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The 9-Days of Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Social Media Marketing Campaign

Horticulture & Turfgrass

Norma Samuel
Urban Horticulture Agent & Associate District Extension Director
UF/IFAS Extension
The Villages

Abstract

Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ (FFL)  promotes sustainability and conservation of resources. FFL integrates such principles into residential communities through collaborative efforts between homeowners, professionals, and legislative bodies.? While FFL yards are low maintenance by nature, all yards require maintenance. In The Villages, a residential area with a prominent elder population, FFL has gained a negative reputation since some FFL yards have been overgrown and under-maintained.  ?Our goal was to utilize social media to increase awareness and ultimately create a positive perception of FFL across Florida, with a focus on The Villages. Facebook has a large share of elderly users, so the UF/IFAS Extension Sumter County Facebook page appeared to be the most effective medium to reach our target audience. By utilizing the pre-established Facebook page, engagement and awareness of FFL's benefits was fostered through regular uploads, conversational relays of technical horticultural information, and interactive writing elements.  Our primary social media campaign was the “9 Days of FFL”, which featured a post and webinar on a single FFL principle each day leading up to the first day of spring. A total of $293.54 was spent to boost 15 posts between February 10 and March 15, 2021. Both the Facebook page’s Followers and Post Engagement increased by 13% and Page Reach by 32% or 18,224 people, and FFL appeared to be well received. Social media, specifically Facebook, appeared to be an effective medium when seeking to educate more people about the importance of FFL. Similar campaigns should be used to increase popularity of FFL.

Authors: Dejah Staton, Rafaella Galvez, Norma Samuel, Lisa Sanderson
  1. Dejah Staton Student Intern, University of Florida/IFAS Extension, Florida, 32162
  2. Rafaella Galvez Student Intern, University of Florida/IFAS Extension, Florida, 32162
  3. Norma Samuel Florida Friendly Landscaping & Urban Horticulture Agent & Associate District Extension Director, University of Florida/IFAS Extension, Florida, 32162
  4. Lisa Sanderson Residential Horticulture Extension Agent, UF/IFAS Extension, Florida, 33153