Oregon experienced a record-breaking year for wildfires in 2024, with 1.9 million acres burned. In response, cooperatives across the state teamed up to develop shared wildfire resources. Download a free wildfire communications toolkit from Pioneer! LIVE:Filmed at CONNECT
Bob Dahlstrom launched and co-hosts the Valley’s Bits, Bytes & Banter podcast for Valley TeleCom. He shared the ups and downs of podcasting with our live StoryConnect audience. Special: Live at StoryConnect 2025
Sometimes in his writing career, Craig Reed lucked into finding great magazine stories. Other times, finding great stories depended on effort and a strategy to look in the right places. At StoryConnect 2025 Craig shared those story-searching strategies and what to do with a story when you find it. Special: Live at StoryConnect 2025
East Mississippi Connect has been using digital advertising to surgically target communities and potential subscribers as its fiber optic service rolled out across its service territory. Julie Boles shares what’s worked and what lessons she’s learned along the way. Special: Live at StoryConnect 2025
Art shows, lobby displays, social content and more—Theresa Phillips shares how Lassen MUD works with consumers to showcase their community on the magazine cover and in a much-coveted custom calendar each year!
Whether they're blasting off to space to explore planets or solving mysteries across departments, one Oregon utility hosts an exciting career adventure every spring. Utility Pioneer Sarah Johnson shares how Clatskanie PUD turns Take Your Kid to Work Day into a memorable adventure for employees’ families.
Are you ready to reimagine your annual meeting? In Montana, Flathead Electric’s team was challenged by the board to reach more members. Hear how incorporating an energy expo, interactive videos and staff experts adds value to your event.
How do you get consumers invested in focus groups? Rebrand them as influencers! Anna Politano shares how people are reacting to Oklahoma’s statewide Co-op Influencers Program.
David Naylor co-authored a book about Rayburn Electric Cooperative with a focus on how the cooperative realigned its core values to push for innovation throughout the organization. The book is available on Amazon, https://a.co/d/dYuErZ0 .
Debra Weller says stories can not only help you connect with your audience, but can also help them remember what you have to say. Weller, who will be speaking at Pioneer's StoryConnect 2025 in St. Augustine, Florida, also provides tips for overcoming nerves and delivering your message.
In Kansas, one utility is handing out branded cash to use at local businesses during festivals. Hear Erma Ratliff share the idea behind Kanokla Cash to see if the idea could help you cash in on community growth, too!
Seeking to engage younger members, Kankakee Valley REMC launched a Junior Board program to introduce high school students in the co-op's operations.
Business customers need reliability, flexibility and simple billing. Delivering and communicating about those value adds can lead to long-lasting customer relationships.
Calix’s Joe Kohegyi says competing on price and speed is a recipe for failure. Modern consumers want value in their connection and smart broadband marketers are working to communicate the value they deliver.
Clever marketing campaigns are fun, but they are ineffective unless staff and sales processes are aligned behind them.
When you have multiplebroadband competitors pulling potential subscribers away, how do you set your story apart? Hear how Georgia's Tri-CoGo turned powering food trucks, fireworks shows and parks and recreation spaces into a way to build brand awareness in its community.
Facing increasing costs and angry subscribers, many broadband providers are looking to drop TV service. Ending linear video service in a strategic way can leave customers and broadband providers in a better way—as long as it's done in a smart way.
The broadband packages at SCTelcom don’t focus on speed. Instead, they highlight experiences like the connected family, high techies, home tech starter and a package for a simple and secure experience. Wendy Crenner shares how her team uses the power of narratives to connect with subscribers.
Mike Teegarden is retiring from Pioneer after 31 years of telling stories, first through his photography and then through his editorial leadership. Mike joins “The StoryConnect Podcast” to discuss lessons learned from photography to leadership to storytelling.
Is your consumer service team built to care? Scott Paul, of Beacon Broadband, shares how he uses team building and mentoring to turn his frontline team into storytelling specialists!
Incorporating humor into broadband marketing has skyrocketed sales at Co-Mo Communications over the past several years. How did dino-riding Chip Thunder go from a short-lived advertisement to a beloved character among subscribers? Listen to the story on this podcast episode! Find Chip Thunder videos on YouTube.
Every Friday night, stadium lights flash on and fans in purple or red file in. Before the crowd roars for touchdowns, they pull out their phones to connect to free Wi-Fi from the co-op. Pea River Co-op's Brenda Overton shares how this tradition kicked off and why it might score for you, too.
The era of selling broadband based on speed alone is over. At Calix ConneXions 2024, industry leaders focused on subscriber experience and community connection to drive rural broadband success. From outdoor Wi-Fi innovations to strategic planning shifts, here’s what’s next for rural broadband providers.
Clark Public Utilities has been surveying its customers since the 1960s. How have the valuable insights gleaned from surveys helped the utility successfully serve its community? Customer Experience Manager Cameron Daline tells us on this podcast episode.
Hear how Power Eastern Oregon—an economic development summit bringing together regional legislators, nationally known speakers and rural Oregon's business community—has become a way for Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative to strengthen its community's story.
Hydromania may sound like a music festival in the Gorge, but it’s a free summer camp for fourth and fifth graders from Umatilla Electric Cooperative. Weston Putman shares the camp's origin story and how it is building the next generation of co-op members.
How much of the publicly-shared interactions with utility staff is trolling versus investigative reporting by concerned citizens who have a right to hold the utility accountable? We're talking to Ryan Hall about “Getting Out of the Gotcha Moments” at NWPPA’s Northwest Innovations Conference in Idaho.
How do you boost your take rates and cut churn after you've built broadband? OEC Fiber’s Erin McKnight shares her storytelling tactics, including a three-tiered marketing approach by zone and her subscriber stories series. Tune in for fresh ideas!
It's difficult to have happy customers if you have unhappy staff. Dr. Trish Holliday and Brent Baker of NES talk about the connection between the two and how to improve both.
We’re gearing up to celebrate the United Nations’ International Year of Cooperatives in 2025, so we’ve invited co-op cheerleader Adam Schwartz onto the podcast to help Utility Pioneers brainstorm how to tell our co-op stories in fresh, engaging ways.
