Marketing, Sales & Customer Engagement for Connecting with Rural NZ
19-20 OCTOBER 2026
CROWNE PLAZA, AUCKLAND
Rural Connect Forum
Rural marketing is changing faster than most organisations are ready for.
The relationships that built your business are under pressure. Digital is reshaping how rural customers discover, evaluate and buy. Costs are rising. Audiences are fragmenting. And the next generation of farm owners and operators thinks and behaves differently from the last.
The strategies that worked five years ago are no longer enough.
Rural Connect Forum is New Zealand’s only dedicated event for marketing, sales and customer engagement professionals working in the rural sector – two days of expert insight, real-world case studies and peer connection designed to help you lead what comes next.
WHAT WE'LL EXPLORE
Two days. The issues that matter most.
From understanding how your rural customer is evolving, to leveraging the tools and strategies that will define the next era of rural marketing and sales
- The changing rural customer
Understanding shifting buyer behaviour, complex decision making structures and the next generation of farm owners and operators. - Connection in a digital world
How to digitise relationships, navigate fragmented media channels and build authentic trust and brand credibility in rural communities. - Data, AI and commercial growth
Practical approaches to customer intelligence, campaign performance, ROI measurement and future-proofing your team.
Agenda
Day 1
8:30 | Registration and Coffee |
9:00 | Welcome and opening remarks from conference MC |
9:10 | Rural New Zealand 2050 – The future customer, farm and marketplace
Todd Charteris, CEO, Rabobank NZ |
9.50 | Primary industry leader’s panel: Mapping the issues that matter to farmers and primary sector businesses
Hamish Gow, Sir Graeme Harrison Professorial Chair in Global Value Chains and Trade, Lincoln University Mike Borrie, Chief Farm Solutions and Engagement Officer, DairyNZ |
10:30 | Morning break |
11:00 | Who really makes the buying decision?
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11.40 | Pull up a chair: Achieving the great balancing act - how to digitise relationships without losing the human connection
Blair Rooney, Managing Partner, Enable Digital |
12.30 | Lunch and networking |
1.30 | Beyond the trends: Turning insight into strategy Every organisation can see disruption coming. The harder challenge is deciding what to do about it. As customer expectations shift, technology accelerates and resources become increasingly constrained, strategy has become less about predicting the future and more about making deliberate choices. This session explores how leaders can make strategic decisions in response to an uncertain future, balancing immediate needs with long-term resilience and opportunity. Including:
Freya Hill, Head of Strategy and Commercial Partnerships DairyNZ |
2:10 | NZ Rural Media Panel: Mapping the changing landscape of New Zealand rural media
Bryan Gibson, Editor, NZ Farmers Weekly Nick Fisher, Head of Rural, Mediaworks |
2.50 | Exploring the trends shaping digital, social media and content marketing to rural audiences
Amber Carpenter, Director, Grass Root Media |
3.30 | Afternoon refreshments |
3:50 | Rural influencer panel: Influencers, communities and trusted voices The panel will bring a selection of leading rural influencers, advocate and who will provide and specialist rural content creators, who will provide insights into the issues and motivations of the farming communities they represent.
Cheyne Gillooly, Chief Executive Officer, NZ Young Farmers Delilah Flavell, Dairy Farmer & Content Creator Holly & Jonah van Dam, Dairy Farmers & Content Creators |
4:30 | In it for the long haul: Supporting rural communities in good times and bad
Pete Frizzell, Chief Marketing Officer, Farmers Mutual Group |
5.10 | MC summary remarks for end of Day 1, followed by networking reception |
Day 2
9:00 | Welcome back from the conference MC |
9:05 | When Ai becomes the front door: How Ai is rewriting the digital customer journey AI is rapidly changing how customers discover information, evaluate options and make decisions. As people move from searching to asking, organisations are being challenged to rethink the role of websites, content, search and digital channels. This session explores how customer journeys are evolving in an AI-first world and what it means for visibility, customer acquisition and digital strategy. Learn how organisations can remain discoverable and relevant when AI increasingly sits between brands and customers, and hear about the role of DAiSY, DairyNZ’s AI-powered website assistant in its journey to evolves its digital ecosystem
Lisa Sutherland, Head of Farmer Communications and Marketing, DairyNZ |
9.50 | From sceptics to advocates: Building trust when everyone is watching As audiences become more fragmented and AI increasingly shapes how people discover information, reputation has become one of an organisation's most valuable assets. Drawing on lessons from experience state-owned enterprise Pāmu Landcorp, this session explores how organisations can build trust, strengthen their social licence, and create advocates who speak positively about them when they're not in the room.
Kara Tait, Head of Communications and Engagement, Pāmu | Landcorp |
10:30 | Morning break |
11:00 | From handshake to algorithm: Rural customer acquisition when technology mediates the relationship
Hamish Friedlander, CISO, Rush Digital |
11:00 | From data to decisions: Building rural customer intelligence to deliver effective customer engagement In this session two commercial leaders will share different perspectives on customer data and intelligence in the rural sector:
Nadim Truter, Head of Commercial and Strategy, STIHL Simon Taylor, Insights Partner, Tracta |
12:00 | Will sales and marketing EVER get along? A bridging strategy for both
St John Craner, Founder & Owner, Agrarian - Rural Sales Success |
12:40 | Lunch and networking |
1:40 | Sharing the insights gained through Fieldays that can help shape more effective rural marketing, engagement, and customer strategy
Brett Beagley, General Manager - Commercial and Marketing, New Zealand National Fieldays Society |
2:20 | Case study: Launching a new rural brand
Loren Aberhart, Head of Brand and Communications, Farmlands |
3:00 | Rural commercial leaders panel: What will separate winners from everyone else?
Brett Morris, Head of Marketing and Community Engagement, Rabobank NZ Kurt Sandtmann, Managing Partner, Tracta Nicole Scott, Head of Retail Sales and Marketing, Gallagher Animal Management Lynda Coppersmith, National Sales and Marketing Manager, CRV New Zealand |
3.45 | MC closing remarks and end of conference |
Speakers
Nick Fisher
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Hamish Friedlander
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Blair Rooney
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Lynda Coppersmith
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Freya Hill
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St John Craner
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Nicole Scott
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Lisa Sutherland
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Loren Aberhart
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Nadim Truter
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Mike Borrie
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Simon Taylor
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Kurt Sandtmann
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Delilah Flavell
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Brett Beagley
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Amber Carpenter
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Brett Morris
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Cheyne Gillooly
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Pete Frizzell
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Kara Tait
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Why your school will value this investment:
The Kura Conference is designed for maximum institutional impact, tailored specifically for Primary & Secondary School Leaders, HODs, Lead Teachers, and Educational Innovators.
Because this is a multi-streamed event covering curriculum, tech, and wellbeing simultaneously, the most effective strategy is to send a leadership cohort to divide and conquer the program. By customising your team’s experience and swapping between streams, your school will walk away with a comprehensive return on investment:
Actionable Curriculum Blueprints:
Your curriculum leads and HODs will gain ready-to-implement frameworks for the refreshed national curriculum, moving seamlessly from policy to classroom practice.
Workload Reduction through Tech:
Your educational innovators will discover verified AI and tech use cases specifically vetted to give teachers time back and streamline administration.
Strategic Alignment & Value Protection:
Your senior leadership team will acquire the change-management tools needed to align incoming national priorities with your school’s unique local values.
Staff Resilience & Wellbeing:
Your leadership cohort will bring back practical, systemic strategies to combat teacher burnout, navigate complex student behaviours, and support neurodivergence.
National Networking:
Your staff will connect and collaborate with primary and secondary peers from across Aotearoa who are successfully navigating the exact same transitions.
Tickets Opening Soon — Register Your Interest
We are currently finalising our ticketing tiers, including exclusive early-bird rates and team package discounts. Register your interest below.
This event is ideal for:
- Executives and leaders: Those responsible for driving strategic change and organisational transformation.
- Change management professionals: Individuals who specialise in managing and leading change initiatives.
- HR professionals: HR leaders and practitioners interested in fostering a culture of change and employee engagement.
- Consultants and advisors: Professionals who support organisations in their change and transformation journeys.
- Anyone seeking to develop their leadership skills and ability to navigate change.
Venue
The location and how you can get there
Address
Crowne Plaza
128 Albert Street,
Auckland
Tickets
DOUBLE PASS
.-
Must be from the same organisation & book at the same time. For valid tickets, payment by 19 October, 2026.
SINGLE TICKET
Early Bird-
For valid ticket, payment by 31 August, 2026.
SINGLE TICKET
Standard Price-
For valid ticket, payment by 21 September, 2026.
SUPER EARLY BIRD
Per Person-
For valid ticket, payment by 24 July, 2026.
Registration Conditions
Ticket Terms
All prices are in New Zealand dollars ($NZD)
A surcharge of 2.5% + GST applies to credit card payments on top of the total amount.
Pre-Sale Tickets are valid only for the specific event for which they were purchased and cannot be transferred to other events. To remain valid, Super Saver and Early Bird tickets must be paid by date quoted.
Group ticket options are valid for registrations from the same organisation, booked at the same time.
By selecting any special pricing offer for classes of organisation, sector, or individuals or using any promotion code, you are asserting to the organiser your right to claim any such pricing offer, and acknowledge the organiser’s right to audit such claim and, if in the opinion of the organiser using its sole discretion the conditions for special pricing are not met, reject any registration.
For full terms & conditions, please visit https://www.brightstar.co.nz/terms-and-conditions
Supporting Organisation
Align Your Brand with Rural Marketing Leaders
Sponsorship & Exhibition Opportunities
Connect your brand with the people shaping the future of rural marketing.
Rural Connect Forum brings together New Zealand’s leading marketing, sales and customer engagement professionals from across the rural sector. It’s a unique opportunity to align your brand with the conversations, ideas and innovation driving how agribusinesses connect with farmers.
A limited range of sponsorship opportunities is available, offering meaningful brand exposure before, during and after the event, along with opportunities to engage with a highly influential audience.
If your organisation wants to be part of New Zealand’s leading rural marketing event, we’d love to discuss how we can create a sponsorship package that works for you.
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Live B2B events are your chance to shine. Showcase your thought leadership, solidify your market position, and forge valuable connections with potential customers – all at once.
This exclusive event puts you in front of a highly skilled audience hungry for insights. Get ready for meaningful engagement that drives results.
Plus, we have some unique opportunities to put your company, products, and services in the spotlight.
Ready to take your brand to the next level? Contact us today to learn more or secure your spot at this leading event.
Make an enquiry or register your interest
Got questions or want to stay in the loop? Write to us.