What Must Farmers Know?
Answer a few questions about the solution you want to promote. You will get the elements your key message must include, a quick test for sorting must-know from nice-to-know, and a worksheet to print and complete with colleagues or farmers.A key message is what people need in order to try the solution successfully, not everything you know about it. The hard part is leaving things out.
Your previous answers were restored.
What is the solution? (optional)
1. What kind of change are you asking for?
Choose the closest. The kind of change decides much of what the message has to carry.2. What does success depend on?
Choose “Not sure” if you don’t know. The tool will flag what to check.3. The benefit
How soon and how clearly will farmers see the benefit?
Cost or risk to the farmer of trying it
Your key message must answer
Usually nice to know
Useful for a handout, a training session or anyone who asks, but not part of the key message.The must-know test
Apply it to every point you are thinking of including. If the answer to any question is yes, keep it. If all three are no, it is nice to know.- Without it, would farmers fail, waste money or get hurt?
- Do they need it to decide whether to try?
- Would they probably do it wrong without it?
Check your message
Write the message in one or two sentences, then test it.- Simple: could you say it in one breath?
- Specific: does it say what, how much and when, so someone could act on it tomorrow?
- Practical: does it work with the inputs, labour and money farmers actually have?
- Focused: three actions or fewer?
- Tested: ask two or three farmers to explain it back in their own words. What they get wrong shows what to fix.
Next: once the key message is clear, decide how to package and deliver it: see
Message form and delivery and
How Should I Reach Farmers?
Developed by Mark Bell (2026)
