The newly re-branded Performance Marketing Insights is a content-led performance marketing conference. Featuring world-class international speakers, and the conference agenda comprised of the latest industry innovation, technology and new revenue opportunities. It was a fantastic day, jam-packed full of useful insights and meaningful connections.
Here are some of my highlights from day 1…
It all kicked off with coffee and croissants whilst we planned out our sessions and got our bearings. I met up with a few ex-colleagues and industry folks, which is always a treat, and off we went for a full day of information overloading.
Changing Consumer Behaviour &Technology in a Multi-Channel World
Sergio Falletti (DIGITASLBI), Angie Goodchild (TOPCASHBACK.CO.UK) Will Hayward (BUZZFEED), Tim Jessop (TESCO), and Neil Ranatunga (TRADEDOUBLER).
The whole session was action-filled and lively with some very good points being made – the discussions were centred around the role of technology and how it affects the conversion funnel; how tech aids or hinders the decision making process; and how to leverage it efficiently, blurring the lines between online and offline. The panellists spoke about the multi-screen phenomenon, how we need different strategies for tablet and mobile, the impact of apps on loyalty, the rise of Smart TVs and a panel-wide disdain for QR codes. Overall it was an entertaining session with fantastic audience interaction.
Mobile was the theme of the day with many sessions covering the impact of mobile marketing, particularly on digital marketing as a whole.
How 10 Brand Leaders are Redefining their Customer Relationships
Michael Richardson from URBAN AIRSHIP focused on how mobile continues to explode – the time spent interacting with apps is beginning to rival time spent watching TV. He spoke about how to increase engagement through apps and digital wallets, plus how customer insight and location data are being used to maximise engagement and business results.
The 5 Forgotten Rules of Conversion Rate Optimisation
The next session was my personal highlight, a very passionate talk by House of Kaizen’s Ivan Imhof . Ivan is a brilliant and very charismatic speaker – he engaged the audience throughout the session and gave us a tool box full of valuable CRO insights that we can apply. He spoke about the human side to CRO, and how it is not all about technology; it’s about psychology and developing a sentiment to act. The aim of conversion optimisation is to evoke a change in behaviour. We all too often over-complicate the process and end up creating more clutter.
He then launched into design and how you need to plan, script and design your web pages to increase interest and time spent on site with the key objectives in mind. The end goal of CRO is to communicate value thereby influencing purchase decisions and, even more importantly, to remove the elements that are stopping your visitors from purchasing.
Using YouTube as a Platform for Performance
My 2nd favourite talk of the day was by Richard Hartigan from GOOGLE on Using YouTube as a Platform for Performance . He highlighted the importance of online video in building your brand, encouraging engagement and the vast (cost effective) opportunities for publishers and advertisers. Video is an area I am personally very interested in – I found his talk incredibly insightful and non-salesy. Furthermore, his examples were entertaining and really helped demonstrate the impact that good content and well optimised video can have on your business success.
Richard spoke about how video sells, and how optimising video leads to success. He also mentioned how content creation is a huge weakness in brands at the moment – this opens up opportunities for publishers and content creators. Sometimes collaboration is the answer and we need to be creative in how we make use of the medium. Some of the best examples of how video creation has led to unrivalled success is video blogger / reviewer Techno Buffelo who makes videos of different technology to showcase on his channel. He is making a fortune and the content is relatively basic. He found a niche and he made it work for him. Brands can do this themselves and so much better.
After the last session of the day, we met for some drinks and networking. It was a time to reflect on all we learnt and share experiences. (Also a good time to unwind and mingle!)
All in all, it was a well organised conference with some really great speakers and loads of networking opportunities. The day was informative and jam-packed full of learnings and great ideas, and I’m looking forward to what day two holds in store.
