Story by Michaela Hughes, sophomore (ACJ)
The Center for Rural Enterprise Engagement (CREE) is advancing its mission through outreach and training events on marketing and communications for audiences throughout Kansas and beyond. These events range from webinars and Facebook live videos to seminars and the annual New-Media Marketing Boot Camp.
“We remain focused on empowering people to feel comfortable using new-media marketing tools. Whether it’s Facebook, a newsletter, or a blog, we want people to understand the platforms they working in,” says Cassie Wandersee (’16), managing director of CREE.
Recently, CREE collaborated with partner organizations to host several events and webinars.
One of these partnerships is with the Marketing Learning Community of the Association for Communications Excellence (ACE). CREE began working with ACE to host bi-monthly webinars that focus on training participants in communications theory and practice. During the last webinar, they discussed content strategy and planning for small businesses and service organizations.
CREE has also partnered with K-State Research and Extension. Dr. Cheryl Boyer and Wandersee presented on content strategy and communicating through multiple channels at the K-State Research and Extension Annual Conference in November. It is also working with Kansas Pride on an online seminar in January focused on launching e-commerce stores. This webinar will discuss the benefits, as well as the preparation needed, for creating an online store.
Moreover, CREE is collaborating with the From the Land of Kansas (FLOK) program. CREE will present at the Kansas Farmers’ Market Regional Workshops, hosted by FLOK, across Kansas in February. It will discuss how to build customer relationships online and in person, as well as conflict resolution.
“Our partnerships allow us to strengthen our content and reach new audiences,” says Wandersee. “We are constantly seeking out organizations to partner with and welcome proposals for potential opportunities.”
Many events hosted by CREE are free and open to the public. Links to webinars, Facebook live videos, Zoom meetings, and presentations can be found at ruralengagement.org or on its Facebook page, @RuralEngagement.
Another service provided by CREE is the New-Media Marketing Boot Camp, which will be held February 27 and 28, 2018. This intense training course will take participants beyond the basic information provided by a platform’s analytics and teach them how to implement new strategies into their communication efforts.
A highlight of the event is a session focused on equipping participants with the tools to run detailed analytics on their marketing efforts to demonstrate how new-media marketing can benefit a business. Registration is open at https://ruralengagement.org/bootcamp/.
Wandersee encourages alumni to access free material on CREE’s learning resource and to attend events when possible.
“New-media technology is changing every day. Boot Camp is a great opportunity to come in and freshen up skills, hear updates, and network with people from across the state,” says Wandersee.
