You should already be in the thick of your planning and budgeting process for 2020, but have you made sure to include a line item for conference attendance?
Attending conferences is one of the best ways for you and your team to stay on top of emerging digital marketing tech, ever-changing algorithms and processes, and learn key takeaways from thought leaders in the industry. So we’ve put together a list of what we think are the ‘must-attend’ conferences that you should be looking into for the coming year.
SMX West
Feb 19-20, 2020 | San Jose, California
Programmed by the experts at Search Engine Land, SMX West’s agenda features crucial aspects of an integrated search marketing strategy, including SEO, SEM, ecommerce, CRO, analytics, attribution, content, video, mobile, tools, and so much more. In fact, the team at SMX West promises “you’ll walk away with at least one actionable tactic that will help take your search marketing campaigns to a new level in 2020 and beyond.”
The Gathering
Feb 19-21, 2020 | Banff, Canada
The Gathering is a top-rated marketing summit hosted in the picturesque alpine town of Banff, Canada. Each year, disruptors from around the globe converge to learn from and celebrate the leaders behind some of the world’s most cult-like brands. With over 12 “Cult Brand Honorees” and 50+ “Brand Luminaries” from companies like Under Armour, Hot Wheels, Doritos, Skittles, Spotify, Coca-Cola, ESPN and the Harlem Globetrotters, The Gathering gives attendees the opportunity to network with 1,500 of the most influential business, marketing and brand decision makers and learn what’s really required to elevate your brand’s status.
B2B Marketing Exchange
Feb 24-26, 2020 | Scottsdale, Arizona
Touted as the “must attend” event for B2B sales or marketing practitioners, the B2B Marketing Exchange offers over 100 sessions covering topics such as ABM, Content, Demand Gen, Digital Strategy, Channel Marketing, and Sales Enablement by speakers from SAP, Oracle, Quest Software, ADP and more. Also check out their annual Killer Content Awards, which spotlights companies that are “embracing new rules of engagement and transforming them into cutting-edge campaigns that utilize new storytelling methods and new amplification channels”.
Social Media Marketing World
Mar 1 – 3, 2020 | San Diego, California
Join thousands of fellow marketers and influencers at the Social Media Marking World conference in gaining actionable tips from more than 100 of the world’s top pros who specialize in marketing with Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Messenger, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, along with social strategy, social advertising, content marketing, video marketing, analytics, and customer advocacy.
Attend sessions and workshops for Instagram Marketing, Facebook Ads, Facebook Organic, YouTube for Business, Video Marketing, LinkedIn Marketing, Social Strategy, Content Marketing, Video Creation, Live Video, Twitter Marketing, Pinterest Marketing, Local Business Marketing, Analytics, Messenger Bots, and Customer Advocacy.
Adobe Summit
Mar 29 – Apr 2, 2020 | Las Vegas, Nevada
Learn in more than 400 sessions and labs across 11 tracks at the Adobe Summit, which focuses on marketing automation, analytics, advertising and commerce. Connect with a huge community of top B2B marketers and leaders, and learn all about the latest trends from their impressive speaker panel: 2020 speakers are not yet posted, but 2019 saw C-levels from Microsoft, Best Buy, Intuit and SunTrust Bank.
MarTech Conference West
Apr 15 – 17, 2020 | San Jose, California
Analytics and attribution, marketing execution, user experience, data management… every aspect of marketing now relies on martech in order to succeed. Connect with leading marketing technology vendors and network with other senior-level marketers during this two-day graduate-level program which has been created to address universal marketing pain points, and become a master of marketing in the digital age.
ContentTECH Summit
Apr 20 – 22, 2020 | San Diego, California
Here’s the ContentTECH mission statement: “We want to show how the effective use of technology and better processes can help your strategic efforts to create, manage, deliver and scale your enterprise content and provide your customers with better digital experiences.”
Sponsored by the Content Marketing Institute, attendees of ContentTECH will learn from practitioners and experts in content technology and marketing strategy, and learn how to use martech to better plan, optimize and manage content across your organization.
C3 Conference
Date TBA 2020 | New York, New York
While the full details of the 2020 C3 Conference are not yet available online, we do know that the 2019 event had over 700 marketers in attendance and 30+ sessions, which uncovered new ways to connect with the humans behind the clicks and searches, helping them get answers, make decisions, and find solutions. With top brands like SAP, Slack, Williams Sonoma and Salesforce in attendance, C3 will help marketers find and focus on what matters – “truly knowing your customer and helping them with your company’s special expertise and mission”.
GrowthHackers Conference
Jun 4, 2020 | San Francisco, California
The GrowthHackers conference is a full-day event for professionals and entrepreneurs who are looking to push the boundaries of growth innovation. These range from growth-stage startups (Series B and C funded) to large public corporations. Some large companies that have embraced growth hacking include Wal-Mart, IBM, and Microsoft, who recognize that their stock prices are driven by customer and revenue growth and want to tap into the potential that the growth hacking process has delivered for their upstart competitors.
The conference’s lineup of speakers will share their first-hand knowledge and experience gained from growing some of today’s fastest-growing companies.
VidCon
Jun 17 – 20, 2020 | Anaheim, California
The world’s largest celebration of digital video & online video creators, Vidcon has become the place where the biggest players in the digital space come to learn new tactics, develop new strategies, launch new products, unveil new partnerships, and generate buzz. There are three track ticketing options to choose from:
- The Community Track is for ALL fans of online video, its creators, and its culture. You will have access to Q&As with Featured Creators, panel discussions, live performances, creative workshops, fun activities and merch booths in the Expo Hall
- The Creator Track is for anyone looking to learn more about the ins-and-outs of online video production and business development including how to grow social channels, monetize content more efficiently, and build a brand. This track features panels, presentations, talks, and Creator Chats. It also features practical workshops led by some of the most inspirational creators and industry experts on topics such as editing, optimization, script writing, producing, and even legal advice.
- The Industry Track gives access to all Community and Creator tracks, as well as 1-on-1 networking service, the ability to learn and gain insights from leading industry experts, build strategies, discuss ideas, and create new alliances.
MozCon
Jul 6 – 8, 2020 | Seattle, Washington
MozCon is a three-day, one-track journey into the deepest realms of search marketing. Connect with a community of experts and uncover tactical advice from industry-leading practitioners in the vast world of SEO, mobile, conversion optimization, local search, and more. Whether you’re an SEO, marketer, or executive, you’ll connect with all kinds of like-minded explorers at the lunch discussion tables and evening networking parties.
INBOUND
Aug 18 – 21, 2020 | Boston, Massachusetts
The ultimate HubSpot meetup, INBOUND is an annual experience u
With tens of thousands of attendees, 250+ speakers, nightly parties, interactive sessions, INBOUND is one of the fastest-growing business events in the world.
Advertising Week
Oct 5 – 8, 2020 | New York, New York
Advertising Week is a worldwide gathering of marketing, advertising, technology and brand professionals. From daytime seminars and workshops featuring some of the industry’s brightest minds to organized networking and world-class entertainment, Advertising Week is a one-of-a-kind experience.
Featuring top industry leaders, stars of the entertainment world and inspiring entrepreneurs, Advertising Week’s thought leadership program is designed to give professionals at any level career enhancing insights, deep-dives into the industry’s most important topics and actionable learnings to bring back to the office.
Content Marketing World Conference & Expo
Oct 13 – 16, 2020 | Cleveland, Ohio
Offering over 125 sessions and workshops for an expected 4,000 attendees, Content Marketing World 2020 is a four-day event that will help you return back to your team with the materials and knowledge to implement a content marketing plan that will grow your business and inspire your audience. Presented by leading brand marketers and experts from around the world, the conference offers tracks covering every aspect of content marketing.
MarketingProfs B2B Forum
Nov 3 – 6, 2020 | San Francisco, California
MarketingProfs B2B Forum is a place where leaders, innovators, and people who make things happen gather to learn about the latest in B2B marketing and share the secrets to success. With approximately 1,000 attendees, it’s still intimate enough that you’ll surely see some of your favorite marketing pals, but big enough that you’ll find more than enough smarts to help you go the distance.
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While we’ve listed a lot of great options for marketing and B2B-related conferences and expos in the coming year, it’s important that you review the tracks, sessions and speakers listed for each conference and make sure they’re the right fit. Attending a conference can provide valuable benefits to you personally and professionally, but it can be a significant investment, and you want to make sure the ROI opportunity is there before you register.
Photo Source: The Climate Reality Project on Unsplash
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