Cornhusker Economics June 11, 2014

National Agri-Marketing Association Real-World Connections and Experience in Agribusiness Marketing

The National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) is comprised of 25 professional chapters in six regions in the United States and Canada and has more than 3,500 professional and student members. Nebraska's Cornhusker (professional) chapter of about 70 professionals works closely with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) student chapter to foster professional growth for student members.

NAMA students are often interested in careers in marketing, sales, promotion, and advertising. The experiences available through NAMA membership help students to be career ready when they graduate. These experiences include developing a product marketing plan for competition at the national level, organizing and sponsoring career development events, helping agribusinesses with set-up at trade shows, doing community service projects, and organizing social events with other organizations.

This  year fifteen  Nebraska  NAMA students were involved in developing a product marketing plan. The product is chosen by the students but specific requirements must be met. The product cannot have been widely marketed, needs to show return to producer, and must not use a patented name. This year's group chose to market purple popcorn as a naturally grown whole grain snack which has triple the antioxidants of most fruit. The added value of the product enables it to compete in the premium popcorn sector so producers can profit by converting current acres of yellow or white popcorn or field corn to purple popcorn. The team worked with local popcorn producers to gain an in-depth understanding of the popcorn market, production, packaging, retail  expenses and returns. From choosing a product in the fall semester to deciding on the right balance between electronic and print advertising based on prospective customer habits, students learned how decisions are made with respect to marketing a product. The team also worked worked with NAMA professionals to get feedback on the plan at various stages.

NAMA's annual conference each spring is a venue for both professional and student chapter members. Those who attend have opportunities to hear outstanding speakers on relevant topics in agricultural marketing, draw ideas and motivation from nationally recognized agribusiness leaders and speakers, and connect with others in the industry.  The national conference also includes a Connection Point Trade Show. This year's featured speakers included:
Ryan Estis, CEO of Ryan Estis & Associates who spoke about The Brand Experience;
Connie Podesta, author, human relations expert and certified counselor who advised professionals and students on how to Stand Out From the Crowd—How to Be #1 and Stay There!; and
Dr. John Izzo, corporate advisor and best-selling author, on Stepping up Your Game in Work and Life.

Each year, awards for NAMA professionals (Best of NAMA) are celebrated, and in the student track the marketing plan and outstanding chapter competitions are held and scholarship winners recognized.

Nine Nebraska NAMA students traveled to Jacksonville, Florida for the 2014 National Conference April 9-11. They attended seminars, enjoyed a luncheon with professionals, met professionals at the trade show, and interacted with students from the other 30 chapters from across the United States and Canada.

Team members who traveled to the national conference were Matt Fleischman (Tekamah, NE); Evan Ibach (Sumner, NE); Emily Ibach (Sumner, NE); Eric Wemhoff (Humphrey, NE); Haley Harthoorn (Ainsworth, NE); Caleb Nuehring (Plainview, NE); Gavin Kenney (Amherst, NE); Steven Fish (Imperial, NE); and Alec Ibach (Sumner, NE).

Nebraska NAMA brought home several awards from national conference. They earned fourth place in the Outstanding Student Chapter competition and in the student marketing competition they received the NAMA's Choice Award for Students' Favorite Product.

The UNL Student NAMA Chapter is proud of its  accomplishments this year and is looking forward to a successful year in 2014-2015.

Gavin Kenney
NAMA President, 2013-2014
University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Rosalee Swartz, (402) 472-5234
NAMA Advisor
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
rswartz1@unl.edu