It’s looking to be another banner year for the Crop Consultant Conference, with attendance filling up and a record number of exhibitors already confirmed for the trade show floor. Hosted by JCS Marketing Inc. in collaboration with Western Region Certified Crop Advisers, the conference will offer improved continuing education units (CEU) with the new CEU Manager, a place to organize all earned units from the Crop Consultant Conference and other JCS events, and networking opportunities for PCAs/CCAs, grower-applicators and industry stakeholders/researchers not found at similar events.
We spoke with JCS Marketing Inc. CEO and Progressive Crop Consultant publisher Jason Scott about the abundance of unique opportunities at this event and why it’s never one to miss.
New CEU Manager
“We’ve built a new CEU Manager where you can track all your CEUs that you’ve attended at JCS Marketing,” Scott said. “There’s 60.5 CEUs available before, during and after the conference. So, if you attend the conference, ideally you can get your hours for both years right in one shot, so more than enough hours available.”
Before the conference, all registered attendees have access to 11.0 hours of online courses covering essential topics. The conference will provide 12.5 hours of in-person CEUs through a variety of expert-led sessions and hands-on presentations. Additionally, post-conference, registered attendees will have access to an extensive range of online courses, bringing the total to over 60 CEU hours, enough to meet all annual requirements. All online CEU courses will remain open until Dec. 31, 2024.
The CEU Manager is part of the MyAgLife app, available for both IOS and Android.
“We couldn’t make it any easier. Get all your hours and then manage all your hours. You’re able to print out your certificates and track it all, and we turn it into the governing bodies for both DPR and for Western Region CCA,” Scott said. “If there’s any deficits or overages or anything you need to address with the governing bodies, you can print it out, you can look at what you’ve completed, and it makes it really easy.”
Record-Breaking Exhibitors, Networking Opportunities
Sponsor and exhibitor numbers are at an all-time high for the 2024 Crop Consultant Conference, highlighting the impact of this event and industry’s commitment to being available for consultants and grower-applicators.
“It’s incredible what’s happening,” Scott said. “There are so many sponsors this year, more exhibitors than we’ve ever had.
Scott attributes the growth of the event to three things: low cost per CEU, location and unique networking opportunities.
With the cost of registration at $395, that brings the per-CEU cost to about $6.60, well below the industry standard. “It’s super affordable,” Scott said.
The conference is also strategically positioned at the Visalia Convention Center in the heart of the Central Valley. The high-density surrounding areas of Fresno and Tulare counties are home to a high percentage of the state’s consultants, making the conference convenient for travel.
“Easy traveling for the locals, they can be in their own bed,” Scott said. “If you do have to travel, if you’re coming from Northern California or Southern California, hotel rates are very inexpensive and affordable, and it’s just an easy way to do business.”
While there are multiple opportunities for fun at the Crop Consultant Conference, Scott iterated that it’s not a “party conference.”
“That’s not to say this isn’t a really positive and fun experience,” he said. “I think there’s a big difference between a party conference and having fun. There’s a lot of fun. There’s a lot of networking. There’s a lot of after-hours gatherings… But it does have a more serious undertone to it, and the group of individuals are here to really grow their businesses.
“This is really the place to do big business, and if you’re not here, you’re missing out on some of the biggest opportunities to network with independent [consultants], researchers and ag retailers,” Scott added.
The 2024 Crop Consultant Conference will take place on September 25 and 26. Register today at progressivecrop.com/conference.
