PPCChat | Search Conferences | 19 February, 2019

Posted by & filed under PPCChat.

This week’s PPCChat session discussed about the search conferences PPC experts like to attend, the conference they have attended and want to attend again, the topics they don’t want to listen about, qualities they expect from the speaker at the conference and more was discussed. Hosted by Julie F Bacchini, this session gives insight of great length.

 

Here is the screencap of the session.

 

Q1: Do you attend search conferences, at all and/or regularly? Why or why not?

 

I have not because of the cost. We work as a full-service marketing agency so there isn’t enough ROI. Try to find as many online as possible – @matt_lozar

Yes and to stay up to date with the industry and learn about new ideas. Not always easy to do when I’m often in a silo without anyone to bounce ideas off of when it comes to technical/tactical. – @mikecrimmins

I currently don’t, but would love to. The last few years, I’ve mainly been wanting to save so I can reinvest it into the company. – @adwordsgirl

not regularly. There is no budget so I even have to argue to go to confs I speak at (ask me how often I win. Cry.) Some are so beneficial, but the travel alone is really a challenge. – @JuliaVyse

I attend a few monthly meetings of during the year and usually about 3-4 larger conferences during a year. – @robert_brady

I attend a couple per year, generally if I am fortunate enough to be a speaker (helps to lessen the costs involved). – @NeptuneMoon

I do attend them, on the caveat being that I have to be speaking at them, otherwise I don’t get travel expensed –  – @JonKagan

I have. I work in house on a very small ecommerce team as the sole paid search resource. I enjoy conferences for the opportunity to meet other people in the industry, hear new ideas, and bounce thoughts around – things I don’t get to do in my every day job – @jlash_digital

I did when my company paid for it. I’ve spoken at a local developer miniconf as well, and attended local meetups. I’m not particularly in love with them. I wonder if my focus on “new ideas” & “education” was misplaced — I should have been doing instead – @ferkungamaboobo

Yes, but these days, mostly to speak. That said, I always pick up something new. – @CountXero

Try to go to a few a year. Networking and meeting all my USA friends I don’t get to see up here in the frozen North. Bonus is meeting potential clients or vendors… especially when the latter pays for dinner – @duanebrown

I have two that I Attend every year that I do not usually speak at. ‘s Engage Conference in Portland and ‘s Search Summit. if i’m speaking, but I find it nearly impossible to attend 2 day conferences these days. – @Realicity

Started to, and find it great for networking and learning about things outside of the PPC wheelhouse, as it were – @Gooselessgander

We haven’t attended search conferences, partly because of location, cost, and work itself. – @marccxmedia

We do attend fairly regularly. We usually send two people from our team. – @searchmonitor

 

 

Q2: Which conferences have you attended and would you attend again?

 

SMXAdvanced is my favorite, Pubcon was a pleasant surprise last year with the level of PPC knowledge. Want to go to Hero, but with my dept being half SEO, it’s hard to do. – @mikecrimmins

SMXWest & Hero Conf – attended and spoken   attended (they’ll call me I’m sure) local specific events – Evening Rounds for health digital communicators, creative mornings, and webinars. – @JuliaVyse

Been to SMX West and Advanced, Pubcon, HeroConf, Affiliate Summit West, Utah DMC, SES – @robert_brady

SMX Advanced had good food and a lot of open-to-many meetups. Pubcon was not my cup of tea, either time I went. The stuff put on by the Digital Marketing Association has some great mini-talks but otherwise was a vendor showcase. Shoutout to  also shoutouts to which has been really good for getting me introduced to the design community here – @ferkungamaboobo

I love Hero Conference. And I also really enjoy SMX East (which has the bonus of easier travel for me). West coast events are tough for me, it adds 2 days for travel to and from. – @NeptuneMoon

Again Engage, MnSearch Summit, HeroConf and then SMX Advanced, the Digital Marketing Conference in Utah and State of Search in Dallas I would all attend again. I’ve heard great things about Pubcon, though not usually interested in attending Cons in Vegas. – @Realicity

SMX East and MN Search Summit, I’d love to get to SMX Advanced as well – @jlash_digital

I haven’t been to any… yet, but I’d love to attend Hero Conf. – @adwordsgirl

Ad:tech, AllFacebook Expo, Conversion Conference, eMetrics, Search Marketing Expo (SMX), Digital Hollywood, Online Marketing Summit (OMS), Consumer Electronics Show (CES), and Search Engine Strategies (SES). For SMX and SES, I’ve done all the US (plus Advanced), and a bunch of international. London and Sydney are my fave. Doing Search Marketing Strategies Sydney in May. – @CountXero

In no order; USA: SMX Advanced, Hero Conf & State of Search UK: & their sister events, SMX London, Heroconf Pitched a some new conferences this year that can change this mix. – @duanebrown

we try to go to SMX, we also send our CRO team to CXL – @360vardi

I’m a different beast. I’m half-marketer, half-product manager for marketing software so I go for different reasons. That said, exposure to new people and new ideas (aka networking) is always almost the top reason. – @Wickerpedia

Sadly, we haven’t attended any. – @marccxmedia

I’m a current student and a part of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). I attend their regional and national conferences every year depending on where they occur – @jessymoyer

Some local to the northeast U.S. direct marketing conferences, Internet Retailer, and SMX East (once). – @lchasse

 

 

Q3: Are there any conferences or events that you have always wanted to attend, but have not? Why not?

 

SMX Advanced, C2MTL, E3 reason: $$$$$ – @JuliaVyse

Pubcon and Content Marketing World here in the US. in Italy. Also, the CTA conference in Vancouver BC was great the last time I attended. – @Realicity

I really wanted to attend Hero Conf this coming April but the cost (USD to CAD is insane) and the fact that my brother gets married a few days later made it not happen this year. – . I really wanted to attend Hero Conf this coming April but the cost (USD to CAD is insane) and the fact that my brother gets married a few days later made it  not happen this year. – @adwordsgirl

Pubcon and State of Search are two I would like to go to one day. Why I have not – cost (I pay for all events & travel) and sometimes they are too close together for me to be able to do it logistically. – @NeptuneMoon

MnSearch Summit, especially for their content video speakers. – @LindsayNMorley

and never gone because I never got picked up to speak. – @JonKagan

I think as a small-medium agency, the cost of all these conferences is really high to send to multiple conferences a year. You have to make some tough choices. You get a lot of meeting new people and some of the sessions, but $5k in cost for 2 is a lot – @360vardi

The bigger conferences that more focus on business and marketing across the board. Usually it’s the price tag for a single ticket. Also, trying to pitch vertical confs to broaden who I meet – @duanebrown

SMX East is the most accessible, but we haven’t figured out logistics in time to go whenever it comes up. – @marccxmedia

State of Search and Engage have always interested me. – @robert_brady

Always wanted to speak at and HeroCon, but can’t seem to crack the speaker roster. Speaking at SEOctoberfest looked cool, but I think that’s gone now. – @CountXero

I try to attend meet ups with digital marketers to at least get some of the conversations, you would get in conferences. Those only cost me a couple of drinks. – @360vardi

Definitely some of the PRSSA conferences that occur far away from me! As a part of a smaller school, it’s difficult to afford going to these national conferences when they aren’t close by. It’s a shame to miss out on opportunities like that – @jessymoyer

 

 

Q4: What makes for a great search conference experience for you?

 

a breadth of topics. There are so many different approaches to how we get goals met, so lots of diverse voices, different points of view and different ways of looking at things! and in speakers in particular. I notice if a conference is Pale Male and Stale. – @JuliaVyse

Beyond having a good mix of speakers and not the usually suspects. Or just all middle age white dudes on stage. The food MATTERS, don’t go cheap here. Pus swag if at all. I rather no swag then cheap ass walmart store items. – @duanebrown

Gotta get 3-4 ideas that I can implement when I get home. That’s #1. Networking is a solid #2. The conversations you can have with the people you meet often elicit the ideas from #1 above. Then it’s always nice to have fun, eat good food & bring home some cool swag. – @robert_brady

1. Vegetarian food that isn’t a Caprese sandwich.  2. A forum/workshop to actually meet and engage with people 3. At least one non-industry speaker with new ideas, research, or inspiration – @Wickerpedia

I set the bar pretty low. Smart people. Smart ideas. Good food is a plus. – @mikecrimmins

Much like you said, , a diverse group of speakers and topics with ample networking opportunities, as well as open discussions/panels. – @marccxmedia

Ooh, most important is location. Love it when a conference satisfies a travel goal. – @CountXero

Hearing from senior leaders about the actions happening YoY in their organisation directly affecting the service to clients and how they run their business – @beyondcontent

The more actionable the better. Presentations that are overly conceptual, have to many bullet points, or rely too much on meme’s to fill the content are less impactful for me. – @Realicity

Solid actionable content and great real world examples – @JonKagan

A great conference is one where you (1) learn new ideas for your clients and (2) connect with other really smart folks. – @lchasse

 

 

Q5: What makes for a great presentation by a speaker for you?

 

Someone who is in the trenches with us, not some agency owner that doesn’t do the work anymore. – @adwordsgirl

Makes me question “best practice” or assumptions. Makes a good point AND tells what action to take because of that point – @robert_brady

real enthusiasm for what is being talked about. We sometimes cover similar ground in PPC and I love hearing someone really engaged with what they want to share. That and real, solid takeaways. – @JuliaVyse

Unique perspective: tell me something I haven’t heard. Something I hate hate hate: I probably will love it a few years later, sorry Problems & solutions: “how” “why” & “man this was confusing”, not “what” – @ferkungamaboobo

Knowledge about the topic and presenting a concept that is useful. I like detail – I want to go back to my office after the event with some ideas I’m excited to try. Also, enthusiasm. Don’t have to be super polished, but excited to share their talk goes a long way! – @NeptuneMoon

Actually knowing how to present (theme, composure, etc). A good step by step and actual results/case studies. So many presenters these days just vomit a bunch of slides that say, “we did this,” but not how. – @CountXero

Fast-paced. Topic I can understand. Good takeaways. Data is a plus – @matt_lozar

one that is both a “show man” but also down to earth – @JonKagan

Learn something new or provide a POV I had not thought of before. Also someone who clearly knows the material. – @duanebrown

A knowledgeable speaker, up-to-date material, a sense of humor, etc. – @marccxmedia

challenge my assumptions. If it’s common knowledge that app placements are bad, show me some that work. If audiences are amazing (they are) give me some warnings. The best presenters make me think. – @armondhammer

I’m a big fan of engagement. I find it difficult to sit through a speaker who talks without even attempting to relate to the audience. Visuals are a contributing factor as well; any great visual makes a presentation more of a success. – @jessymoyer

A great presentation makes me think of something in a new way or something I have not thought of at all in some cases. They are also very clear with execution. – @lchasse

 

 

Q6: What makes for a bad experience for you at a conference or event? Would that experience keep you from attending again?

 

Salesy stuff. If you spend a session pitching me, you’ve lost me. – @JonKagan

If the content across the board was meh or worse, I would not attend again. If the environment was not comfortable for women, I would not attend again. – @NeptuneMoon

salesy talk. Condescenscion. general “hi dummies, this is my power-point. can you say power-point?” ugh. – @JuliaVyse

I think the worst experience for me was feeling completely unable to talk to anyone else, with very few official networking events (and a lot of unofficial, invite-only ones) It was awkward, but one of the better networking cons ha a “speed-networking” event mid-day – @ferkungamaboobo

For me, it would be me walking out feeling as though I didn’t learn anything. The purpose of conferences, for me, is to learn something I didn’t know and am looking to the speaker to teach me. – @adwordsgirl

the people attending and presenting have got to be advanced to learn and share the learnings. Never interested in trying to sell me a product and nothing else – @360vardi

Disorganization is right up there. Conferences that are just in it for the money and don’t care about the industry. Or if it’s an out of the way and hard to get to. I spoke in Italy last year and it’s just to hard to get to and wasn’t that special.  – @duanebrown

Heavily seconding your second point, , especially in light of ‘s Medium post  – @marccxmedia

when I don’t get picked as a speaker (half kidding) When the topics are the same year after year we talk how the industry is changing all the time some shows haven’t gotten the memo – @armondhammer

The people. Some tend to present or speak in an unattainable way–meaning, there’s a sense of superiority or elitism. This distracts me from learning anything meaningful from them. It depends on the extent of this behavior, but for the most part I’d attend again. – @jessymoyer

A bad experience would be not coming away with knowledge you can use. At a minimum I hope to make 10x any investment I make over time. This can be how to execute something or even meeting someone who motivates you to do better. – @lchasse

 

 

Q7: It feels like there are a million conferences these days, but even so, are there aspects of PPC that you wish were covered more at events?

 

I really need some help with audience creation/updating/management and would love to hear a session on how people are handling it. – @robert_brady

Is it too obvious to say B2B topics? I mean, Google clearly ignores B2B, but must we all???? – @NeptuneMoon

Full Spectrum/Multi-Channel & Platform PPC Case Studies. Real examples that have worked, or not, for the presenter. – @Realicity

Project management & estimating. Client relations & pushing them to be the best. What to do when paid search isn’t the solution. Dealing with fraud & brand safety at a ecosystem level – @ferkungamaboobo

Tools tested. Comparing performance of bidding tools, optmyzer, conference lines, competitor tracking, etc… In many cases, you’ll have a presentation from the actual company. I want to see a true comparison of these things – @360vardi

Can not think of anything off hand. More on B2B and building an agency if I wanted something related to PPC but different. – @duanebrown

When I read through the session descriptions it seems like there isn’t really a focus on tools or B2B. I think it’d be nice for conferences to start having speakers who would talk more about that. – @adwordsgirl

How to retain your team. What’s the impact and expected of pay, benefits, perks. What is the turnaround of employees. It takes forever until you get your team to get to the level you like and then they might leave – @360vardi

A good mix of best practice along with new things you may never have tried is always good. Seeing how others approach opportunities or ideas can really help you view things in a different light. Especially for small shops who do not have huge teams – @lchasse

 

 

Q8: What topics are you sick of hearing about?

 

Facebook. It’s not that it’s not incredibly valuable, it’s just that I feel it’s been drowning out the value in other platforms. – @Realicity

Voice. Until I can truly manage it, it is just no longer helpful (from a paid side). That and why mobile is important. We already know that. – @JonKagan

Account structures, match types, how voice search or automation is going to kill our jobs. or some talk on how a person doesn’t do research but made a brand tons of money – @duanebrown

video ads & [false] hype created about voice ads – @sevsarkissian

year of mobile, year of voice. enough’s enough. and god, can we just stop w FB? they are not cool for so many reasons. Most of the interesting things I hear about them is how to get around their bullsh*t walled garden to get real results! – @JuliaVyse

For biz owners: Digital marketing in general – the problems that most companies have are FAR deeper than what retargeting lists they have set up For practitioners: Bold call, but I’ll say Attribution – too much disconnect between clients & agencies to make it work – @ferkungamaboobo

 

 

Q9: If you were designing you own search conference event, what would your priorities be for the event?

 

More breakout sessions. Round table discussions. focus on advanced strategies, tactics and tools. Have the business of digital agency related presentations. Design one just for agencies – @360vardi

PPC Agency Ops, Case Studies. Black magic with tools developers. Consultant/Agency Mental Health Issues. Actual senior team members at booths. Did I say PPC Agency Ops? – @scottclark

diverse opinions & voices, safety and conduct, food, breakout workshops and concurrent events. – @JuliaVyse

You can have all the bells and whistles but if the content isn’t amazing, I think the conference would a waste. I would want all attendees to walk away knowing something they didn’t the day before. Also, a wide variety of topics. – @adwordsgirl

I’d really push three big things. What it means to be an agency for the future (automation, employees, process). The fundamentals of marketing as applied to ppc (brand position) And how to collectively work better with Google, a “union” roundtable – @armondhammer

Well I happen to be involved in one so… – Speaker Balance: Diversity, Freshness, Topics & Quality/Experience. – Networking Opportunities beyond the in-between session times – Event Day Logistics: Food, Beverage and Attendee Happiness – @Realicity

More breakout sessions. Round table discussions. focus on advanced strategies, tactics and tools. Have the business of digital agency related presentations. Design one just for agencies – @360vardi

Agree with what you all have said, and I would add helping people to network better. For many, it is not easy to do. – @NeptuneMoon

did a conference years ago…. – Venue + location ….this will make or break you breaking even and sets the whole tone of the conference including wifi access – Speaker who bring some new voices to life – Food. Got to kept people feed – @duanebrown

More workshops, less keynotes – @JonKagan

 

 

Q10: If there is anything you would want conference/event organizers to know that you have not already shared, go for it now!

 

Big thanks to all the conference organizers out there. It’s a tough job but I appreciate what they do to bring the community together. – @robert_brady

Some of the biggest name speakers are far from good presenters. Help them be better Q&A sessions can work great – not everything needs a PowerPoint or sitereview. get that there’s a balance in the number of pitches you want to read, but there’s times where a good presenter might have a safe idea, and a bold one. Limit to one, and you’ll only get the safe one. The bold one is the one that moves the industry forward.  – @armondhammer

As I mentioned earlier – more diversity! If you’re an organiser and your conf is all male, & there’s no females/BAME representation then stop immediately. Remind yourself it’s 2019 & there are hugely talented people in the above categories and rethink your lineup! – @AzeemPPC

don’t prioritize brand speaker. You lose, as most brands dont want to go up on stage and give up their secrets – @JonKagan

 

PPCChat Participants:

Stop wasted ad spend with Karooya

Stop the wasted ad spend. Get more conversions from the same ad budget.

Our customers save over $16 Million per year on Google and Amazon Ads.

Start free trial Schedule a demo

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.