind to accomplishing goals and completing tasks in a different, non-conventional way is what makes ordinary people extraordinary. Getting “stuck” in our groups and finding the deviant person who devises a different way is what makes the difference.

Instead of problem solvers, Richardson suggests looking for opportunity finders. “There exists a lot of different ways to approach and solve problems and tasks, and those who are the most resourceful in their approach are the ones who will be the most successful.”

Richardson shared several practical techniques managers can employ to get workers to voluntarily want to give their best efforts. Begin by creating an environment where workers feel secure and safe. They can’t be made to feel like they are disposable. A very powerful motivator can be to simply ask for help. Asking for help tells a worker that he or she is needed. Richardson suggests that being an empathetic listener is also key, which means truly listening and understanding, without judgement. Additionally, Richardson contends that everyone wants to be needed … so tell them you need them. And lastly, few things can be more effective in motivating extraordinary behavior than a hand-written note for a job well done.

Albeit simple things, it’s the humanly acts we often take for granted that can produce extraordinary results from ordinary people. “Come to the edge and don’t be afraid to fall, but rather, be prepared to fly! For only a person who risks, is truly free.”