NATIONAL MRF IMPACT WRITING PROJECTACCOMPLISHMENTS, JULY 2012 – MAY 2013

The National Multistate Research Fund Impact Writing Project began in June of 2012 when Sara Delheimer, the Impact Writer, was brought on board to communicate research outcomes for multistate research projects when they terminate.

MSR IMPACT STATEMENTS

43

Impact Statements are formatted to a standard 2-page PDF with supporting photos. They are easy to read and simple to distribute. As of May 2013, a total of 43 Impact Statements have been created.

15

Of the total 43 Impact Statement, 15 are for North-Central Region projects.

3

3 are for North East Region projects.

8

8 are for Southern Region projects.

17

17 are for Western Region projects.

1

NRSP IMPACT STATEMENTS

In early 2013, a special format was designed for Impact Statements for NRSPs. So far, one NRSP Impact Statement has been finalized.

VISIBILITY

Impact Statements are shared in many ways in order to reach different audiences.

Finalized Impact

Statements go to:

• Administrative Advisors and project participants

• Regional Executive Directors and their assistants

• NIFA representatives (Bart Hewitt, Meryl Broussard, Ralph Otto, and Sonny Ramaswamy)

• kglobal (Jenny Nuber)

•Partner trade associations

•Regulatory organizations

• Industry representatives

•Government

representatives

•College leadership

•Other stakeholders

And also to:

Each finalized Impact Statement is also immediately posted on the corresponding regional website.

kglobal also adds one or two Impact Statements each week to the AgIsAmerica website. Nearly 30 Impact Statements have been featured and archived on the site so far.

Impact Statements are often featured as the highlighted story in the weekly internal “Research and Extension Highlights” e-newsletter, which is sent out to over 300 recipients.

AgIsAmerica regularly includes Impact Statements in Facebook posts. In this example, 27 people “liked” a post about WERA-1009. Over 2,700 people follow AgIsAmerica on Facebook.

AgIsAmerica also regularly tweets about selected Impact Statements. Tweets—like these about WERA-1009—link to the full PDF and to other conversations about the topic. They also target the story to specific reporters, senators, and media outlets. AgIsAmerica has over 28,000 followers on Twitter.

Every finalized Impact Statement is archived in the NIMSS.

IMPACT STORY PITCHES

11

•Newspapers (local, national)

•University newsletters

• Industry magazines

•Agriculture magazines

•Online news sitesOther ways we have spread the word about research outcomes include pitching particularly timely or outstanding impact stories to various media outlets. To date, 11 stories have been pitched, each to two or three different outlets.

10+

• Pork Network

• AG Professional

• Ohio’s Country Journal

• The Crop Site

PRESS RELEASES

One successful example is this press release for the Award of Excellence in Multistate Research. At the time of the Awards Ceremony, this press release was picked up by 10+ media outlets. This extensive reach brought positive national attention not only to the winning project but also to the entire multistate research program.

GREAT WORK, GREAT IMPACTS!

We’ve received great feedback from project participants and stakeholders about specific Impact Statements and the MRF Impact Reporting Project as a whole. Great work and great impacts, everyone!