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A valuable partnership that spans more than 20 years is
reaping some important benefits for each entity. Cotton
Farming magazine is once again the co-sponsor of the
Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association Annual Meeting
and Trade Show, and the relationship has worked well for both
parties. The magazine provides coverage of TCGA’s yearly event
in the February and March issues and generates follow-up stories
throughout the year.
In addition to promoting the meeting, the magazine contributes
significant funds from the show program ad revenues to
support the TCGA scholarship program, which offers awards to
deserving students enrolled in Texas Tech University’s College of
Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
That support of the scholarship program took a gigantic step
forward this year. The magazine’s staff decided it would be beneficial
to promote student testimonials on how TCGA scholarship
awards had helped them.
Last fall, three students – John Gottula of Lubbock, Evan
Maxwell of Sudan and Matthew Townsend of Fairfield – shared
their stories in separate emails sent to TCGA exhibitors. The
response to their stories was overwhelming. The number of
exhibitors who advertised in the TCGA program dramatically
increased, and the size of the printed program went from 16 pages to 32 pages. The increase in
the program’s size means that Cotton
Farming's contribution to
the scholarship fund will increase
by more than 25 percent.
“Our commitment to TCGA and
the cotton industry in Texas has
remained consistent through the
years,” says Lia Guthrie, Cotton
Farming publisher. “We are extremely
happy that the exhibitors
joined with us in helping increase the contribution to the scholarship
fund. The ultimate beneficiaries are the students.”
The Cotton
Farming-TCGA partnership reaps additional benefits
besides the scholarship program and actual promotion of the
trade show and organization’s annual meeting. Because of the
importance of Texas as the largest cotton-producing state in the
Belt, the relationship with TCGA helps foster important contacts
for the Cotton
Farming editorial staff.
“There is no question that the Texas ginning sector is an integral
part of that state’s cotton production,” says Guthrie. “They
go hand in hand. If our magazine can play any role in enhancing
that relationship, it gives us a real sense of satisfaction.”
It was because of Cotton
Farming's relationship with the
National Cotton Ginners’ Association that helped it become the
official publication for the ginning industry nearly a year ago.
That resulted in the magazine devoting space each month to the
“Ginning Marketplace” section. The editorial space offers ginners
and equipment companies a chance to receive updates on
the latest developments in the ginning industry. |
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