Rural Computer Consultants hosted its 26th annual Customer Seminar this year in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, from June 17-20. The four-day event equipped participants with educational sessions, a roundtable discussion and a vendor fair.
Freddie Ridler and Nancy Mathison (or “Team Francy”), the event’s organizers and emcees, have been hosting the event for over five years.
“Our primary goal is to educate our customers, but bringing fun into the equation is crucial,” said Ridler. “Laughter energizes our event and group.”
In addition to keeping the fun vibes going throughout the event, a lot of unseen work goes into planning out an event this extensive.
“Nancy and I start planning this out one year in advance,” said Ridler. “So much goes into this event that it takes a team! From owners putting trust in Nancy and I to put this together, to the team who comes with us on-site to present, to the team who stays back and makes sure RCC continues to run smoothly, to our customers who attend and our vendors who sponsor. You really don’t see what’s under the hood at the event and that’s OK!”
Customers at the event were able to connect with vendors at the vendor fair and learn about everything from forecasting and KPI reporting to ways to more seamlessly integrate RCC software. The event maintained welcomed participants with sponsored daily lunches, as participating vendors had the chance to showcase their offerings in the vendor fair. 
Mathison noted the important role that the vendor fair plays in the maintaining the spirit of the event.
“The ability to spend multiple days with customers and vendors is really what makes this event so special,” said Mathison. “[We get] to share the RCC spirit with everyone and communicate how important their business is us.”
First-time attendees Haley and Kayla noted the value for their own company.
“As first year attendees, we didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into,” said Haley and Kayla. “We networked, found new ways to utilize RCC, and left with an abundance of new knowledge, not only from the staff but fellow attendees. We look forward to doing this again year after year!”
Starting out as RCC’s accompanying event to the NPGA Southeastern Expo, the RCC Customer Seminar has grown over the years to require its own time and space.
“It really didn’t start to grow until about seven years ago when we introduced the idea of bringing in sponsors/vendors into our seminar,” said Ridler.
This year, the event gathered together 170 attendees, 10 company sponsors/vendors, and 21 staff who made it all possible. Next year’s event will take place in San Antonio, Texas.
