As we mentioned previously this month, our agency is focused on always staying on top of the new marketing trends. One way that we do this is to regularly attend marketing conferences so that we can learn from our industry’s best and brightest minds. We are sometimes even chosen to speak at the events, which is a pretty big deal. It is always an honor to speak at marketing conferences because we get the opportunity to share some of the cool things we’ve been working on!
Last week, I (Aaron Eaves – Director of Search Marketing for Marketing Refresh), was chosen to speak at the AMA Marketing Edge Conference and wanted to share some of the insight I brought back.
The Conference
Marketing Edge is a one-day conference that focuses on inspiring marketers by bringing insight to them from some of the top marketers from across the U.S. The conference typically has three keynote speakers, four breakout sessions, and panels that include 20+ speakers. With the conference set up this way, attendees can tailor their experience to their specific interests. The event took place at the Norris Conference center in City Centre and brought together over 300 marketers in one location.
Why I Wanted to Speak At This Event
For this conference, I was chosen to speak about Search Strategy Fundamentals & Application. This my first time speaking at the AMA Marketing Edge conference, but I have spoken at another one-day AMA workshop in the past.
What initially drew me to this event was a combination of the people putting it on and the caliber of other speakers that they had booked. I also genuinely like to teach and help others, so I was thrilled to be chosen as a speaker.
In my session, I focused on the fundamentals of search strategy and how to apply those fundamentals. I touched on some of my favorite website tracking metrics, tips on keyword research, onsite SEO best practices, why your website speed matters, and finally business citation management. If you want to view my slide deck, you can find that here.
The Other Speakers
Before and after my speech, I was able to catch a few other speakers that I enjoyed. My favorites included:
- Kindra Hall: Her opening keynote on storytelling branding was captivating!
- Peter Coffee from Salesforce. He spoke about what we should and should not be doing in terms meeting unreasonable expectations of smartphone users. All of his points were backed up by data that was collected over the past several years, which was interesting to see.
- And Shavonnah Schreiber from SNR Creative spoke about the power of personal branding.
Key Takeaways
My main takeaway from the AMA Marketing Edge conference is that Houston has A LOT of young and talented marketers! I met so many people who are in the industry, breaking into the industry and students who are hungry to get into the industry. The other thing that really stuck out to me was the personal branding and storytelling theme that seemed to be a part of everyone’s presentation in one way or another. It is very apparent to me that as marketers we must make things more appealing and connect on an emotional and human way, and not just think about sales and clicks.
This was a well attended and curated conference that not many people in Houston may be aware of. It’s definitely one that should be added to your conference schedule!
I look forward to taking what I learned at this conference and applying it to my upcoming work. If you would like to work with a digital marketing agency that has a strong dedication to staying on top of the current trends, contact us today!
