Building a Vibrant Community

Dr. Rachael Carter, Extension Instructor, Center for Government and Community Development Mississippi State University Extension It's a popular thing to see farm-to-table events held by restaurants, chambers of commerce, main street organizations and others to promote local food production and sales, but how do you organize such an event? How do you make it successful? In this episode, Dr. Carter explains step-by-step how you can work with partners in your community to host a farm-to-table event to promote your local foods industry. You can also learn more at:  http://extension.msstate.edu/publications/creating-farm-table-event.

Dr. Richard C. Lacy, Extension Professor & Regional Extension Coordinator Department of Agricultural Economics, Mississippi State University Extension Food festivals are popular events to bring people together in a community to promote the production and sale of local foods. In this episode, Dr. Lacy shares how one food event in the Mississippi Delta has been bringing people and community together around a very special food for more than 40 years. Dr. Lacy explains how the community has continued to keep this food festival going and growing for more than four decades.

Andy Collins, Instructor, Extension Center for Technology Outreach Mississippi State University Extension Have you wondered how to harness the power of Facebook to grow your business? Andy Collins helps businesses answer this question all the time as he's a content expert in social media marketing. In this episode, Andy Collins shares 5 ways a food business entrepreneur can harness the power of Facebook to grow their business. You can learn more at: http://extension.msstate.edu/publications/5-ways-grow-your-local-foods-business-facebook.

Hamp Beatty, Extension Associate III, Center for Government and Community Development Mississippi State University Extension There's nothing worse than having a great company only to make financial mistakes and cause it to tank. Hamp Beatty is a financial whiz and joins the podcast to share his insights on how food businesses can avoid several financial mistakes as they launch and grow. You don't want to miss his powerful tips for financial success.

Lauren Colby-Nickels, Extension Instructor, Extension Center for Technology Outreach Mississippi State University Extension Everyone knows the importance of using social media to grow a business, yet many people struggle to get started. Lauren Colby-Nickels is an expert in helping businesses launch using Instagram. She provides practical insights to help any business have a successful launch to connect with customers and sell products or services.

Dr. Rachael Carter, Extension Instructor, Center for Government and Community Development Mississippi State University Extension A huge problem for food businesses is finding new customers through marketing and branding products online. Rachael Carter has worked with hundreds of companies helping them to improve their branding. In this episode, you'll learn some of the critical things you can do to connect with customers who are most likely to buy your food products. Learn more at http://extension.msstate.edu/farming/agri-tourism/growing-your-brand.

Paige Manning, Marketing Director and Public Relations Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce Agriculture is the number one industry in Mississippi bringing in over $7 billion to the state and employs approximately 29 percent of the workforce. Many food businesses contribute to this industry, yet more work is needed to grow food businesses. Paige Manning explains how the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce's new Genuine MS program can help local food businesses grow by connecting to consumers who want local, fresh food. More information can be found at https://genuinems.com/.

Robbie Coblentz, Owner, Proof Bakery Starkville, Mississippi Want to know how to start a food business, but you're not sure how? Tune in to hear how Robbie Coblentz, owner of Proof Bakery in Starkville, Mississippi, explain the key factors in launching a new local food business. His insights can help any entrepreneur launch any type of business as well.

Dr. James Barnes, Associate Extension Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics Mississippi State University Extension James Barnes has worked with hundreds of companies to help improve their websites to sell products across multiple industries. He directs the Bricks-To-Clicks Marketing Program at Mississippi State University. In this episode, he explains all the secrets to building a website that sells your local food business products. You don't' want to miss this episode of practical advice to help you build a website that connects with customers so your food business grows! Learn more at https://brickstoclicks.extension.msstate.edu/.

Andy Gipson, Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce. Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce Selling Mississippi products internationally, helping establish a brand for your food business and much, much more are all discussed in Part 2 of this interview with the Commissioner of Agriculture, Andy Gipson. Mr. Gipson explains how the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce programs help Mississippi food businesses grow! You're going to discover just how easy it is to grow your food business in Mississippi.  

Andy Gipson, Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce. Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce If you're looking to grow your food business in Mississippi, look no further. Our hosts talk with the Commissioner of Agriculture, Andy Gipson, to learn how the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce programs help Mississippi food businesses grow! You don't want to miss Part 1 of this two part series.  

James Barnes, Rachael Carter, and Lauren-Colby Nickels Most community leaders struggle to identify practical ways they can encourage economic and other types of growth in their communities. The Building A Vibrant Community podcast identifies what works to grow communities and their businesses by examining what works in Mississippi, and beyond. In this pilot episode, James Barnes hosts the first discussion with his co-hosts Rachel Carter (RC) and Lauren Colby-Nickels (LC) to examine to answer the most frequently asked question by community leaders: How do we make our community a vibrant, growing, healthy community?