We had an amazing past couple of days at Marketing United learning and networking with marketers around the country. Emma Email did a great job putting this event together (once again) which was jam-packed with inspirational and informational speakers such as Bob Goff, Mike McAvoy, Paul Beck, Mel Robbins, and many more!
The full list of keynote speakers included:
- Kindra Hall, Award-Winning Author, and Columnist
- Arun Chaudhary, Official White House Videographer for President Obama
- Mel Robbins, Award-Winning Commentator, CNN
- Jay Acunzo, Host of Unthinkable
- Cody Bender, SVP of Product, Emma
- Bob Goff, Best-Selling Author, Love Does
We were thrilled to be the video sponsor of this event for the fourth year in a row, and our own Ben Rigsby had the chance to moderate one of the panels! The session “Practical Advice for Creating Successful Digital Strategies” featured a great lineup: Megan Hassall from HealthStream, Allegra Landers from Qualifacts, Kate Moore from Planview, and Tim Putnam from Tractor Supply Company. Watch our Facebook Live videos here and here (yes, there are two because a phone bit the dust during the first one… c’est la vie) of the discussion.
Takeaway
Our biggest takeaway from this panel was that everyone’s strategies are different, and that’s okay! No agency or company are the same, and just because one tool is critical for one team, doesn’t mean that the same tool is going to be just as useful for another. There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to which CRM system, email marketing, and social and content marketing tools you use.
Sessions
We sat in on several additional sessions during Marketing United as well. One of our favorites included the “Digital is WOW: Human-Centric Interactive Brand Experiences” with J. Robert Brown from Nissan North America and Steve Savich from Critical Mass. They discussed the importance of adding feeling and emotion to marketing campaigns, something that resonates with people. This will result in more brand awareness and deeper engagement. Knowing your audience and understanding what makes them feel a certain way is key.
Another favorite session of ours was called “Break the Wheel: Why Best Practices, Conventional Wisdom and Trendy Tactics Hold Us Back from Doing Our Best Work” by Jay Acunzo, the host of the podcast Unthinkable. Our number one takeaway from this was that best practices are in general, and are not always the right practices for everyone. A best practice is not a one size fits all solution. It’s also important to pay more attention to your customers and to make sure that more time is spent learning about your customers rather than what’s trending in an industry (sometimes).
The last session we had the opportunity to sit in on (we didn’t get to many as we were very busy!) was “Tell a Better Story” by Daniel Sieberg from Google. We learned that it’s important to retain authenticity in every story told, which is obvious if you ask us, but sometimes harder than it seems. The example he gave us was of a Christmas card he sent out of his family one year. He and his wife were clearly ready for this photo to be taken, however, his two kids were in the background, one sobbing and one running away from the camera. While some people would never use this image as their Christmas card, Daniel did, because it was the reality that day. That card ended up being a favorite of theirs and of those who received the card because it was authentic.
We are already looking forward to next year’s Marketing United conference, and hope that you will join us. If we met you during this year’s conference or even a previous conference, stay in touch. We’d love to hear from you!
