A Marketing Conference Not To Be Missed (Actually Two!)

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There are two amazing Marketing events happening in the next short while:

  1. CMA National Convention. The Canadian Marketing Association is hosting their national convention on May 26th and 27th, 2010 at the theatre housed within the Metro Toronto Convention Center. It’s a star-studded line-up of keynote only presentations/sessions (with many special surprises). The two headliners are none other than Howie Mandel (who will discuss his personal brand, his TV shows, books and even his own stand-out comedy) and Debbie Travis (who will discuss the many different fashion and real estate ventures she is involved with and how she markets herself and her products). And, it’s not just two amazing/celebrity keynotes that make this event worthwhile. Check out some of the other presenters: Avinash Kaushik, Tara Hunt, Rahaf Harfoush, Terry O’Reilly, Andy Nulman, Ken Wong, Max Valiquette, Ray Zahab, and the head marketers behind brands like Indigo, Canadian Tire, Nissan, Globe & Mail, CanWest, Unilever, Molson, and many more. (full disclosure: I am the co-chair of this event and will be acting as host for both days along with Sandy Perlman from Microsoft).
  2. The Art Of Marketing. This time, Calgary gets The Art of Marketing on June 14th, 2010. This one day only event features six speakers (including me!) at the Epcor Centre. Check out this line-up: 1. Chip Heath (who along with his brother, Dan) is the author of both Made To Stick and Switch along with being a monthly contributor to Fast Company. 2. Gary Vaynerchuk is the best-selling business book author behind Crush It as well as the Internet Celebrity and host of the very popular Wine Library. 3. Sally Hogshead is the author of two amazing books (Radical Careering and Fascinate) and one of the world’s leading Creative Directors. 4. Sir Ken Robinson is probably best known for giving one of the most memorable TED Talks ever (Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity), and he is also the author of a recently released book, The Element. Robinson is an expert on the topics of creativity and education. 5. Max Lenderman is the mastermind behind two excellent books (Experience The Message and Brand New World) and is currently heading up a new Experiential Marketing division of Crispin Porter + Bogusky. Lenderman talks about both experiential marketing and emerging branding markets. 6. Me… you know me.

Here’s a chance to win some free stuff (and a very special offer)…

If you’re interested in attending The Art of Marketing in Calgary, the kind folks over there have done two things to make this easier:

  1. Six Pixels of Separation community members (this means you!) will get a special rate of $349 per ticket. All you have to do is mention the promo code "twist" either online or via phone.
  2. The Art of Marketing has also given me two VIP packages which include: two VIP tickets to The Art of Marketing in Calgary along with two copies of my first business book, Six Pixels of Separation, which I would be honoured to personally autograph for you. If you want a chance to win this VIP package, just leave me a comment below letting me know what the biggest change in Marketing has been for you in the past short while. I’ll choose the winner on June 1st, 2010 at 5:00 pm (Eastern).

Here are some clips to put you in the mood. Personally, I’m looking forward to doing what I do, so I can jump down into the audience and soak in all of this amazing Marketing and Communications insight. Both events are going to be stellar and both events are well-worth attending.


UPDATE: And the winners are:

  • Jennifer Mah
  • Josh Muirhead

Please email me – mitch[at]twistimage[dot]com for information on how to claim your prizes.
Many thanks for playing and we’ll do more of these in the future!!

18 comments

  1. probably the biggest chalenge for me would be trying to convince my “old school” partners that just advertising in the yellow pages is not enough anymore and that is isnt even an effective way to adveritse anymore. there are so many more and better ways to attract potential customers than the phone book and cold calling.

  2. I think the biggest change in Marketing is the fact that I find myself — as a consumer — doing a lot of the marketing work for the products I love (and hate)! I attribute this role reversal to the myriad mediums of expression, owing much to novel websites such as Twitter and Facebook (including the blogosphere, youtube, etc.) I know its cliché at this point to say: “its conversations that sell products, not ads”, but the relevance of this paradigm seems to be increasing more than ever.
    P.s. I’m one of the most anti-marketing (rather, anti-brainwashing) people my friends know, but I am still willing to admit the pride in my consumption (what can i say, who doesn’t like shiny things) Thank you for the work you do, your talks are always engaging!

  3. The biggest change for me is going form a bookkeeping with benefits to a commodity bookkeeping service and a separate coaching/consulting practice. Not everyone wants it all. Some just want bookkeeping and coaching /consulting when they nee dit.

  4. The biggest change in marketing for me is how the web and social media has disrupted the marketing funnel. Finding anything is literally a click away on Google. The powerful influence of word-of-mouth referral is now amplified by social media. There are indeed six pixels of separation between everyone. I’m excited about these changes and for the moment, I’m very comfortable being uncomfortable.

  5. Sorry, distracted by screaming kids. They are in bed, now.
    The biggest change for me was in going from a ‘bookkeeping with benefits’ service to a commodity service and offering a separate coaching/consulting practice. Not everyone wants it all or needs it at all times.
    I never thought I’d be a commodity service. I prided myself on being different. But I’ve lost too many clients when they got what they needed, then left to work with a commodity bookkeeper.
    I have a lot to learn.

  6. The rapid disintermediation of news, advertising and information is by far the biggest change in marketing.
    Disruptive technologies boast a utopia where only relevant ads get to willing tribe members who will yield their influence over masses of followers to boost your brand to greatness.
    Charlatans and gurus continue to confuse the issue with technology and tools confusing local businesses that just want to sell product and services.
    It’s true that information spreading fluidly among trusted-networks is powerful, but the more marketers push to supplement dying promotion strategies by leveraging “social media,” the less trusted the networks become.
    This model continues to eat itself.
    Product, Price, Person and Pleasure – the new Ps of marketing. Promotion now takes care of itself.

  7. HI, Mitch; I would love to see Sir Ken, Gary V and yourself in Calgary! The most exciting change in marketing is that GET has turned into GIVE. I am so inspired by the culture and community that we are all building online, based on truth, generousity, loyalty, reciprocity and the belief that together, we can make the world a better place. Every time I GIVE online by connecting, sharing or creating, I GET it back in spades. This new marketing has opened up so many doors, people, and opportunities. When you give to get, anything is possible! Cheers, Sarah

  8. Taking a crack at the VIP prize to The Art of Marketing:
    Personally for me there has been three significant shifts in the marketing world, that all come together to one outstanding result.
    The first would have to be the ability for people like myself, to do what they are passionate about in creating their own careers. There has never been a time that so many people could connect, share, inspire, and lead. Creating a global community, and opening doors for new business. Which leads us into the second change
    Information, this has to be one of the greatest opportunities for marketers (and people). We now live in a world, that you can tap into a conversation that is going on about a particular brand/person/business. In addition, we can have more informed discussions about products or service, and find out what the end consumer is wanting/needing.
    All of which leads us into what is the greatest change – some of whom have mentioned already, but I hope to take it a step further.
    The ability to Give Gifts, without any expectation of return. This is not just because we are being nice, but because there has been a mental shift in the way business/marketing can be done. You write this blog, offering a gift that many people (I included) are replying to. However, it may not have – and that would have been ok. Other than time that you would have already spent telling us about the Marketing Conferences, there was not additional cost – you where free to give a gift, without expectation of return.
    That’s what I feel is has been the biggest change, but that may just be me.
    Josh

  9. The biggest change in marketing for me has been how instant we can receive information. The old wella blossom tv ad of telling two people who tell two people and so on took, well time. Today, throw my guitar and millions know how bad of an airline United was and is. The challenge is to balance whats coming at us at a million miles an hour and realize that the basics to marketing still remain the same. Its just there are different players in the game and its important to not get caught up in a new marketing world that is evolving every day without a solid plan.

  10. Old school business sees the light! (And it’s not a train)
    The biggest change in marketing for me, in the past short while has been the successful presentation to, and buy in from the senior management at our company on the power in numbers of social media. We now have a small budget for social media campaigns and prize packs including a terrible pre-roll message on local radio stations trying to increase our penetration. (Found @ http://thewolfrocks.com/ ) This all in itself isn’t incredible but if you know anything about the car business and how dealers, generally, are still stiff arming 30 year old marketing tactics, it stands as one of my biggest victories.
    If a used car salesman with a half dozen gold rings on fat sausage hands and enough cologne on for all of Cuba flashed through your mind, I promise on all I hold dear – That’s not me or the Auto Group I work with!!! : ) It’s that perception we hope to change with our efforts on Twitter @CapitalFord and on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/25dlrjh

  11. I believe the biggest change in marketing for me has been in the way marketers define their target audience. Rather than determining a group based on demographics, we see a shift in targeting based on mind-sets or values. The stereotypical age ranges, income levels and activities are not as reflective and clear-cut as they used to be. 60 is the new 40, families come in all shapes and sizes, incomes are varied, youth and empowerment, access to travel and culture etc. It’s now more important than ever to understand the customers “mind-set” and what they value in order to understand how to appeal to them from a strategic marketing perspective.

  12. Hello,
    I used to pound the pavement doing what I called cooperative advertising and poster blasts. I’d go to hundreds of businesses putting up posters for other businesses, and take their literature and drop it at yet other businesses. I was like a bumble bee cross-pollenating flowers. To go from that to 6 pixels is mind blowing to say the least! Now I teach social media workshops to small business people and I have dozens of sites on the front pages of the search engines. Crazy! I would love to meet you and see you speak at this conference!
    Thanks,
    Eric

  13. The biggest change that I have seen in Marketing is the shear volume of incredible content available on the web. I can sit in from of the computer all day and take in so much about what is going on in our industry, and at the end of the day I have yet again created another list of all the things I need to delve into tomorrow.
    I have learned so much from key blogs and key podcasts, and books as well.
    I love being connected on Twitter – that has really helped me stay ontop of things, my Google Reader and my Google Alerts have also great helped.
    I am already going to the TAOM so I don’t need any tickets, but I have Six Pixels and would love to get it signed and to meet you! Looking so forward to the conference.
    Cheers, hope you like Cowtown! Giddy Up.

  14. The biggest change in Marketing for me has been landing a Marketing job, with no prior background in marketing. I’ve tried to use all the resources I can. I’m thankful for the new form of marketing that promotes sharing content and resources. I’m happy to see a shift in times from traditional marketing to inbound, permission-centric marketing. It’s also baffling how much information we have at our fingertips thanks to the Internet. And of course! the place of Social Media in marketing. I understanding and appreciating this profession much more than I did before.

  15. The biggest change in marketing for me has been a lessening of risk placed on the consumer, while more pressure is on the company to be able to innovate a new product that stands out in today’s scattered marketplace. Consumers have been given a bigger voice than ever that reaches out to other people sharing the same concerns as they seek reviews, comparisons and feedback by escaping geographic boundaries via the internet. As the potential consumer knows everything about a product before even considering the purchase, companies are expected to maintain standards of quality and innovation to continuously grab the attention of eager risk takers, and hope they willingly create buzz about a product they are excited about.
    This means that companies must place emphasis first, on making sure product recognition puts them on the next blog spot and second, making the product good enough so it can stay in that spot long enough to make a name for itself.
    There is nothing left to be free from judgement. So go ahead and criticize.
    Ps. Great blog! It really sparks my interest to revisit marketing concepts since I graduated last year now that I’m not being graded on them. Hope to be able to hear you speak at the conference.

  16. …. and the winners are…
    – Jennifer Mah
    – Josh Muirhead
    Please email me – mitch[at]twistimage[dot]com for information on how to claim your prizes.
    Many thanks for playing and we’ll do more of these in the future!!

Comments are closed.