Corteva Agriscience's Bhavna Imran shares how digital micro-storytelling is transforming engagement with small landowners: Hill+Knowlton Strategies-PRmoment Friday Zone series

 16th July 2021    Podcasts 
 Paarul Chand

How has micro-storytelling evolved in a VUCA world? How does it work for mass audiences? This was the topic the Hill+Knowlton Strategies and PRmoment India Friday Zone Podcast series kicked off with in July 2021.

Abhishek Gulyani, CEO, Hill+Knowlton Strategies India said, "Friday Zone is centred around innovating the future of corporate communications. As a part of this, we would be focusing our attention towards the concept of story-telling in a VUCA, post-COVID world in our first episode.

Micro storytelling directed towards a mass audience is an opportunity that will transform brand engagement and make it both personal, empathetic, entertaining and informative. To sum it up, a brand needs to be like a human being, its own consumer, with its talents and takes, quirks and foibles.

The changing shape of communications with small landowners in India 

Farmers are emerging as major consumers of content on WhatsApp and YouTube. Bhavna Imran, regional communications leader, Corteva Agriscience outlined for the audience how farmers are now engaging with content and how agro firms are shaping their communication strategy accordingly.

Sharing how with farmers trust is key for communicators, Imran said, "All of us talk about trust. But for this audience, one single decision based on a single action from a communication could actually make or break the subsistence for the year. So I think that much of the responsibility of a communicator becomes that much important.

Imran added, "Typically, these farmers have got most of the information to increase the yield and output or to better their agricultural practices through through their peers, through the village conversations or through these independent consultants who are in the in the villages talking to them. But, come pandemic all that changed.

That's when Imran discovered that the farmers had embraced  technology and found new and more effective ways to connect, "You'll be surprised how many Facebook Live streaming sessions we had with the farmers. We actually got on Zoom conversations. We got on to group talk and sent messages and we're talking about large numbers. And I think that for us as communicators, it lent us on a platter, the ability to do micro storytelling. 

Today, if I want to go and tell a farmer about water stewardship, or save water, I will not reach out to all the farmers in the country, I will reach out to only those farmers who are actually working on high water consumption plants."

Do take a look at the full podcast that also covered the following topics:

1) How Corteva Agriscience's Pravakta programme is engaging with farmers.

2) The central role women occupy in decision making about farming strategy.

3) The rise of YouTube influencers such as Nandkishore Dhakad and his Desi Kheti YouTube channel with 381,000 thousand subscribers.

Friday Zone is powered by Hill+Knowlton Strategies India