Friday, October 3, 2014

Profile for Persuasion: Farmers

My grandpa is a real Idaho Farmer
Main characteristics and values
One who owns or manages a farm, is very hardworking. Farmers are self-motivated and disciplined. They till the earth and are also down to earth.  They don't have time or tolerance for idleness.  Things that are important to them include efficiency, responsibility and family. Being a farmer requires resourcefulness and physical capability.

Likely/unlikely to persuade
Farmers prefer efficiency over elegance. Since a farmer's time is his money, equipment that is reliable, easily maintained and operated, and familiar will be more beneficial and appealing to him.  A farmer would say, "Why buy the new fancy, souped-up Ford if it guzzles more gas and hauls less hay?" Load capacity trumps luxury.  A farmer says it like it is. They like it direct, honest, and straight foward.  They see no need for beating around the bush or adding fluff to your speech.  Good morals and manners appeal to them.  Idleness and irresponsibility are a put-off for them.

Test Case: Hi-ho the dairy-o, get the farmer to the play
Getting a farmer to a play might be as hard as getting a cow to milk herself. But the following ideas might help.  A play that is low-key, put on by the community where family or friends are cast members might appeal to a farmer's love of family values.  They may be more likely to attend if proceeds go to a good local cause and the play has a lighthearted, uplifting message.  The plot should be straight-forward and simple, humerous, and teach a good moral.  Another way you could get a farmer to a play is assuring them the play will be over before 10pm so they can get to bed.

2 comments:

  1. You make it seem like farmers are work-a-holics, which may be the case, I don't personally know any farmers. I do think that farmers have a good understanding of time = money. If the farmer spent time at a play, but it raised money for his farm or for his industry, that would probably persuade him to attend.

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  2. I have a ton of family that grew up on farms, and they definitely have some of these characteristics. I wish that more people knew manual labor and have these values...in moderate doses. I think there's definitely room for leisure and arts, but I love the idea of dependable, hard work!

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