Ad-Tech: Listen to Podcasts of Past Digital Marketing Conferences

Ad-tech.com advertises itself as “The Event for Digital Marketing.” An initial glance around the web-site will immediately confirm that Ad-Tech, in fact, the event. When the initial Ad-Tech.com page loads in a browser‘s window, they will be immediately be presented with a list of international cities where Ad-Tech has a presence. Sydney, Paris, San Francisco, Singapore, Chicago, Tokyo, London, New York, Shanghai, and Beijing all have clickable links in the left hand frame of the browser bar. Clicking on any of these cities will bring up a page detailing events scheduled for the near future in that particular location. For example, upon clicking on Chicago a reader will see a list detailing upcoming conference and exhibit hall hours with a list of keynote speakers, conference sessions, and regular speakers. Each speaker’s name is listed along with a headshot photograph. Keynote speaker’s names are clickable to provide the user with additional biographical information.

An extensive “Missed a Session” section of the site contains a series of podcasts. Each podcast contains a clear label, a very clear description of the topics discussed, and an easily accessible download button. The file size of the podcast is also presented to the right (measured in MB). Any person who did not want to download the actual podcasts can also listen to them in a background browser window. This section will prove particularly useful to business representatives who were unable to attend a particular conference.

Any company looking to actually be a sponsor or speaker, or to host an exhibit at an Ad-Tech conference, can find all of the pertinent contact details on the homepage. Clicking on any of these three opportunities will bring up specific contact information for Ad-Tech representatives the world over, as well as detail the advantages doing business with Ad-Tech provides. Any company looking to increase their digital marketing presence would benefit from Ad-Tech’s services, and at Ad-Tech.com a browser has access to all the information they need to attend a conference or exhibit on digital marketing in several major international cities.

Best Buy CMO on the Future of Marketing

I think a company that really understands the new digital marketing landscape is Best Buy. The CMO has a blog and twitter (@bestbuycmo) where he talks and learns from customers. Greg Verdino discusses engaging consumers with digital media and how Best Buy is building credibility for social media marketing.

The importance of listening, and engaging with customers directly in an open and honest way. The growing importance of the mobile web and the ways it can empower consumers throughout the buying process. The fact that everything is going digital and what this means for the products and services companies offer. The realizations that a great customer experience is the best marketing money can’t buy, and that brands are inherently social.

Heard it all before? Of course. But somehow it sounds more credible when spoken by the CMO of a large corporation, even more so when that CMO works for a company that actually practices what he preaches.

Check out this video of Best Buy CMO Barry Judge, talking about the future of marketing. Judge offers a nice overview of how Best Buy’s marketing approach has evolved from old school tell-n-sell, where it is now, and where it’s headed tomorrow.

This article was originally posted at Greg Verdino’s Blog, and is licensed under the Creative Commons 3.0 license.

Got an Interactive Marketing Strategy, or Just a Web Site?

by Jonathan Gilliam

Just returned from Houston with a new gig helping companies increase their revenue via innovative digital marketing. Having enjoyed a stint at another interactive firm recently, I’m excited about bringing companies a few leaps forward in their interactive efforts.

First thing I did was go to Fry’s to get a printer for my home office, and after gathering product info about the printer I want, I walked out with nothing. Why? I needed to get to my computer to compare shop, of course.

We live and work (and importantly, shop) digitally. You should market and sell to match. Methods of reaching customers are changing radically (see my post ”Please Come Fire All My Salespeople“). A comprehensive digital marketing strategy is essential for our always-on connected world.

So what’s wrong with traditional marketing approaches? Nothing as part of the mix, but modern marketing should lean quite heavily toward Interactive and digital. All roads lead here. Print and top-down broadcast are simply too slow and static for today’s consumers, and analytics and measurement mean the right money is spent reaching the right audience.

Simply prettying-up your web site won’t cut it. Any real digital effort should involve a holistic strategy, experienced implementation, and disciplined measurement and refinement.

Free advice here so ping me!

Jonathan Gilliam is a interim sales executive for OneAccord and is based in the Austin area. Jonathan has a deep background in business development, market analysis, opportunity development, relationship management and C-level sales. He can be reached at 512.775.7566 or Jonathan.Gilliam(at)OneAccordCorp.com. Jonathan also blogs at Business Developments.