Page 145 - DMGT522_SERVICES MANAGEMENT

Services Management

Notes toolbox—a sturdy polyurethane toolbox filled to capacity with many different types of
promotion materials. The PSA’s were on videotape in the box for agents’ use, and Extension
pencils and bookmarks promoting Extension Web sites filled the top tray; all very handy
marketing tools. Ideally, an agent on his or her way to a program would be able to just
pick up this toolbox and use the contents to promote Extension and help the audience to
identify these programs with their sources. Public awareness was recognized as the best
way to implement a “pull marketing strategy” rather than a “push” for IFAS/Extension’s
services. The public couldn’t demand that their local representatives support IFAS programs
unless they knew how IFAS benefited them.
IFAS/Extension’s Current Situation

Dr. Martin again mulls over the comments put forth at the meeting by stakeholders from
the Treasure Coast, a three-county area located on the east coast of Florida. They agreed
that the need for change is imminent. The county Extension offices were originally developed
on a county-by-county basis because studies at the time suggested the average farmer
could only travel 18 miles round trip in one day. When Dr. Martin had suggested that
regional instead of county-based Extension offices might be the future, the audience of
stakeholders didn’t balk (but they still insisted 4-H have a county focus). Most important,
he saw that even those people already involved with IFAS and supporting it as these
people did, still had no clear understanding of the number of different subject areas
encompassed by Extension.
Dr. Martin told the group, very truthfully, how much he appreciated their time and
willingness to share their opinions on how IFAS/Extension is doing, but seeing how far
uphill their battle still had to go was a bit disheartening. Informal studies had shown that
more than 65% of the general public still did not know where their County Extension
Office was located, were not aware of the information and service provided there, and did
not know that their tax dollars supported the County Extension Office. The survey of
potential customers clearly contradicts the impression made by the impact statistics.
Obviously, the secret was still not out. Dr. Martin suspected the toolboxes were not being
used; perhaps Agents were busy enough keeping up with the demands of those already
familiar with Extension and did not see the same motivation to promote IFAS/Extension
as he did. The impact data Dr. Martin was reading was not completely consistent with his
personal findings in the field.

Three years after Florida FIRST was implemented, the imperatives identified were still
basically the same, although one stood out above all the others as being the highest
priority for UF/IFAS: water management, quality, and allocation. In reviewing the program
offerings statewide, Dr. Martin saw that Best Management Practices (BMP’s) programs
were being offered on a variety of topics. A program being implemented in some coastal
counties, the Florida Yards and Neighborhoods Program, promoted water quality and
use awareness. Water issues seemed an area that would be in more demand in the future,
and IFAS needed to be prepared to meet those demands. Showing their ability to prepare
for impending state needs could help establish IFAS again as the clear leader and source
for information.
The public’s awareness of IFAS/Extension and their belief that the information found
there is the best information they can obtain at the lowest cost is key to Extension’s success
in the future. The opportunity to provide statewide leadership and programming on key
issues that will soon affect all segments of the population is there. The threat to IFAS/
Extension comes in its inability to identify those programs that are key to its success and
Contd...

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