Gareth Ford’s job involves talking about a lot of machinery - but which ones he mentions depends on where in the country he is. As the digital media and marketing specialist for We Are Land-Based Engineering his job is all about inspiring the next generation - and huge machines are a sure-fire hit.
“We went into a school in South Croydon and we were talking about combine harvesters,” Gareth recalls. The hitch? “Children in South Croydon do not know what a combine harvester is.”
It’s a simple piece of learning, but one that has a huge impact on how he delivers their campaigns: “If you go in and talk about lawnmowers on the local cricket or football pitch, that’s relatable because they can see it.”
Their latest social video, for example, focuses on food and sport - two things they’ve learnt real-life students have a passion for. Filled with the obligatory shots of machines doing their stuff, it also explains how land-based engineers ensure your morning porridge reaches your table and give your club a fighting chance of topping the league.
And, for those who haven’t yet discovered the combine harvester, this year the campaign has launched a “farm to fork” story too. As Gareth explains: “They can’t get what a combine harvester is if they don’t know that bread comes from combine harvesting.”
“, we’re not F1, we’re not on the TV with million-pound cars. We’re not automobiles that you grow up with in your mum and dad’s garage. We’re an industry that not many people think about. That’s where we were born out of.”
We Are Land-Based Engineering is a collaboration at its heart. Formally, it’s the Land-Based Engineering Training & Education Committee (LE-TEC), a company formed in 2017 by three leading industry bodies; the Agricultural Engineers Association (AEA), the British Agricultural and Garden Machinery Association (BAGMA), and the Institute of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE).
All have a passion for inspiring the land-based engineers of the future - but, like many businesses, face the challenge of speaking to multiple diverse audiences at once. On the one hand, sits the bodies’ traditional membership of machine manufacturers, dealers, and users. On the other, a fresh audience of secondary school students considering their career options.
For LE-TEC the answer was a distinct and separate brand. The We Are Land-Based Engineering campaign launched in December 2022, with its own website and social media. The palette of greens and greys feels fresh and approachable, which is complemented by its conversational (yet never condescending) tone.
But whoever your audience is, the key is thinking on your feet and adapting to their needs, says Gareth, even if that means ripping up best-made plans. It’s an approach that runs through the very heart of the campaign, whether it’s what machines the team talk about or who they’re talking to.
For example, when the project first launched, Gareth remembers setting ambitious digital targets. He laughs: “So, end of year one, it will be 50,000 followers on every social media possible. We’ll be a social media sensation.” However, once work began, they realised the real results were happening elsewhere.
He explains: “Where we’re having our impact is behind the scenes, in the schools, at the shows. The video views are good online, but they’re even better when we play that in front of 2,000 people at a school assembly, for example. It goes far beyond what you see online and the biggest impact we have is in the face-to-face conversations.”
He mentions an event a few weeks ago at a science fair in Norwich, where he was approached by a mum and her 15-year-old son who needed help getting work experience. Two weeks later the young person was in a John Deere dealership on a week’s placement and has since applied for an apprenticeship. That, says Gareth, is a real success story.
Their blended approach combines an online presence and digital assets with in-person events, as well as recognising different routes to reaching young people. Their video on porridge and football pitches was sent directly to the inboxes of 3,500 school career advisors across the UK, who will, in turn, share it with their students.
And, amongst all this, physical products still have a place too. A typical We Are Land-Based Engineering stall will have video testimonials from young people playing and there’ll usually be the chance to grab some swag, whether it’s a mug, a pencil, or some stickers.
“We always try to have material and merchandise that appeals,” explains Gareth, “it’s about creating stuff they can take away and remember.” In other words, it’s a tangible reminder of a real connection and a real-life call to action.
Even the combine harvester is a chance for physical interaction. At an upcoming show, they’ll be bringing along a life-sized piece of kit, for young people and parents to climb over, get inside, and have a look.
It’s an opportunity for everyone to learn, he says: “It really does inspire people to actually see a bit of kit that’s very cool. It’s nice when a parent, quite confident, says: ‘Oh yeah, this is what that does, I know what that is”, and they’re wrong. And then you can educate them. You see them walking away saying ‘well, I never knew that’s what actually happened in a combine harvester’”.
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