**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** AGRITOURISM (I.E., VISITING A WORKING FARM FOR EDUCATION OR RECREATION) CONTRIBUTES TO THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY OF RURAL LIVELIHOODS. TO AMPLIFY THESE BENEFITS EFFECTIVE MARKETING STRATEGIES ARE NEEDED TO PROMOTE AGRITOURISM. MOBILE APPS ARE INCREASINGLY USED TO MARKET AGRITOURISM BECAUSE OF THEIR UBIQUITY, USERS' FAMILIARITY WITH THEIR FUNCTIONALITY, AND THEIR POTENTIAL TO COST-EFFECTIVELY REACH THE PUBLIC. DESPITE THE PROLIFERATION OF AGRITOURISM MOBILE APPS, LITTLE RESEARCH HAS EXAMINED AGRITOURISM MOBILE APPS USERS, THEIR MOTIVATIONS FOR DOWNLOADING THE APP, AND HOW MOBILE APPS INFLUENCE FARM VISITATION. THUS, THE PROJECT GOALS ARE TO 1) ADVANCE THE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT MOBILE APP USER CHARACTERISTICS AND HOW THESE RELATE TO AGRITOURISM PREFERENCES AND 2) INVESTIGATE HOW TAILORED FUNCTIONALITY (I.E., ITINERARY BUILDING FEATURE) MIGHT INCREASE FARM VISITS. TO ACHIEVE THESE GOALS, THIS PROJECT WILL LEVERAGE EXISTING DEVELOPMENT OF THE VISIT NC FARMS MOBILE APP. THIS INTEGRATED PROJECT WILL UTILIZE TWO SURVEYS. THE FIRST WILL FOCUS ON ESTABLISHING USER TYPOLOGIES AND UTILIZING THEM TO PREDICT AGRITOURISM PREFERENCES. THE SECOND WILL ASSESS SATISFACTION AND USER EXPERIENCE WITH THE ITINERARY BUILDING FEATURE AND EVALUATE ITS EFFECTIVENESS IN ENCOURAGING FARMS VISITS. THIS PROJECT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO CONCEPTUALIZING MOBILE TECHNOLOGY AS A DRIVER OF CHANGE FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS AND REPRESENT PIONEERING RESEARCH NEEDED TO ACCELERATE APP DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION, AND EFFECTIVENESS. FINDINGS WILL BE DISSEMINATED THROUGH PEER-REVIEWED AND EXTENSION PUBLICATIONS, AND A TRAINING WORKSHOP. THIS PROJECT ADVANCES SCIENCE BY TRAINING A POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE OVERALL AFRI GOAL OF PROMOTING THE SUSTAINABILITY OF AGRICULTURAL ECOSYSTEMS.