D5.1 - Dissemination & Communication Plan and Reports, including Network Development - Version 2

DISSEMINATION & COMMUNICATION PLAN AND REPORTS, INCLUDING NETWORK DEVELOPMENT 09/2023 Horizontal logo Ref. Ares(2024)6128784 - 29/08/2024 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 2 Horizontal logo Project cofunded by the European Commission within the Digital Europe Programme Dissemination Level PU Public x CO Confidential, only for members of the consortium (including the Commission Services) □ CL Classified, as referred to in Commission decision 2001/844/EC □ Deliverable number: Deliverable name: D5.1 Work package: 5 Lead WP: WR Lead Task: HSOS Document Revision History Date Issue Author/Editor/Contributor Summary of main change 23/05/2023 V1 Stefan Stiene - HSOS First document version 21/09/2023 George Beers - WR Including comments Osnabruck session 22/09/2023 Marijke Hunninck Updating document version 11/07/2024 V1.1 Rita Giuffrida Updating document version based on the reviewers’ comments 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 3 Horizontal logo 1. Project Summary AgrifoodTEF is a network of test and validation infrastructures in Europe that supports Agri-Food technology companies to do near product development of their AI and Robotics solutions in real-world facilities. The overall aim is to close the gap between excellent research in these fields and actual products that support an efficient and sustainable agriculture, while meeting stringent usability and economic requirements of their end-users. AgrifoodTEF foundations are solidly rooted in existing experimental farms and facilities for AI and Robotics in Agriculture, already operational in various regions highly representative of European Agri-Food production. These have been clustered to build scale and further enhance EU role in guaranteeing world food security with testing and validation facilities that will engage all relevant stakeholders with the best experts in the AI and Robotics technology domains. Furthermore, standards for dataset creation, data sovereignty, algorithm or benchmark interoperability will be based on GAIA-X as the ambassadors of different GAIA-X agri-domains in Europe are part of the proposal. While each TEF-node will promote independent operations with a sustainable business model that will be optimized for the specialties and territorial needs, all TEFnodes will share common guidelines, standards and support each other with services that can be also offered across the different regions represented by nodes and satellites. The final aim is to help Europe achieve leadership in fostering top quality, technology driven and massive adoption of innovative solutions for Agri-Food, bringing primary production to new levels of efficiency akin to what was achieved by the Green Revolution. 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 4 Horizontal logo 2. Contents 1. Project Summary ..................................................................................................................................................... 3 2. Contents .................................................................................................................................................................. 4 List of figures ................................................................................................................................................................... 4 3. Executive summary .................................................................................................................................................. 5 4. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................. 6 4.1 Goals and objectives .............................................................................................................................................. 6 4.2. Methodology ........................................................................................................................................................ 7 5. Target audiences and key messages ........................................................................................................................ 9 5.1 AgrifoodTEF Ecosystem ....................................................................................................................................... 10 6. Cooperate Identity ................................................................................................................................................. 11 6.1 Logo, fonts and colors setting, images, icons, style sheet .................................................................................. 11 6.2 Promotional kit .................................................................................................................................................... 13 7. Tools and Channels ................................................................................................................................................ 15 7.1 Website and Portal ........................................................................................................................................ 15 7.2 Newsflashes .................................................................................................................................................... 16 7.3 Social Media ................................................................................................................................................... 16 8. Schedule for CDE-Activities .................................................................................................................................... 18 9. Metrics and KPIs related to CDE-Activities ............................................................................................................ 19 9.1 Monitoring and Evaluation of the Dissemination and Communication Activities ............................................... 19 9.2 Timeline for implementing the communication and dissemination activities .................................................... 20 10. Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................................... 21 List of figures Figure 1: agrifoodTEF logo ............................................................................................................................................. 11 Figure 2: EU flag ............................................................................................................................................................. 11 Figure 3: agrifoodTEF rollup banner .............................................................................................................................. 13 Figure 4: agrifoodTEF website ....................................................................................................................................... 15 Figure 5: Dissemination task overview in MS Teams ..................................................................................................... 18 Figure 6 – Communication and dissemination timeline ................................................................................................ 21 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 5 Horizontal logo 3. Executive summary Effective communication, sharing of information, and utilization of project results are crucial aspects of agrifoodTEF to achieve its intended impact. This involves providing project updates and outcomes to various groups involved, actively involving them in project activities, and ensuring practical application of project findings. In order to accomplish these goals, Work Package 5 (WP5) titled "Ecosystem and Market Development and Visibility" aims to facilitate efficient communication and dissemination of project information to relevant stakeholders, as well as enhance the visibility of agrifoodTEF, its services, and associated networks. WP5 is led by partner WUR and receives contributions from HSOS and EV-ILVO. The specific objectives of WP5 are as follows: This dissemination and Exploitation Plan is the first deliverable of WP5 (Deliverable D5.1). The primary aim is to ensure the widespread dissemination of the project's results and outputs to the appropriate target groups, including agribusiness, scientists, policy-makers, the general public, and other stakeholders such as pan-European infrastructures and Research Organizations. This communication will occur at suitable intervals throughout the project's duration and particularly at significant milestones. Moreover, the plan aims to identify, engage, and encourage the participation of TEF customers who can contribute to the development of agrifoodTEF and its sustainability plan. Throughout the project, the Dissemination and Exploitation Plan will remain a dynamic document that will be regularly updated and adjusted based on the project's progress and evolution, incorporating feedback from the community and project office. What is special about the TEF-projects in comparison with other EU projects is that a large part of the dissemination work takes place at the national level, in the local language, since the TEFs' customers are acquired there in particular. The agrifood TEF dissemination strategy therefore also tries to offer support to the individual partner countries in the implementation of their local dissemination and to present the agrifoodTEF as a whole and participate in the overall sector crossing TEF communication. Creates insight in the international market for agrifoodTEF Build the ecosystem around the nodes and satellites and the project as a whole Enhance the visibility by setting up communication channels for outreach Establishing a website for dissemination of available services catalogue and a web portal as the central marketplace to the nodes/satellites’ services and training Provide business support to establish sustainable business models for the nodes’ and satellites services and ecosystem as a whole 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 6 Horizontal logo 4. Introduction 4.1 Goals and objectives To maximize visibility and impact, agrifoodTEF will develop and carry out dissemination actions to inform and involve targeted actors and execute strategically planned communication activities to engage, consult and inform key stakeholders and the wider public. The main objective of the agrifoodTEF dissemination strategy is to facilitate the satellites in ‘selling’ their services. The dissemination strategy needs to ensure that the project’s outcomes, knowledge, and opportunities are effectively diffused and made accessible to the appropriate target groups all across Europe Member States from the beginning and that we have regular interactions with stakeholders taking place though the living labs. A multi-actor, multi-channel approach will be employed to reach and engage different stakeholders and target groups, with adjusted information for needs and interests, addressing especially the future costumers regarding the service list of the TEF network. In this sense, use will be made of the nodes and satellites that will be organized as living labs. Per definition they interact with different stakeholders. Further, synergies for knowledge and innovation transfer with European-funded projects (i.e. other proposals funded under the DIGITAL-2022-CLOU-AI-02-TEF) will be built as well as the integration of the European Digital Innovation Hubs (Task 5.3) and the use of the AI-on-Demand platform. AgrifoodTEF is a 5 years project aiming at creating a sustainable infrastructure for testing and experimenting AI based solutions and robots for the agrifood sector. To be in line with the dynamics of the project, dissemination and communication will be differentiated in 3 phases: Below we focus the dissemination plan on the first phase, other phases will be elaborated in next versions of this ‘living’ document. The dissemination plan provides guidelines for the satellites to implement operational dissemination actions targeting the local community of customers and stakeholders. At agrifoodTEF level the activities and experiences in the satellites will be monitored and shared among the satellites, to facilitate that satellites can learn from each other. At agrifoodTEF level dissemination will be focused on the international network, to ensure that international operating potential customers can get in touch the TEFs and acquire their services. Year 1: Creating the AgrifoodTEF community Year 2-3: Developing the customer base Year 4-5: Towards sustaining the TEF results 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 7 Horizontal logo 4.2. Methodology Communication, dissemination, and exploitation of services are crucial components of ensuring that the benefits and outcomes of an innovation are effectively shared, understood, and utilized by the appropriate target groups. These three aspects play a pivotal role in maximizing the impact of your efforts. ! 1. Communication: Communication involves conveying information, messages, and ideas to various stakeholders in a clear and effective manner. It ensures that the target groups are aware of the services, products, or innovations being offered. Effective communication strategies include: Ø Message Clarity: Craft messages that are concise, clear, and easy to understand. Avoid jargon and technical terms that might confuse non-experts. Ø Targeted Messaging: Tailor messages to resonate with the specific needs, interests, and preferences of our target groups. Ø Multichannel Approach: Utilize a variety of communication channels such as websites, social media, newsletters, workshops, seminars, and traditional media to reach a wider and/or specific audience. Ø Engagement: Encourage interaction and feedback through two-way communication channels. This helps build trust and fosters a sense of ownership among the target groups. 2. Dissemination: Dissemination involves spreading information, research findings, or outcomes to a wider audience, including stakeholders who may benefit from the services or products being offered. Effective dissemination strategies include: Ø Partner Collaboration: Collaborate with partner organizations, research institutions, and industry partners to jointly disseminate information and expand reach. Ø Events and Workshops: Organize workshops, webinars, seminars, and conferences to share insights, experiences, and good practices with interested parties. Ø Documentation: Create well-structured documents, reports, presentations, and visual materials that explain the services and their advantages. Ø Open Access: Make relevant resources, publications, and materials openly accessible to the public, where applicable, to increase visibility and understanding. 3. Exploitation: Exploitation involves actively harnessing the benefits and value of your services, products, or innovations to achieve tangible outcomes. This includes encouraging uptake, adoption, and practical application by your target groups. Effective exploitation strategies include: Ø Customization: Adapt our services to meet the specific needs and preferences of different target groups. Flexibility enhances the relevance of what you're offering. Ø Training and Capacity Building: Provide training sessions and resources to help target groups effectively utilize and derive value from the services. Ø Good Practices: promote and enhance visibility of successes and good practices. Ø Measurable Outcomes: Define and communicate the specific benefits and results that target groups can expect from using our services. Ø Feedback Loop: Establish mechanisms to gather feedback from users. This helps identify areas for improvement and ensures that the services remain aligned with user needs. 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 8 Horizontal logo Table 1: Overview of communication, dissemination and exploitation activities in AgrifoodTEF Communication Dissemination Exploitation Core objective Inform, promote and communicate agrifoodTEF activities and results, as well as the serves to multiple audiences Make knowledge, services and results public and available to others who can make best use of them Make concrete use of agrifoodTEF services Timing From the start of the project until the end At any time, and as soon as the project has results As soon as the project has exploitable results 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 9 Horizontal logo 5. Target audiences and key messages In order to achieve these CD&E objectives, there is a need to define the key recipients for communication, dissemination, knowledge exchange activities. These will include EDIHs, industry associations, SMEs, start-ups, Competence centers (CC) and Research organisations with an interest in, or a role to play in the project. Here we define the key target groups external to the agrifoodTEF project. Key target groups have been identified and clustered according to the groupings shown in Table 2. Target Groups Key Messages Channel ‘End-Users’ in the agri-food business ecosystem (Farmers, advisors and their associations) Getting Feedback from this target group on the practical relevance of specific and validated AI and robotics solutions as well as raising awareness for the potential of AI & Robotics technologies (living lab). Events, social media, email marketing, etc Technology Providers and AI, robotics & Data intermediaries (e. g. data aggregators, agri-food software and robotic companies) The TEF provides a unique infrastructure for this target group to test, experiment, evaluate and certify their products. Events, social media, email marketing, etc Solution manufactures in the agrifood domain (e. g. machinery suppliers, FMIS, Food processing, logistics) The TEF provides a unique infrastructure for this target group to integrate solutions of technology providers in their products and test, experiment and evaluate them. Events, social media, email marketing, etc Society (e.g., citizens, consumers and their associations) Raise awareness for the potential of AI and robotics for a sustainable and efficient agri-food domain and show value of validation and certification. Present the TEF concept as an important instrument to mitigate the public concerns on AI and robotics social media, email marketing, website, events and partnerships Public bodies (public administration, legislators and governmental bodies) The TEF is the ideal place for this target group to develop approval workflows for new AI & robotics solutions (especially long-term autonomous machines). Website, email, inperson meetings, social media Certification bodies The TEF provides a unique infrastructure for certification bodies to provide certification services for their customers. Website, email, inperson meetings, social media, events, partnerships Academia and scientific communities and professionals The TEF is the key infrastructure between basic research of this target group and actual products based on this research. This target group should also integrate the TEF in their research and development in order to reduce the gap between research and products. social media, email marketing, website, events and partnerships Policy makers (EU commission, member states, etc.) The TEF will be part of European strategy to support the digital strategy. The TEF will communicate with all these different groups, to increase awareness of the position and added value of agrifoodTEF and the value for the other instruments. TEF will support the implementation of new regulation like AI act. Internal network 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 16 Horizontal logo 7.2 Newsflashes As part of its communication strategy, agrifoodTEF is committed to producing newsflashes to deliver important updates. The newsflashes will be distributed via email to the project's target audience, published on the project's website, and actively promoted on LinkedIn. These newsflashes will serve as a comprehensive source of information, providing key updates on the agrifoodTEF project, including news, events, and more. They offer an alternative means of communicating project results to potential and existing followers and stakeholders. The coordination and preparation of the newsflashes will be handled by EV-ILVO, with input from partners if specific content is required. The email marketing platform Campaign Monitor will be utilized for the development and distribution of the newsletters. While the content of each newsletter will be agreed upon by the partners, it will typically consist of the following sections: To ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), newsletters will only be sent to registered subscribers. A newsflash sign-up system has been established on the agrifoodTEF website to facilitate subscription and manage recipient consent in accordance with GDPR guidelines. 7.3 Social Media Social media accounts serve as a valuable promotional tool, enabling effective outreach to new and highly targeted potential users. They act as a conduit between the project's activities and the intended stakeholders, fostering visual appeal and interactivity. Furthermore, social media platforms generate amplified effects in promoting project activities and outcomes. Table 4, presents the social media accounts were established in the first six months of the project: LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/agr ifoodtef/ Currently 339 Follower The agrifoodTEF LinkedIn account will promote the project and its activities, taking advantage of connections to professionals and networks in the agri-food and R&I domain YouTube Profile: https://www.youtube.com/@agrifoodte f The agrifoodTEF YouTube channel for promoting the agriculture and food sector and for raising awareness of the work of the agrifoodTEF. By sharing informative and engaging content, the channel can help to build a more informed and engaged public. 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 17 Horizontal logo • LinkedIn: To expand its reach and engage diverse audiences, agrifoodTEF maintains an active presence LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/agrifoodtef/). The social media platform is carefully selected as dynamic and effective tools for communication. Leveraging social media successfully will enhance the visibility of agrifoodTEF and support the goals outlined in the communication, dissemination, and exploitation strategy. LinkedIn serves as a professional network, providing an avenue for agrifoodTEF to connect with individuals and groups who share similar interests. It enables the sharing of more comprehensive and detailed content, fostering deeper engagement and professional networking opportunities. • Youtube: The agrifoodTEF YouTube channel can promote a variety of topics related to the agriculture and food sector, including: New technologies and innovations, Best practices, Success stories. In addition to these general topics, the agrifoodTEF YouTube channel can also promote specific projects and initiatives that are being undertaken by the agrifoodTEF. This can help to raise awareness of the projects and the services and to attract new customers and stakeholders. 7.4 Project Events and participation in external events The agrifoodTEF is planning several events at national and EU level. Each node and satellite will have its national events, where they will target their local customers and make them aware of the full agrifoodTEF service portfolio. It is also planned to participate in a number of international fairs where relevant agrifoodTEF stakeholders meet to present agrifoodTEF as a whole (e.g. Agritechnica or FIRA). Beside fairs it is planned to have open field days to give potential customers the opportunity to get a hands-on experience with the services offered by the TEF. The scheduling of these field days is coordinated between the partners and promoted on a TEF wide level. 7.5 Articles Articles and in general publications is a classical dissemination tool that is of cause also used in agrifoodTEF. As one of the main dissemination objectives is to address potential customers of the TEF, agrifoodTEF will not only publish on conferences in the AI and robotics research community but also in domain relevant national journals. Within the project we also have scientific activities, these will result in scientific journals. 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 18 Horizontal logo 8. Schedule for CDE-Activities In big projects like agrifoodTEF it is important to have transparency on the dissemination activities. In order to achieve this we set up a planner tool in Microsoft Teams to plan and track all activities by the different partners. The planner works as a KANBAN board with different categories like fairs, social media, etc. Every partner is able to add new dissemination tasks and assign responsible people. Beside the decentralized possibility of adding dissemination tasks there is a regular meeting (four times a year) of the core dissemination team that plans dissemination actions for the entire project. Figure 5: Dissemination task overview in MS Teams 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 19 Horizontal logo 9. Metrics and KPIs related to CDE-Activities Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have also been identified to provide a quantitative assessment of agrifoodTEF’s impact. The means of verification for these KPIs include number event, nservices, website analytics, social media metrics, attendance lists, reports and meetings, etc. Table 5 presents the KPI’s: KPI Nr Total number of international events at a TEF node or satellite Ø 40 Participation in workshops with projects funded under the same call Ø 40 Number of TEF nodes/satellites offering their services due to the WP5 portal 8 Number of strategy board and advisory board meetings 5 Number of agrifoodTEF portal unique visitors per year Ø 1000 Total number of posts published via social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube) 2000 Total number of printed publications 50 Distributed printed promotional materials 2000 Number of joint activities with other TEFs and EDIHs 20 Number of market analyses 5 Number of stakeholders involved in agrifoodTEF activities Ø 100 Number of provided trainings in the catalogue Ø 60 Report on Evolution of the share of the European industry in the global agri-food related AI products and services market 1 Number of farmers reached out each year through different TEF workshops and sectorial fairs Ø 1000 9.1 Monitoring and Evaluation of the Dissemination and Communication Activities For monitoring purposes, all KPIs, including those for WP5, are collected at the node/satellite level and updated in a common KPI list before each report submission. This is managed under Task 4.5 "Monitoring KPIs and implementation of standards and common building blocks." 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 20 Horizontal logo To assess the impact of communication and dissemination activities, the WP5 team will track the results of each KPI highlighted in Section 9 using a dedicated KPI tracker. Performance will be monitored bi-weekly, and corrective actions will be implemented if any KPIs are underperforming. All responsible WP5 members will update the KPI table regularly. 9.2 Timeline for implementing the communication and dissemination activities In addition to the KPI monitoring tracker, the team has built a timeline for implementing the activities, as shown in Figure 6. Throughout the entire project’s lifetime, the team will focus on: - Developing graphics materials: creating visuals, infographics, brochures, roll-ups and videos. The distribution of these materials is monitored by the KPIs: o Total number of printed publications; o Distributed printed promotional materials. - Organizing events: hosting webinars, training events and workshops and participating to 3rd-party events. The participation and organization of the events is monitored by the KPIs: o Total number of international events at a TEF node or satellite; o Participation in workshops with projects funded under the same call; o Number of strategy board and advisory board meetings; o Number of joint activities with other TEFs and EDIHs; o Number of stakeholders involved in agrifoodTEF activities; o Number of farmers reached out each year through different TEF workshops and sectorial fairs. - Publishing website content: posting news articles, events and other type of content. These activities are monitored by the KPIs: o Number of provided trainings in the catalogue; o Report on Evolution of the share of the European industry in the global agri-food related AI products and services market. - Social media management: Managing social media on a weekly basis, publishing on various platforms, and implementing a multilingual communication strategy with satellites and nodes to reach a broad audience. This includes running paid campaigns. These activities are monitored by the KPIs: o Total number of posts published via social media (Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube); o Number of stakeholders involved in agrifoodTEF activities. - Website revamps: Enhancing the website, starting with the initial landing page in the first year, followed by three additional updates based on UX/UI workshops to improve usability and include new features like a training platform and the catalogue of services. These activities are monitored by the KPIs: o Number of TEF nodes/satellites offering their services due to the WP5 portal; o Number of agrifoodTEF portal unique visitors per year. 101100622/agrifoodTEF agrifoodTEF - Dissemination & communication plan and reports, including network development September 22th, 2023 21 Horizontal logo Figure 6 – Communication and dissemination timeline This timeline outlines the planned communication and dissemination activities until the project's end. However, it may be adjusted based on the project's needs and progress. 10. Conclusion The current version of the dissemination strategy should be seen as a first shot. AgrifoodTEF is an innovative project and the strategy will develop along a learning by doing approach. At project level we need to be aware that the crucial part of dissemination needs to be done by and in the satellites. Dealing with a good balance of commonalities and differences between the satellites will be challenging. In the monitor & support approach the WP5 team will collect information from the satellites on dissemination plans, the actions and results of these actions in the satellite context. This information will be essential to support the satellites by giving back the ideas and experiences from other satellites. Collection useful information from the satellites depends heavily on the perception by the satellites on the usefulness of the support. In the balancing act of WP5 this is the other main challenge.