Small Marketing Department Workshop: Equipping Your Department to Survive and Thrive
If you’re flying solo or part of a small marketing team this workshop is for you. Join us to kick off your 2025 Agri-Marketing Conference experience with expert tips and training.
As an agri-marketer, you face unique challenges that require special solutions. Whether you’re trying to improve planning and budgeting, stay ahead of evolving trends or develop new strategies, NAMA understands the demands you face. Focused on ag retailers, equipment dealers, small manufacturers and other small or in-house marketing departments, a series of short presentations—Ted Talks style—will share what you need to succeed.
Because “Equipping Your Small Marketing Department to Survive and Thrive” is part of the main conference, no additional fee or registration is required. Just be sure to register yourself and your team for #NAMA25 in Kansas City to catch these big ideas.
Three expert-led 40-minute sessions are chock-full of tips and trends to help your marketing department set and reach goals. Sponsored by AEM.
Maximizing Marketing for Small Teams Merritt Neil, M&C
In this fast-paced session, learn how your team can supercharge your marketing and communication plan. Learn time-saving tips and tricks to get the most out of your efforts without going back to the drawing board for every application. This session will cover automated marketing trends, boosting your performance with smaller budgets and teams and low/no-cost marketing resources to help you get the job done more efficiently.
Practical Applications of AI for Small Marketing Departments Jessi Ganoung, Heritage Tractor Andrew Levenson, Root + Beta AI is the hottest topic in marketing. How can small marketing departments utilize it in 2025? In this session you’ll learn practical uses and how to implement guidelines for your department. You’ll also learn when to use AI and when to refrain.
Farm to Film: Video Tips for Agriculture Marketing Grant Essig & Rob Smart, Dynamite Candle Studios Did you know that 89% of businesses are already leveraging video to boost their marketing? If you are among the 11% still sitting on the sidelines, the biggest hurdle is often knowing where to begin. Don’t worry… this workshop has you covered! You'll learn tips, tricks and watchouts to help you prepare for your first (or next) video production.
BREAKOUT SESSIONS
NEW: Management Track
This special track will feature two sessions conducted by Lorinda Lewis. Lorinda Lewis loves to facilitate learning and “to challenge thinking so that learning happens.” She has been an on-site business trainer and facilitator for 26 years, with considerable experience in business communication, management and leadership.
Lorinda honed her sales, customer service and merchandising skills as an outside salesperson. This prepared her for a career in sales, management and training with General Mills, where she also was responsible for developing, leading and implementing a districtwide reengineering and remodeling project.
By using facilitation techniques and creating a comfortable climate for participants, Lorinda encourages interactive and experiential learning. Her passion is training and seeing people “get it.” Her diverse experience and her years of hands-on training make her a much sought-after trainer.
Thursday, April 10 2-3 p.m. Change Management One thing we know for sure is that change is constant! In these times of our ever evolving work environments, if we don’t learn to make adjustments – we may be overwhelmed by the stress of adapting or be left behind. This one hour session will equip you to manage change in the moment, as well as give you mental exercises and templates to move through change instead of letting change stall your progress.
You will learn:
The 4 stages of change
How adults naturally respond to change
The 3 A’s to getting thru change
Five steps to flip the script to see change differently
The classic negative push backs to change and how to respond
3:30-4:30 p.m. Managing Different Generations Today’s workplace is more diverse than ever before. As the Baby Boom generation exits the workplace, Gen Z is making a major impact on today’s working world. This session will help you understand generational trends which, in turn, will develop greater empathy for the reasons people may respond differently to the same situation. You will also learn the attributes all generations have in common so that you can connect more quickly.
By the end of this session, you’ll be better able to:
Identify characteristics and values attributed to each generation.
Recognize the nuances of managing a generationally diverse team.
Discover how to establish an environment of open communication among the various generations in your workplace.
Other Breakout Sessions
Thursday, April 10 2-3 p.m.
BREAKOUT #1: Working Backwards – Innovation Techniques John Rossman
Based on research and 35 years of delivering BIG BETS to Fortune 100 companies, John Rossman gives you a playbook for Thinking in Outcomes to succeed at your BIG BETS. Based on his forthcoming book Thinking in Outcomes.
During this workshop attendees will work in small teams to write and share a future press release tackling a key issue. The audience will leave with:
A comprehensive playbook to Think in Outcomes and work backward
An understanding of the leadership challenges and skills to lead these missions
Why defining future customer experience or operational capability is a superpower we all need to leverage
BREAKOUT #2: Building the Foundation: What Makes an Effective Brief Jennifer Anderson, John Deere Shaun Crockett, Signal Theory Tim Landwehr, Signal Theory
For the agency team, the project brief is the go-to document for any questions about the audience, the product, the medium, or the strategy. For the client, the brief is their opportunity to distill the product or company message down to its “one thing.” But what goes into the perfect creative brief? Join Jennifer Anderson of John Deere and representatives from agency Signal Theory, as they dissect and discuss the brief that led to the creation of last year’s Best of NAMA Grand Champion award winner, “A Different Kind of Crown.”
3:30–4:30 p.m.
BREAKOUT #1: Being an Ag Marketer Without an Ag Background Janice Person, Grounded Communications
Whether you just got a new job landing you in agriculture or you have been here a while and find yourself lost in some conversations, this session is designed to build the foundational knowledge about agriculture and the farmers that provide the industry’s backbone. We’ll talk mindsets and topics as well as share some of the major watch outs that can cause customers to lose trust. Coming to the industry from an urban background, Janice Person stumbled through things for years before being Grounded in Ag and deciding this was the industry where she could make a living and a difference. She will share the framework she’s found successful, tips learned over the years and take questions.
BREAKOUT #2: Working Effectively with Freelancers, A Panel Discussion Moderator: Kenna Rathai Matt Lunneborg, Curious Plot Tom Mentzer, Mentzer PR Group Trista Thompson, Wyffels Hybrids
Freelancers are a great way to expand your team's resources and increase impact in the marketplace. Kicking these partnerships off right from the start will help work to stay on strategy and avoid disappointment. Hear from a panel consisting of a company representative, agency lead, creative freelancer and a content freelancer, and moderated by Kenna Rathai, to learn tips on how to make sure freelancer partnerships are effective and impactful for all parties involved.
Producers: Ryan Britt, Britt Farms, Clifton Hill, MO Blake Hurst, Hurst Greenery, Tarkio, MO Patrick Montgomery, KC Cattle Company, Parkville, MO
Get the inside scoop straight from the target audiences you need to connect with. Listen in as farmers and ranchers discuss the current state of the agriculture industry, as well as their predictions.
Kyle Bauer of KFRM-FM will moderate this panel to answer your burning questions about what the ag industry looks like in the next three years. Come learn what today’s farmers are looking for in a partner/supplier, and how regulation is affecting their current operation. With a dedicated Q&A section at the end, this panel is the perfect place to hear first-hand information from producers.
