Category Archives: Better Blogging

My favorite YouTube channels for ag, food, and farm


What are your favorite online channels for videos related to agriculture, food, and farm topics?

Screen show from The Peterson Farm Bros - "I'm Farming and I Grow It"

Screen shot from The Peterson Farm Bros – “I’m Farming and I Grow It”

I have my own subscription list on YouTube of my favorite video channels. It includes everything from my favorite music artists, some good devotional updates, and plenty of farmer bloggers. But I couldn’t find another list to grow my collection. So I decided to create my own.

As farmers and ranchers across the country, grow to the idea of utilizing social media and online tools to open the gates of their farms, many are realizing the potential of sharing with video. I have several videos on my YouTube channel (AgProud) to describe every day scenes and practices in ranch life as well as many video blogs (vlogs) with my on-the-spot commentary.

I’ve written before with several tips on how to utilize video with your blogging efforts. It doesn’t have to be complicated; just take a few moments to plan your video. Most newer phones create high-quality video on the go, so special equipment isn’t always required. Video can also be a great tool to diversify your online content and can require minimal editing.

Here are some of my favorite YouTube channels for Agriculture and Food related content:

Gilmer Dairy Farm – Will Gilmer is a dairy farmer in Alabama who has a craft for putting together fun insight from the farm with regular MooTube minutes and catchy tunes from the tractor.

MT Stockgrowers Assoc - The Montana Stockgrowers Association has a great lineup of videos from ranches across the state of Montana. The Bill on Beef video series showcases great individuals who are a part of the industry and getting beef to your plate.

SunUP TV – SunUP is an educational and extension program from Oklahoma State University College of Agriculture. The weekly program offers updates, advice, and current conditions on livestock, forage, and crop conditions across the state.

USFRA Online – The U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance has a great collection of videos that include panel discussions around consumer and food issues and farmer highlights from across the country.

Be sure to visit my Ag Videos page to see a longer list of video channels. Submit your favorite video link through the contact form on the bottom of that page.

What do you enjoy seeing in videos from the farm and ranch?

Social Agriculture: Social Media’s Role in Agriculture [Video]


Video of our panel at the 2013 American Farm Bureau Federation annual meeting in Nashville, TN.

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Better Blogging: 50 tips for great blog topics


Part of my series sharing tips to improve blogging (Link)

Part of my series sharing tips to improve blogging (Link)

We’ve made it through the first week and a half of 2013 and I’m willing to be there’s a few folks already struggling with their New Year’s resolutions. For those of you who set a few goals for your social media outreach, did this include a plan to be more consistent in your blogging efforts?

There’s nothing more frustrating than struggling to come up with new blogging topics. For me, it came easier to write 4-5 blog posts a week when I had great thinking time on the tractor in the hay field or while on horseback checking cattle. Those activities provided a great opportunity to sort out my thoughts and set the world to right. But that doesn’t come as easily when I’m at the desk or working on my research review.

As part of my Better Blogging series, here’s a few tips to get you going on your search for better consistency on your blogging and finding great blog topics.

  1. Google Alerts – I use these frequently in staying up to date with headlines important to me. Set up a few alerts using key words that are relevant to your blogging strategy. Read the headlines, pick a few stories to read.
  2. Trade Publications – Most in Agriculture have a growing pile of monthly trade publications and magazines on their coffee table. Next time one comes in the mail, earmark a few stories and use them to launch a blog topic with your response.
  3. Read other blogs – One great way to get an idea of what topics are popular is to read what other folks are writing. Subscribe to your favorite blogs and set up a separate inbox folder so updates are easy to flip through when you have a moment to catch up.
  4. Write a sequel – Some of my most recurring hits from search engines are a result of writing about topics more than once. Did you previously write about a topic that sparked a good conversation? Revisit the topic and follow-up with your recent updates.
  5. Attend a local event – One of the most important parts of advocacy I will emphasize again and again is getting out in your community. Attend a meeting on food or community topics, go to an industry convention, ease out of your comfort zone, start a conversation  then write about the events.
  6. Respond to the news – Is there a news headline that struck an interest today? Did a group or organization make a move that you agree/disagree with? Chances are other folks are looking for other opinions on the same topics. Write down your thoughts in the heat of the moment, but always wait to publish until you’ve had a chance to cool down and review.
Or sometimes the best remedy is to find a place to sit and clear the mind.

Or sometimes the best remedy is to find a place to sit and clear the mind.

These are just a few suggestions to get those wheels turning, cranking out those blog posts. For a few more ideas, here’s a list of 50 techniques to help with your blogstorming next time you get stuck with writer’s block.

What are some of your favorite techniques to come up with new blog post topics?

 

What search terms lead to my blog?


The most popularly searched image on my blog.

This blog covers mostly my love for food and agriculture, but under that umbrella I touch on several different topics. What led you to find my page?

I use WordPress as my blog hosting site and it gives me a run-down on the number of people viewing my site and the search terms on how they find my page. Don’t worry, it doesn’t tell me who is searching for that “prolapsed cow” just that someone viewed that page. My friend @DairyCarrie recently took a look at what her blog followers are searching for and it made me want to take a look at my own stats.

As it turns out, people spend a lot of time online searching for food recipes like my “ground beef omelet“, and one of my most popular photos is a “glass of milk,” but my most popular food posts are more about safety concerns. This year I have blogged about 4 events that really sparked search traffic. In January, McDonald’s released a series of commercials highlighting farmers growing their products. Turns out a lot of people were very interested in learning more about these farmers. Chipotle released a highly “controversial” advertisement titled “Back to the Start” which garners the title as my second most searched term this year. More recently, folks have been concerned about the beef product dubbed “pink slime“. This summer’s drought really brought a lot of search traffic, particularly concerns about tifton 85 bermuda grass poisoning cattle. I’m glad I have the opportunity to share my thoughts on these topics and others are able to find them on my blog through search engine results.

My readers also find this blog by searching for state agriculture and food facts. Hopefully they’re finding posts from my travels in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky, among other states. Folks are also looking for great ranching books, glad I have my book list available. One that really surprises me is the number of folks who find my blog by searching how to “iron jeans“. I’m still puzzled on why people find this weird.

The number one search term that leads to my blog, and the one that surprised my the most is folks searching for those “useless agriculture degrees“. Thanks to a few stories from The Daily Beast and Yahoo Education, I shared my thoughts on just how “useless” an Agriculture degree is not only in my life, but in the role of national food an agriculture production. This term leads to my blog any where from 10 to 30 times daily even more than a year after the post.

The topic area that leads most to my blog, is at the heart of my blogging efforts – sharing a little of my education with those who want to learn more about where their food comes from. The posts where I share a little “Agriculture 101” information attract consistent search engine traffic. The most popular is “castration in cattle“. I’m not sure why so many folks searching for this, but I’m glad my opinion is being found. This is followed by topics of mowing pastures, cattle branding, cattle guards, and different cattle breeds.

The search engine traffic that I get the most kick out of relates to my work in cattle reproduction. Terms like “prolapsed uterus” or “up to my arm pits” or “calving dystocia” are just a sample of the cleaner terms that relate to this area. Oh, and can’t forget my “triplet foals” – that one pops up pretty often too! Calving season and all the problems associated with it is one of my favorite topics in agriculture.

For more blogging tips, view my series on Better Blogging

Mack Collier, a prominent non-agriculture blogger, recently shared a post about how search engine traffic affects his blog, even when he’s not writing. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can be a confusing term for most, I know I have problems with it, but with a little work, overtime we can all work on it. Here are a few tips:

  • Be consistent in your blogging efforts. Set a schedule and blog at least once a week.
  • Write about your topics of interest more than once. Search engines like repetition in topics.
  • Use “key terms” in your title and a few times throughout the body of your post
  • Title photos and other images with text relevant to your blog topic
  • Give it time. Build your content. Write about your interest and passion and the audience will come.

What led you to finding my blog?