SBDIIC Team Studies Social Media Engagement

The SBDIIC team, led by Gabriel Cassone, Tim Woods, and Brett Wolff, is conducting research on how different types of social media promotion affect audience engagement. One set of posts features value-added dairy businesses and is being shared through the Kentucky Dairy Development and Kentucky Proud pages, while another set uses boosted posts published through the social media pages of Kentucky farm markets that sell local dairy products.

For producers, it can be difficult to determine whether paying to boost a post and expand its reach is worth the economic investment. Investing in marketing can be a good strategy, but its value depends on being able to track whether increased reach and engagement translate into meaningful outcomes for the business.

Some Kentucky dairies have looked to value-added products as a way to diversify their offerings and generate additional income through direct-to-consumer sales and retail markets. Data analysis is ongoing, but this research will help the team better understand which promotional approaches are most effective for reaching customers and supporting these businesses. The work is part of the Southeast Dairy Business Innovation Initiative, which also includes the Dairy Gauge program.