B.GOA.0126 - National Goat Roadshow

Summary

This project will develop a series of webinars targeting existing and potential commercial goat producers. The aim of the roadshow is to improve producer knowledge and understanding surrounding different aspects of the goat industry. Webinars will be hosted live and recordings placed on MLA website as a resource. Each webinar will include (but not limited to) MLA representative, at least one producer to present a case study, industry representative, researcher or content specialist. The end goal is to improve the profitability and productivity across the goat industry through increased awareness of research projects (investment and outcomes) and producer adoption.

Objectives

The objectives of these webinars, at a high level, were to engage goat producers from different production zones, goat systems and experience levels, and provide information and resources to improve understanding on key topics.

The project in its entirety was intended to reach a minimum of 480 producers. In these three webinars alone, this number has been exceeded, with a total of 590 registrations. An overview of the success of the three webinars can be summarised as follows:

• Webinar #17–251 people registered. On the day, there were 67 unique views, a 27% live attendance rate. Attendees rated the value of the webinar 7.32/10 and indicated their satisfaction with the webinar was 7.36/10. About 50% of producers indicated they planned to make changes to their business as a result of attending.
• Webinar #18–122 people registered. On the day, there were 30 unique views, a 25% live attendance rate. Attendees rated the value of the webinar 7.33/10 and indicated their satisfaction with the webinar was 7.83/10. About a third of producers planned to make changes to their business as a result of attending.
• Webinar #19–217 people registered. On the day, there were 74 unique views, a 34% live attendance rate. Attendees rated the value of the webinar 6.59/10 and indicated their satisfaction with the webinar was 7.45/10. About 50% of producers planned to make changes to their business as a result of attending.

In addition, video recordings of each of the webinars have been created and uploaded to YouTube, further promoting the industry topics and resources available to goat producers and boosting reach and engagement. These recordings have been viewed more than 840 times.

Three case studies have also been written and provided to MLA for publication on their website, to further engage producers following the webinars.

Key findings

These webinars have been successful in engaging goat producers across a range of systems and locations across Australia. In total, 590 people have registered for these three webinars, with 171 attending live (average 28% live attendance rate). There have been a further 842 views of the webinars on YouTube, showing a highly engaged audience.

Geographically, the registrants were spread right across Australia, however, the vast majority were located in Queensland, New South Wales and ACT. Interestingly, there were at least 14 overseas registrants to webinar 19.

Benefits to industry

Overall, the webinars have generated strong interest with more than 200 people registering for webinars 17 and 19, and more than 120 registering for webinar 18. This shows an interest to increase goat knowledge and interest in the skills and the topics advertised.

MLA action

Webinar attendees had the option to provide feedback on anything that could be added or changed to improve the content or ideas for future forums and speakers. Some of the suggestions include (full responses are included in Appendix 5):

• limit webinar to 45 minutes then questions
• more information about worm control – treatments available and effectiveness of them
• more information on rangeland versus first cross productivity in pastoral areas
• webinar on cull selection criteria based on the 9Ts – teeth, torso, toes, teats, testicles, tackle, temperament, tail web, tossers. Gross pathology and basic necropsy techniques. Euthanasia methods and how to determine quality of life.

Future research

The Goat Roadshow webinars have provided a successful platform to promote topics of relevance and interest to a wide range of goat producers and industry professionals across Australia. If MLA decides to invest in the Goat Roadshow events in the future, the feedback from this project indicates that webinars are a useful way to engage producers.

One of the main benefits of webinars is their accessibility across a wide geographical region, which enables MLA to reach producers in remote locations and across Australia in just one event. The other benefit is the ability to record the presentations and provide these to a wider audience through the MLA website and YouTube channels. This also provides legacy content for future audiences.

The timing of the webinars – approximately quarterly – has ensured adequate time for planning and preparation. It is recommended that the timing of any future webinars coincide with an opportunity to promote the webinars through the Goats on the Move newsletter. This didn’t always coincide with the most recent webinars; however, it is a useful platform to boost registrations and ensure strong attendance.

The webinars offer a cost-effective option, as there are no venue or travel expenses. However, there is value in the networking and engagement opportunities that come with hosting in-person events.

The inclusion of producer case studies has resulted in high engagement. The producer case study generally receives the highest rating of each webinar. For any future goat webinars, it is recommended to continue to include at least one producer case study on each. The real-world examples producers offer, when presented alongside research and technical speakers, ensure the
webinars offer engaging and practical content.

Any future webinar topics and speakers would need to be determined through consultation with MLA.