Agenda and Classes

Detailed Curriculum  ¦  Special Events   ¦  Digital Startup Speaker Series

DAY 1 (Thursday, September 27th)

  • 7:00am – 7:00pm – Registration Desk Open
  • 9:00am – 5:00pm – WPXpress – WordPress Development Day-Course
  • 2:00pm – 5:30pm – Class Sessions and Training
  • 6:30pm – 8:30pm – Conference Kickoff Reception

DAY 2 (Friday, September 28th)

  • 8:00am – 3:00pm  - Registration Desk Open
  • 9:00am – 10:00am – Class Sessions and Training
  • 10:15am – 11:00am – Continental Breakfast and Keynote
  • 11:00am – 6:00pm – Exhibit Hall Open
  • 11:15am – 4:15pm – Class Sessions and Training
  • 12:15pm – 2:00pm – Lunch Buffet Open
  • 1:30pm – 2:00pm – Exhibit Hall / Free Time
  • 4:30pm – 5:15pm – Keynote
  • 5:15pm – 6:00pm – Exhibit Hall / Networking

DAY 3 (Saturday, September 29th)

  • 8:00am – 3:00pm – Registration Desk Open
  • 9:00am – 10:00am – Class Sessions and Training
  • 10:15am – 11:00am – Continental Breakfast and Keynote
  • 11:00am – 5:00pm – Exhibit Hall Open
  • 11:15am – 4:15pm – Class Sessions and Training
  • 12:15pm – 2:00pm – Lunch Buffet Open
  • 1:30pm – 2:00pm – Exhibit Hall / Free Time
  • 4:30pm – 5:15pm – Keynote
  • 5:00pm – 6:00pm – Exhibit Hall Load-Out
  • 7:00pm – 10:00pm Digital World Expo v201.2 Closing Party

TRACK : INTERACTIVE SPLASH – Internet Advertising, Marketing, and Audience

Existing email marketing operations can be augmented for maximum performance with minor treatments and interactive content.  With the need for new recipients, 3rd party list usage is on the rise increasing the need for new email rules of thumb and best practices.

Key takeaways include:

  • Email marketing analytics
  • Subject line success:  Do’s and Don’ts
  • Copy & landing pages: The trade-off
  • Advanced lifecycle and trigger campaigns
  • 3rd Party List usage – do’s, don’ts and valuable resources
  • Rules of thumb and best practices
  • Advanced email marketing services and cost of entry

Targeting users based on behavior has changed dramatically.  Users can not only be found based on content they consume on the Web, but through actual purchasing behavior as well as other interactive platforms.  Behavioral targeting has expanded to include user cookie pool purchasing, DSPs and more.

Key takeaways include:

  • Network advertising opportunities that exist today
  • Evaluating behavioral targeting performance
  • Expectations of ROI for campaign measurement
  • “Look-alike” models and how they work
  • Cookie pools and retargeting options
  • Setting cookie durations and applicability of online conversions
  • Optimizing behavioral targeting based on past sales
  • Using network advertising for both brand and performance-based campaigns
  • Cross-platform targeting for user behavior
  • Layering geo- and demo- elements on behavioral targeting

A campaign can’t be considered “viral” until the result are in!  How marketers create content that begs to be forwarded to a friend is essential in viral campaign success.  Several elements for viral campaigns need to be put into action during the design and development.  Attendees for this session will discover the key ingredients needed to create viral campaigns to effectively serve promotional objectives.

Key takeaways include:

  • Elements for success
  • Interactive methods today and possibilities
  • Setting campaign objective criteria and application
  • Case Studies

Your program has launched and it has gone viral!  So what’s next?  With so much time and energy spent on creative elements, many forget to put actionable items in place to handle their own success.  Learn the components to maximizing value out of your new found audience and excitement for your brand.

Key takeaways include:

  • Organizing your viral tracking and reports
  • Network channels for more distribution
  • Project scope development for outsourcing
  • Making the most of your “peak” awareness

This is an additional course for newcomers to online advertising planning.  Further discussions go into placement and cost structures reaching into Brand vs. ROI objectives.  This course will teach how to put an interactive advertising schedule and leave attendees prepared to start their 2012 planning with confidence.

Key takeaways include:

  • Getting started with online advertising
  • CPM, CPC and CPA cost structures
  • Brand vs ROI objectives
  • Targeting options – behavioral, geo, demo, etc
  • Direct publisher vs ad networks
  • Building an online media plan

With high-speed internet connections now the standard in connectivity, video advertising has reached new heights in placement and audience.  New rules apply toward tracking impressions, users and ROI.  Video is the most effective branding mechanism and quickly becoming the optimal interactive experience for marketers to take advantage of.  Multiple web-enable platforms offer an additional edge for your video reach and audience targeting.

Key takeaways include:

  • Today’s definition of “reach”
  • Video networks and distribution
  • Cost of advertising video
  • Cost Analysis:  Digital Media Video vs. TV
  • Web-enabled TV integration

With fragmentation comes a wide variety of channels to use for your video creative.  Selecting the best for your business is essential to ensure you are reaching the right audience with the right message.  Campaign objectives will determine the best routes to take with video and make part of your media plan.  Learn the essentials for cost-of-entry, quality of audience and user-experience inherent within video-enabled channels today and how to manage multiple sources at once.

Key takeaways include:

  • Mixing mobile, social and web initiatives with video
  • Leveraging web-enabled television. mobile and other merging mediums
  • Knowing your audience and the media they consume
  • Best tactics to generate conversions and meet video performance goals
  • Using the right call-to-action for various formats
  • Developing video to meet multiple standards

Video game consumers are on a massive incline with each quarterly report.  Stereotypical teenage players are not the norm as the average gaming expense per user is $700 per year.  Demographics aged 18-35 heavily play the space with an average HHI of $70k plus.  In-game advertising offers the right demo and psycho for many companies and is sure to expand as this interactive media continues to evolve.

Key takeaways include:

  • How in-game advertising is evolving toward interactivity
  • How to incorporate in your overall branding strategy
  • Measurement vehicles 800 numbers and call-to-text
  • Impression measurement differences compared to online
  • Formats to develop in-game ads
  • Case studies and best-practices

Applying points, badges and winning achievements to the audience use of apps or web-based branded business initiatives has exploded in popularity.  Does it make sense for your business to start engaging its audience with retention activities that include gaming components?  Gamification leads to viral activity and consumer-retention for repeat business.  Learn the different areas of Gamification and what companies are doing today to enhance their customer experience.

Key takeaways include:

  • Basic elements of game mechanics
  • Leveraging gaming for desired behavior
  • Making shopping, surveys and content fun
  • The impact of Gamification on data quality and ROI
  • Badges, levels, leader boards and progress bars
  • Combining Gamification and loyalty (point) systems
  • Resources for your Gamification development and initiatives

If you’ve been “lost” in the essential understanding of search marketing and where it’s headed, you’re in luck!  This class was built just for beginners.

Key takeaways include:

  • How search engines work today and tomorrow
  • Introduction to SEO and SEM (organic vs. paid)
  • Identifying “money words” that sell
  • Paid Search and SEO working hand-in-hand
  • All-important Analytics
  • Search performance reporting and portfolio management

For everyone who feels comfortable in the basic elements of search marketing, this will expand your understanding of paid placements in search.  Explore methods to discover “money words” and enhance your understanding of paid search campaigns.

Key takeaways include:

  • Paid Search Marketing
  • Paid Search Analytics
  • How to create a paid-search campaign
  • Paid Search opportunities today
  • Best practices for paid search advertising
  • Writing search ad copy that sells

TRACK : MOBILE MADNESS – Mobile Marketing and Development

While mobile media has accelerated in other countries, US marketers are just now taking advantage of its capability.  Mobile web access has increased over 1000% in the last 8 years.  Mobile users are shaping the way we design and develop our interactive marketing strategies.  This class will define mobile marketing and its various forms while leaving users with a strong understanding of how each component can fit their objectives.

Key takeaways include:

  • Four areas of Mobile defined (APPs, WAPs, LBS, SMS)
  • Starting a mobile strategy
  • Cross-platform measurement and integration
  • ROI hotspots and revenue success
  • Mobile marketing “beyond the phone”
  • Mobile media growth and future expectations

Location Based Marketing (LBS) can be confusing in terms of device, technology and privacy implications.  Learn the right channels and how to apply these initiatives to your business.  Find out where LBS is heading as it continues to find a growing role within company digital media plans today.

Key takeaways include:

  • Tangible location-based strategy
  • Location-based targeting overview
  • How GPS tracking works
  • SMS, APP and Bluetooth channel characteristics
  • LBS services and cost of entry
  • The future of LBS

Talk about a new specialty in marketing!  The last few years have seen a number of companies develop mobile versions of their site or entire apps around their services in general.  Now that “everyone” is jumping on this relatively new channel, how will your company app get picked up by new users?  A variety of marketing channels and advertising opportunities for apps have grown as fast as the mobile market itself.  Learn best practices for both free and paid strategies to gain users and business through your critical mobile initiatives.

Key takeaways include:

  • Free and paid resources identified
  • Case studies of growing app users
  • Mobile app search indexes and services
  • Keyword building to describe your app
  • How to rank on mobile app search listings
  • PR and promotion channels for app discovery

Creating a mobile app isn’t a one-shot exercise.  Both startup and ongoing development is required to keep your app current and compelling with the digital audience.  Learn the different components of app development and launch.  From website content conversion to interface and platform design, this course will cover the expectations with process and cost of entry.  Making your app relevant and scalable for years to come is also an essential area for consideration and deployment.

Key takeaways include:

  • Starting your app development – first-step know-how
  • Android, Apple, Windows and other formats for success
  • Basic levels of app development expense
  • Languages and experience needed for design and development
  • Getting your app listed in stores and marketplaces
  • Cross-components of web content and app updates
  • Ongoing app development and operations

So you’ve developed your mobile app, now what?  Integrating your app initiatives into the rest of your marketing and advertising strategy is imperative to ensure you work both mobile and web-based channels.  Building app user database has become just as important as your website.  Learn the best areas to leverage to build your mobile audience and strategies that integrate app use through existing digital marketing channels.  You’ll find many effective tactics can be done through the tools you already have!

Key takeaways include:

  • Incorporating your mobile initiatives behind traditional messaging
  • Encouraging cross-platform activity with web-users
  • Cornerstones in your daily operations that can solicit app usage
  • Where to find your customers through mobile advertising
  • Interfacing your mobile initiatives with your overall marketing plan
  • Converting your web-audience to an app-audience

Your company creates and app and hopes to drive incremental revenue or business using its primary product or services.  Or perhaps you just created an app to serve based on functionality, hoping to get investors to make it more robust and reach “m-commerce” status.  This class will uncover a multitude of other ways to monetize your app users by leveraging media networks today.  Learn ways to generate extra income or supplemental revenue through non-traditional means.  Today, mobile media and advertising networks are more aggressive in compensation compared to the Web.  Find out how to make your app audience work for you, with or without product sales.

Key takeaways include:

  • Identifying app audience revenue opportunities
  • Expectations of mobile audience growth
  • Generating cashflow without an investor
  • The high-dollar paid for the mobile audience
  • Impressions, clicks and data sharing for fun and profit
  • Managing advertising revenue and optimization
  • Incorporating app advertising without user intrusion

This course will uncover the opportunities behind mobile advertising networks and how they can be used to gain new audience and target prospective buyers.  True there are limitations on m-commerce activities, but the mobile audience is alive and well and ready to experience your brand.  Learn the expectations around cost-of-entry, best practices to drive mobile users to your app and how to take advantage of their attention once you’ve got it!  This class will give attendees an understanding of best practices and successful case studies from using mobile advertising networks.

Key takeaways include:

  • Characteristics of a “good” advertising network
  • CPMs and CPCs – value and expectations
  • Positioning your offerings for a mobile ad campaign
  • Targeting capabilities of mobile ad networks
  • How to make the most out of your paid audience
  • Mobile ad creative formats
  • The “do’s” and “don’ts” of mobile ad network creative

TRACK : NEXT GEN – Information to take the next step

Being an advocate of digital media usage in your companies marketing mix can be an uphill battle.  Executives and the “higher ups” need convincing to step foot on unknown territory.  Speaking to an “older generation” audience can literally require special selling skills to bring your points to the table and gain the support you are looking for.

Key takeaways include:

  • Arguments for digital with executives
  • How to compel the “Baby Boomers”
  • Referencing merging media formats for illustration
  • Translating “digital language” to layman’s terms
  • Yesterday’s audience, today’s users

Attend this course to get a key understanding of where search marketing is headed in the future, while focusing on rising methods today.  Search marketing is the core of all revenue initiatives for online conversions.  Find out what the future holds for search and how you can prepare for tomorrow to continue exploiting this critical area for online sales.

Key takeaways include:

  • Maximizing your social media placements for indexing
  • Paid-search opportunities on mobile platforms
  • Video Search Marketing (VSEO), YouTube and More
  • Advancements in search engine technology and indexing (video/images)
  • The future of search – “recommendations vs results”
  • Social Search – Google Plus + Facebook
  • Real Time Search – Twitter
  • Image-based recognition advancements for search
  • Local Search taking the lead in SEM

This course was created for newly formed companies, entrepreneurs and those looking for business advice on startup activities.  Bad economies always invoke an amazing number of new companies; some will turn Fortune 1000 over the next decade.  With legal, trademarking, corporate formation, staffing, venture capital, product launch and operation cost considerations, there are plenty of areas you should be familiar with when starting your own company.  Whether you have a new idea and are considering launching your own business or have just launched a startup in the past couple of years, attend this course to get expert advice and guidance on critical areas.

Key takeaways include:

  • The right corporate formation for you and your business
  • Important elements of digital brand creation
  • Advisory boards and how to use them
  • Seed capital resources and funding
  • Protection of your idea and Intellectual Property (IP)
  • The most important elements of business plans
  • Business incubation support and resources
  • Product launch and marketing plans for new companies
  • Cost-effective PR and advertising strategies

Wanna know where your job path is headed?  Looking to find employees and keep them?  Attend this course to learn the hotspots with recruiters and hiring managers of today’s emerging companies.  Whether you are a marketing, development, programming, media or communications professional, this class will identify expectations for the next 5-10 years and specialties that will be sought deep into our future.  You will also learn about today’s “corporate loyalty” attitudes and what you can do to ensure satisfaction for high-tech employees while attracting the best talent available.

Key takeaways include:

  • What tomorrow’s expectations are of recruiters today
  • Critical areas of specialty and getting important work-related experience
  • Today’s salaries for emerging media and development professionals
  • Keeping yourself “marketable” and maintaining your own personal “brand”
  • Recruitment strategies today and hiring manager resources
  • Why today’s digital business and professional positions have a high turnover
  • The next generation of marketing, programming and development professionals
  • Creating the ideal atmosphere for employee retention

Information graphics are on the rise!  Surrounding us in the media, published works and manuals, they illustrate information that would be unwieldy in text form.  Acting as a “visual shorthand” for in-depth concepts, they are being used all over the web, acting as mainstream audience channels for your business.  Learn how to identify opportunities in your business to produce your own infographic and leverage it to drive incremental audience and sales.  Infographics can convey your message in a short space on attention time and be searched time and again by users looking for what your business can do for them.

Key takeaways include:

  • Researching your own industry’s content opportunities
  • Infographic formats and how to design your own
  • Using existing data to produce your own infographic
  • How to publish and drive awareness to infographics
  • Leveraging PR outlets for new information releases
  • Popular use of infographics today

Technology and accessibility have advanced to where streaming video and live demonstrations can be accessed by anyone at anytime.  Take advantage of something many marketer’s and companies miss when assessing viable tools for increased profits.  Webinars are now emerging as one of the most lucrative areas to gain leads, customers and loyalty.  This course will teach you how to put together your own webinar to gain even more traction with your current clients and add new customers!  Discover this digital strategy and how to effectively use it for your business by following some of the experts today.

Key takeaways include:

  • Overall webinar channel assessment for your business
  • Starting a webinar topic that is engaging and compelling
  • Best use of the webinar audience to meet your objectives
  • Frequency of webinar placement and execution
  • Resources and cost-of-entry
  • Promoting your webinar to online audiences
  • “Live” vs “Canned” webinar experiences for the user

Digital World Expo’s focus is to bring the fields of Technology and Marketing together in a 3-day workshop and exhibitor-based experience for a reason.  The need for knowledge in both today’s tech and media disciplines are colliding in our workforce just as they are in media.  By having a strong understanding of both areas, you will hold the keys for success in your back pocket for years to come.  Whether you’ve been a programmer for the last ten years or a social media manager for the last two, this course will educate attendees on the quickest way to experience and learn both disciplines.

Key takeaways include:

  • Why marketer’s must learn programming, development and IT disciplines
  • Why techs must learn marketing, media and advertising disciplines
  • Fusing the role of today’s tech and media professionals together
  • Silo’ed approaches that don’t work for today’s business
  • How cross-discipline education makes you “invincible”
  • Overcoming today’s stereotypes and reaching out for education
  • Why digital media and advertising isn’t just about “media and advertising”
  • Fast-tracking your success by fast-tracking specific business relationships

TRACK : NUTS & BOLTS – Programming and development today

As of September 2011, 34 of the world’s top 100 websites are using HTML5 (led mostly by social media and search engine offerings).  Although it’s been known by developers for years, it wasn’t until 2010 that it came into mainstream focus, taking another year or so to be adopted.  But today HTML5 is recognized by browsers as it consolidates the need for separate programming languages and is more adoptive to specific media format delivery.  Attend this class to understand the key components of HTML5, the elements in markup language, and the circumventing of generic <object> tags on the Web.

Key takeaways include:

  • How the syntax can be written in HTML or XHTML
  • Markup language documents, APIs and web applications
  • HTML5 on cross-platform and mobile channels
  • The new syntactical features of HTML5
  • Handling multimedia and graphics without the need for plugins
  • The importance of DOM scripting (javascript)
  • Canvas, document editing, drag-drop, geolocation and other APIs

Cloud computing has risen to be noted as the next generation of data serving and processes for users today.  Orienting your business or enterprise with cloud components features many advantages and service provisions that are more efficient and responsive than traditional server and application storage.  Attend this course to understand the important aspects of cloud computing and how it makes sense for your IT initiatives.  Attendees will walk away with an understanding of the four different types of deployment models as well as how the different layers can be used to share services.

Key takeaways include:

  • Cloud computing availability and implementation today
  • Identifying where the cloud can enhance your product and service offerings
  • Migrating your infrastructure to the cloud
  • Public, Hybrid, Private and Community models
  • Client, software and platform as a service sharing
  • Resources for data centers and storage services

With the newest version of Windows comes more questions than ever before with regards to the OS and features available for users.  Windows 8 will have an immediate sizeable reach amongst users today as it gains traction in the market place.  Application components, sharing and other UI features will dramatically change the way most users interface with digital media almost overnight.  Attend this course to become more familiar with Windows 8 and inherent areas to stay on top of.

Key takeaways include:

  • Similarities with Windows Smartphone UI
  • Orientation towards ‘touchscreen’ devices
  • The new Windows Runtime platform to develop Metro applications
  • The inclusion and information around Explorer 10
  • “Refresh” and “Reset” recovery functions
  • Development tools for Windows 8

By the end of 2011, over 250 million devices were using the Android OS.  Developing within the Droid OS environment is essential for app initiatives that run alongside other platforms.  Attend this course to learn the basics and elements of the Droid OS and what to look for when determining functionality and formats for your mobile app.

Key takeaways include:

  • The components of Android OS languages used for apps
  • Connectivity technologies supported
  • Java programming support
  • Audio, video and still media formats supported
  • Cross-platform exporting, design and development
  • Steps from development to deployment
  • Beginning tasks for app creation and experience expectations

Originally developed for iPhone, Apple extended the iOS for iPads, iPod Touch and AppleTV.  With over 600,000 apps available in the App Store, iOS development will continue to grow with the understanding of programming tools and languages.  Proprietary Software Development Kits and default settings calling other apps and features make for the iOS to be both dynamic and adaptable to your app needs.  Attend this course to learn the areas of iOS and best practices to get you up and running.

Key takeaways include:

  • The main components and features of iOS used for apps
  • iOS app technologies and functions supported
  • Steps from development to deployment
  • Beginning tasks for app creation and knowledge-base expectations
  • Developing in an Xcode environment
  • Cost expectations of App Store placement
  • Cross-platform considerations

Creating your user interface for software or a website requires a lot of consideration for how your audience will engage with your brand and purchase your products.  Different areas of interest for a successful UI include engagement times, conversion rate facilitation, search indexing and more.  Learn how to develop a successful UI/UX for your audience by considering key components often overlooked by development professionals today.

Key takeaways include:

  • Modifying areas that yield maximized conversion
  • Editing your UI/UX to meet search bot criteria
  • Matching color-driven features with your brand
  • Meeting expectations of average user engagement time
  • Critical placement for hot buttons and user acquisition
  • Data areas and user comfort zones

Get your head around the most popular Java Script library today with a discussion and introduction to jQuery.  Learn how the syntax makes it easy to navigate, handle events, and develop Ajax applications.  With its high adoption rate amongst programming and development, jQuery is a must-know language at all levels of experience working with most web and mobile applications today.

Key takeaways include an overview of:

  • Understanding of AJAX application
  • Manipulation of CSS and edits
  • Transitions, animations and special effects
  • Plug-in usage
  • Utilities and detection
  • Popular resources for ongoing development

Humor, humanity, action, drama and other styles are used in video for instruction, branding and sales messaging.  Creating a video for digital distribution involves specific development practices and formatting to ensure success.  Learn all things to take into consideration when applying video strategy to your business objectives.  Video usage for strategy has been growing over the past decade with more expectations for the future.  Take advantage of this opportunity to learn critical requirements for video creation, development and deployment.

Key takeaways include:

  • Interactive video development
  • Standard digital video formats used today
  • Output formats
  • Popular applications for video editing and exporting
  • Specific channel criteria (ex. YouTube and Vimeo)
  • Ensuring compact file sizes for quick downloading

TRACK : SOCIAL GRAVY – Social CRM and Realizing ROI

While social media has had the spotlight over the past few years offering a substantial audience size, marketers still struggle with how to leverage this space for direct revenue.  Standard tracking executions don’t always apply and once a company enters this playground, it must become a regular part of day-to-day operations.  Social media offers companies the opportunity to get close to their consumers on a large scale, but how does this relate to the bottom-line initiatives?

Key takeaways include:

  • Social Media overview
  • Today’s user and social media
  • Things “every” business should know
  • Brand management and “controlled transparency”
  • Finding “truth” in your friends, fans and followers

You’ve got YouTube, Google+, Facebook, Twitter and other social accounts setup and managed.  So now what?  Learn how to grow your audience into an impactful audience for your company’s communication needs and bottom line efforts.  There are many tools and strategies to use that will enhance your understanding and put best practices to use in order to ensure a growing fans, friends, followers and “likers”.

Key takeaways include:

  • Starting a blog to enhance content and channel distribution
  • Attaining a large network and audience
  • Friends, Fans and Followers – strategies and tactics
  • Key analytics and performance metrics
  • Fast-tracking followers for start-ups and new brand initiatives

With your social media operations in play it’s time to create a campaign that makes sense for your company’s ROI objectives.  This course will teach next steps for those who have an advanced understanding of social media, seeking insights and practices to make it even better with data tracking, conversion strategies and making the most of your friends, fans and followers.

Key takeaways include:

  • Social Media campaign building for online sales
  • Social network revenue attribution
  • Best social networks for call-to-action messaging
  • Leveraging existing customers for satisfaction awareness
  • Reporting metrics for social media revenue
  • Do’s and Don’ts for sales promotions
  • Direct messaging and personalized promotions

Google+ is out and making waves across the social media space!  Since its release in mid-2011, traction has grown and bets have been lost with over 400 million users predicted by the end of this year.  Learn the characteristics of this emerging tool and the unique aspects impacting your digital presence and social media modeling for business.  Attendees will discover the features that make Google+ unique amongst a sea of social applications.  Class instructors have been with Google+ since the beginning bringing their knowledge to the table!

Key takeaways include:

  • An overview of inherent tools for grouping and socializing
  • Key attributes important for your business model and objectives
  • SEO implications for ranking
  • “Grouping” your contacts and ensuring relevancy
  • Strategic applications for business promotion and marketing
  • Expectations for the future and Android integration
  • Key features for easy communication

The leader in social profiles and communication gets bigger and bigger with each passing day.  With over a billion users expected this year, it’s one of the quickest ways to find audience and potential consumers.  This course has been created specifically for those businesses using Facebook as part of their strategy for communication, sales and brand awareness.  Discover advanced techniques and tools for success to continue growing and managing your Facebook presence.

Key takeaways include:

  • Making audience growth part of your regular strategy
  • Assuring the “stickiness” of your presence with frequent visits
  • Fun communications to keep your fans engaged
  • Best practices in Facebook Advertising
  • Administrative user management
  • Identifying Facebook-ready content within your business
  • Customizing your pages
  • Postings for “Likely” traction

Think you know everything about the largest communication and social tool on the web?  Test your knowledge by engaging in an open discussion around advanced practices for your business and personal brand on Twitter.  Hear success stories and specific strategies used to grow brand awareness through audience interaction.  Learn advanced practices to manage a large following and how to leverage trends, influential followers and your own PR to keep growing.

Key takeaways include:

  • Best practices for large following communications
  • Finding your biggest influencers
  • Additional tools for Twitter strategies
  • Stirring up discussion for your industry
  • Topics to ensure a loyal following
  • The fastest way to reach 100,000 followers

More and more companies are jumping onboard with a blog for their business.  This course will cover the fundamental and advanced practices to ensure your blog makes sense for your objectives.  Discover a number of resources and tools for your blog and how to tie activity to increased sales.  Blogging elicits perception – make the most of blog activity and be known as an “industry expert”.

Key takeaways include:

  • Using the right blog tool for your business
  • Leveraging your staff for content contribution
  • Tracking your blog posts and ensuring success
  • Topic management and appropriate post intervals
  • Retaining your blog readers for future visits
  • How to create compelling and engaging content

Professionals use LinkedIn, plain and simple.  This popular social tool has gained ground and is now used by over 150 million members.  Some businesses prefer LinkedIn to other social challenges for its high-propensity of professional audience.  Other companies simply use it as part of their overall social channel mix.  Attend this class to discover all the components to LinkedIn as well as advertising products that can add a targeted percentage of audience to your web visitors and connections.

Key takeaways include:

  • LinkedIn targeted advertising and cost of entry
  • Comparisons of paid vs free LinkedIn accounts
  • Using LinkedIn to identify decision-makers
  • Rules of thumb for successful profile building and usage
  • Message formats and tone for LinkedIn postings
  • Best practices for professional social campaigns
  • Creating associations, groups and topics for a LinkedIn audience
  • Joining other groups for marketing placement

Did you know entire channels are created by users who drive sizeable ad revenues every month?  As the second-largest search engine used today, YouTube has gained the overwhelming majority of online user attention and interest.  Creating a channel for your business may seem simple, but the guarantee of users still falls within successful execution.  Attend this class to understand best practices for a YouTube presence and how to incorporate channel subscription initiatives into the rest of your social practices.  Content is king so be sure to find out what makes for compelling video that converts viewers into purchasers.

Key takeaways include:

  • Creating and developing your YouTube channel
  • Identifying compelling content to upload
  • YouTube metrics and reports to assess your successes
  • Incorporating your business products and services into YouTube
  • The latest release of tools and available features
  • Cross-pollenating YouTube content across your online presence

TRACK : TRUTH IN NUMBERS – Optimize your initiatives

Dive into the world of performance, high-volume revenue and interactive marketing with this course designed to demonstrate the multiple channels available for direct response.  Attendees will understand arguments of Brand vs. DR-focused advertising as well as other foundational toolsets.  High conversion rates are the results of performance-marketing initiatives which only lead to profitable success!

Key takeaways include:

  • Branding vs. Direct Response initiatives
  • Conversion rate enhancement
  • Appropriate cookie setting and metric application
  • CPA, CPC, Affiliate and other performance channels
  • Making sense out of display and content advertising
  • Steps for managing your performance strategy

We all know “last click” is tired and doesn’t always “win”.  But attribution modeling and engagement mapping can be long and tedious, plus there’s not always a clear answer at the end of the rainbow for where your media dollars should be invested.  This class will cover the essentials you will need to better address the attribution controversy.

Key takeaways include:

  • Handling media source attribution
  • Effective engagement mapping
  • Next steps for budget allocation
  • Cross-referencing source analytics
  • “Last-click” arguments and parodies

Finally!  Over the last year, few tools have been uncovered and finally available for real-world attribution modeling.  Everyone knows the “last click” concept is out the window when it comes to areas that influence consumer purchasing decisions.  Take this hour to review the best tools available in the marketplace for companies to start attribution assessment and take the next step!

Key takeaways include:

  • Service tools for attribution modeling (demos)
  • Expectations and cost-of-entry
  • How to implement your new-found knowledge
  • Budgeting and internal report management
  • Re-educating clients and senior management
  • Upper and lower funnel perceptions and assessment
  • Which engagements are the most effective / impactful

The Web offers various measurement aspects using a multitude of acronyms for definitions.  This course will introduce the key elements of measuring everything from user behavior to conversions and online sales.  Web analytics have been in use for over a decade with more and more insights available every day.  They are an essential part of interactive marketing and will be required to analyze successes and next steps in optimization.

Key takeaways include:

  • Analytics and user acronyms
  • Ad campaign analytics vs user analytics
  • Analytics resources today (paid vs free)
  • Key analytics for success measurement

With video and rich media development comes the opportunity to create brand awareness and engage your audience on higher levels.  Learn important metrics to watch and measure the successfulness of your branding campaigns.  Engagement rates, playtime and interactions are just a few areas to look when assessing your reach and user activity.

Key takeaways include:

  • Interaction rates and origins
  • Video play rates and view time
  • Downloads, subscriptions and comments
  • “Shares” and “Forwards”
  • Video page views and video views

Once users click to your site or ecommerce pages, are you getting the most out of your advertising activities or campaigns?  The right audience doesn’t necessarily equate to the highest level of conversion rates.  Using ads and posts to drive traffic is only half of the game.  Make sure your landing page undergoes the necessary treatments that elicit increased sales and retention.  A/B, multivariate and other tactics are an essential part of your quest for conversions.

Key takeaways include:

  • Multivariate testing and implementation
  • Simple split tests you can start today
  • Copy writing for higher conversions
  • The right color for your “buy” button
  • Landing page layout based on eye-tracking
  • The first thing users look for

With new technologies and channels comes a renewed interest in affiliate marketing!  The practice and analytics available have gotten better over time with more efficiency in partner recruitment and conversions.  Affiliate marketing involves a multitude of facets to consider for integration with your ongoing digital media strategy.  Find out if affiliate marketing is the right channel for your business and learn how to enhance your existing programs.

Key takeaways include:

  • Tools available to start an affiliate program
  • Recruitment tactics to find high-performing publishers
  • Cost of entry and appropriate expectations
  • Identifying a commissionable payout structure
  • Tracking technology that make things work
  • What to look for when choosing a service
  • Assets to use that control your brand usage
  • Creating appropriate marketing toolsets for your publishers

If you have a side project, blog or simply looking for additional products to drive revenue, this course is for you!  Affiliate programs have exploded in use by merchants covering every industry.  Find a plethora of ways to uncover programs you can initiate today to monetize your existing audience.  Discover ways to keep it relevant for your users and steps to become a successful publisher.  Affiliate publishers can drive a large volume of revenue and profits through basic programs offered by some of today’s leading online merchants.

Key takeaways include:

  • Finding the right program for the right audience
  • Products your audience are most likely to buy
  • Making the most out of commissionable sales
  • Introducing new products and services to your users
  • The application process for affiliate publishers
  • Characteristics of good publisher sites for program acceptance

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