More than 430 marketing, sales and customer engagement professionals gathered in Boston this week for the NTCA Marketing and Sales Conference, the largest attendance in the communications-focused conference’s 30-year history. The milestone event celebrated not only how far rural broadband marketing has come over the past three decades, but also where it’s headed next.
From discussions about AI and evolving customer expectations to branding strategies, community engagement tools and workforce culture trends, the conference highlighted the growing sophistication of rural broadband marketing and sales efforts while reinforcing the importance of relationships and storytelling.
As NTCA Marketing Committee Chair Elizabeth Brown (PTCI; Guymon, Okla.) noted in her opening remarks, the conference is designed not only to help small broadband providers thrive, but also to create opportunities for attendees to connect, share ideas and support one another.
That spirit carried into the conference’s opening session, where members of the NTCA Marketing Committee, each representing a different era of the conference and the industry, reflected on how marketing has evolved over the past 30 years. Kurt Gruendling (Waitsfield and Champlain Valley Telecom; Waitsfield, Vt.), Kyle Randleman (Star Communications; Clinton, N.C.), and Samantha Bailey (Taylor Telecom; Merkel, Texas) explored how marketing has evolved from Yellow Pages ads to data-driven campaigns.
A recurring theme across sessions was the importance of building trust with customers and communities while standing out in an increasingly crowded communications environment.
Technology, especially AI, also remained front and center. Sessions explored practical ways marketing and sales teams can use AI tools to improve workflows and generate content. Attendees also learned how to take their company’s social media to the next level, explored creative branding strategies, including how mascots can help build customer engagement and loyalty, and heard new ways to stand out among competitors. Workforce recruitment and retention challenges, digital advertising trends, and customer engagement tactics also generated strong discussion throughout the conference.
Outside the meeting rooms, attendees connected through regional roundtable discussions, networking events and the sold-out Solutions Showcase, where vendors highlighted marketing and sales solutions tailored to the rural broadband industry. The Foundation for Rural Service also hosted its annual fundraiser benefiting the Tim Owens-Ron Laudner Memorial Fund, which supports scholarships for students studying the arts and grants for community arts-related projects.
While much has changed since the first Marketing and Sales Conference three decades ago (then called “PRNet” for its focus on public relations), this year’s anniversary gathering reinforced why the event continues to resonate with attendees. Rural broadband providers are navigating changing technologies and evolving customer expectations, but they remain deeply rooted in the communities they serve.
That community focus, combined with a willingness to adapt, experiment and collaborate, continues to shape the future of rural broadband marketing and sales. Thanks to everyone who joined us in Boston and contributed to a successful and memorable conference.