The 35th annual Turf and Ornamental Communicators (TOCA), held in Lake Las Vegas on April 29-May 1, offered green industry communicators the chance to put their heads together and discuss the latest trends and technology within the green industry.
Comprised of editors, writers, publishers, photographers, public relations and advertising practitioners, industry association leaders, manufacturers and others involved in green industry communications, TOCA encourages an open exchange of information about issues affecting how its members communicate to its various audiences.
This year, artificial intelligence (AI) proved to be a hot topic.
For example, one education session, entitled "Content Marketing with AI Tools," presented by Dale Bertrand, founder and president of Fire&Spark, a marketing agency that specializes in search engine optimization (SEO), outlined ways in which communicators can use AI tools to increase content production, traffic and more.
"All AI means is `smarter software,'" Bertrand said. "Name AI as your intern, a super smart intern you've hired just out of school. They're eager to help out, and they're a super smart kid who just might not know the industry. Teach them what you do, give easy tasks early on, correct and give feedback and then delegate. AI can follow instructions, but it's better if you give a goal, context and/or examples."
Bertrand went on to caution that while AI can be an incredibly useful tool, it's still important for humans to always check the output and that a few downfalls of the technology include:
- It can be difficult to prompt.
- It can produce inaccurate output.
- It creates the legal issue of compensating artists/publishers for their work.
- It brings up the legal problem of protecting intellectual property.
While Bertrand's article focused on how turf and ornamental communicators can use AI to make their jobs easier, Green Industry Pros also recently featured an article on how AI can assist landscaping companies in their daily operation.
Other sessions throughout the programming included "Cause & Business Collaboration Explored," where Guy Dawson, managing partner at Classy Communications PR and Advertising, explored how companies can implement cause marketing; a sustainability panel where various industry experts explained how their organizations are operating in more sustainable ways; and a conversation with Bruce Wilson, founder of Wilson360, in which Wilson discussed his 50 years within the green industry and what he learned during that time.
Additionally, attendees were offered the chance to get out of their seats with Epic Creative Content Director Scott Covelli's presentation on "Idea Generation Through Improv Comedy." That session encouraged participants to get out of their own heads and learn to collaborate (and improvise) creatively with peers.
Throughout the three-day event, the conference also incorporated the TOCA Fun Run/Walk, a tour of the Reflection Bay and Westin Resort grounds, the annual awards dinner and, for the first time, a Project EverGreen renovation effort at the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve where attendees assisted in the cleanup of the butterfly garden area, cleared invasive around the pond and added plantings.
