Not many conferences can brag about bringing together an outstanding lineup of talented speakers (and maybe part-time comics?), enthusiastic attendees, and a fun astronaut. But it happened, and there’s a lot we want to talk about!
The energy was tangible even before the inaugural ASCEND Digital Marketing Summit (hosted by AWeber) kicked off Thursday morning October 23, 2014 at The Westin Philadelphia — and it only carried on throughout the remainder of the conference. With topics ranging from content marketing to optimization strategies and affiliate marketing, each session was engaging and informative, providing many actionable takeaways for attendees (or as we call them, ascendees) striving to become better digital marketers.
While we’re still digesting all of the incredible information we just absorbed (and Tweeted), here are some of our favorite highlights from ASCEND 2014:
ASCEND Kickoff
Off to a great start with @tkulzer at the #ASCENDsummit2014! http://ift.tt/12S6kzg ? Heyo (@heyo) October 23, 2014
Introducing AWeber’s Newest Team Member
.@aweber unveils Commander AJ, our copilot to the #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 and beyonddddd…. http://ift.tt/12S6mY5 ? SEER Interactive (@SEERInteractive) October 23, 2014
Speaker Sessions: Day 1
Dear Diary: A Content Marketing Makeover
Speaker: Ann Handley
“Writing is a habit, not an art.”
“We don’t need more content. We need better content.”
To become a better marketer you need to become a better writer. #ascendsummit2014 @MarketingProfs ? SEER Interactive (@SEERInteractive) October 23, 2014
“Create ridiculously useful content. Make them miss you if you go away” @annhandley #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 23, 2014
Ingredients of great content – empathy x useful x inspiring #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 #contentmarketing #marketing ? Sushant Misra (@treptalks) October 23, 2014
[content marketing] It’s not about what story you are telling, it’s how you are telling the story – @annhandley #ascendsummit2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 23, 2014
The Entrepreneur Story
Speaker: Peter Shankman
“Having an audience is not a right. It’s a privilege.”
“Don’t have a back up plan for when you fail; have a back up plan for when you succeed.”
“Learn to write, learn to speak, learn to communicate. Create something real. Be different.”
? Content was cool before the internet and still reigns supreme. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Alexis (@AlexisQMassacre) October 23, 2014
RT @ChuckHall: Good content beats any amount of advertising you can do. -Peter Shankman #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @aweber @petershankman ? Don Lafferty (@MinglSocial) October 23, 2014
“Brand Everything You Do”… sage advice repeated over and over from @petershankman #ascendsummit2014 ? John Langan (@Gr8JohnL) October 23, 2014
Challenges are surmountable if you start by being a nice person.? #WiseWords #ASCENDsummit2014 @petershankman ? Heyo (@heyo) October 23, 2014
“At the end of the day all you have is your brand and the people who will vouch for you.” @petershankman #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Julie Touchstone (@feelrock) October 23, 2014
Seriously loving #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @petershankman takeaway: be a little nicer, put out 10x more than what u’ll ever need. ? Kelly Russell (@russkellbell) October 23, 2014
SEO Straight Talk: Why You Need #RCS Now More Than Ever
Speaker: Wil Reynolds
“Build cliques, not clicks.”
If you’re always looking the ROI in every marketing channel, you’ll probably fail at marketing? -@wilreynolds talking #SEO #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Stephanie Humphrey (@TechLifeSteph) October 23, 2014
“You don’t need more links. You need more heart.” << @wilreynolds bringing the RCS at #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Oli Gardner (@oligardner) October 23, 2014
You can’t get an ROI on SEO if you don’t care about the customer #RCS #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @wilreynolds ? SEER Interactive (@SEERInteractive) October 23, 2014
If your SEO worked & you didn’t help the customer, you lost. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 #RCS @wilreynolds http://ift.tt/1suDpWK ? SEER Interactive (@SEERInteractive) October 23, 2014
We love this. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @wilreynolds http://ift.tt/1suDn18 ? Heyo (@heyo) October 23, 2014
Affiliate Marketing – Live and Uncut Moderator: Tricia Meyer Panelists: Sarah Bundy, Jen Myers Ward, Geno Prussakov, Brian Littleton
“It’s a matter of finding the right partners and educating them.”
“Do your research, get to know your audience – you need to bring value.”
“Humans are creatures of habit. Big changes can take time to adjust to, especially in A/B tests.”
? Merchant Misconception #1: Affiliates are a great way to test things out… um NO!! @ePrussakov @svbundy @jenmyersward #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Jessica Celenza (@jessicacelenza) October 23, 2014
“It’s the number of ACTIVE affiliates that really matters.” – @eprussakov #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 23, 2014
? Affiliate Misconception #2 If you build it, they will come: Success takes more than just putting up a site! @jenmyersward #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Jessica Celenza (@jessicacelenza) October 23, 2014
?Build valuable content around a topic you?re passionate about? -@jenmyersward talking #affiliatemarketing #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Stephanie Humphrey (@TechLifeSteph) October 23, 2014
? “The opt-in form is the first place you should be testing.” – @anneholland55 #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 23, 2014
If you do A/B split email test, you need to do it more than once and observe the behavior -@AnneHolland55 #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 23, 2014
#ASCENDSUMMIT2014 “Click here” still rules. Over 97% lift in unique clicks. ? Martin Ramirez (@martinramirezit) October 23, 2014
Via @meladorri “If you’re going to increase frequency in your #emailmarketing, send less content with each email.” #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Bill Ross (@BillRoss) October 23, 2014
Advanced Blogging and Multichannel Analytics Speaker: Andy Crestodina
“Don’t send people from your homepage to YouTube. There are baby hedgehogs on there. They’re never coming back.”
“If you’re not making friends, you’re doing it wrong.”
? “Your website is the mousetrap, content is the cheese.” @crestodina #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 http://ift.tt/1suDnhz ? SEER Interactive (@SEERInteractive) October 23, 2014
#ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @aweber @crestodina Tips from Andy’s Presentation: dont put social media buttons on every page- that’s backwards! ? Joe Witte (@wittejoe) October 23, 2014
? Great marketers really focus on a topic and need a set of complementary topics. @crestodina #ASCENDSummit2014 ? Charlene Havens (@charlenehavens) October 23, 2014
Blogging hack: do a google search with your keywords. Based on those search results, write blog posts about them #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Jenny Kessman (@jakessman) October 23, 2014
#ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @aweber @crestodina Tips from Andy’s Presentation: Collaborate with other influencers! ? Joe Witte (@wittejoe) October 23, 2014
The Future of Content Marketing Speaker: Michael Brenner
“Great marketing has always been about storytelling.”
“Banners have 99 problems and a click ain’t one.”
“Content needs to be a cultural transformation within companies.” – @brennermichael #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 23, 2014
Amazingly well said! @BrennerMichael #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @aweber http://ift.tt/12S6may ? Ebong Eka (@ebongeka) October 23, 2014
It’s not just the info, is the emotion that connect us to people – @BrennerMichael #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 23, 2014
“The future of marketing is entertaining.” – @brennermichael #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 23, 2014
Great advice from @BrennerMichael #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 http://ift.tt/12S6p6e ? Heyo (@heyo) October 23, 2014
Speaker Sessions: Day 2
Fastening my seat belt for day two of #ascendsummit2014. http://ift.tt/12S6mr9 ? John Langan (@Gr8JohnL) October 24, 2014
How to Produce Content that Gets Results, More Leads, and Way More Customers
Speaker: Marcus Sheridan
“Stop telling the world you’re awesome! People will figure that out on your site.”
“Become the wikipedia of your industry.”
“Everything comes down to trust.” -@TheSalesLion #AscendSummit2014 http://ift.tt/12S6pmJ ? Jeremy Goldman (@jeremarketer) October 24, 2014
Five subjects that people look for on your site, but can rarely find: Cost, problems, versus, reviews, and best. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Justine Jordan (@meladorri) October 24, 2014
Every time someone has a question abt your biz, you should answer it, and add it to your website – @TheSalesLion #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 24, 2014
Stop trying to build links — write about things people care about! – @TheSalesLion #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Hunter Boyle (@hunterboyle) October 24, 2014
“What’s the golden rule? They ask. You answer.? – @TheSalesLion #ASCENDsummit2014 ? Heyo (@heyo) October 24, 2014
Preach. @TheSalesLion #truth #ASCENDsummit2014 http://ift.tt/1suDqKp ? Christina Love (@ChristnaRLove) October 24, 2014
Fat Fingers & Small Screens: Three Strategies for Mobile-Optimized Emails
Speaker: Justine Jordan
“80 percent of customers will delete your email if they can’t read it on a mobile device and 30 percent will unsubscribe.”
“Use actionable, useful terminology in your subject line.”
Blasts are weapons of mass destruction. Emails are personal things. The inbox is a private place @meladorri #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? angie hilem (@AngieHilem) October 24, 2014
“Mobile is a really big deal. One email made for desktop screens isn?t going to cut it anymore.” – @meladorri #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
“Email is the invitation to the party. The party’s your website.” Awwww yeaaaa @meladorri #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Elise Ramsay (@eliseramsay) October 24, 2014
A favorite piece of advice from Justine @meladorri at #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ?Give people the space they need interact with your email.? ? Theresa Radigan (@theresa_radigan) October 24, 2014
Conversion Optimization – Live and Uncut
Moderator: Hunter Boyle Panelists: Oli Gardner, Brian Massey
“Distracting landing page backgrounds are the enemy.”
“You MUST deliver the value proposition of whatever you’re offering.” – @BMassey #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
Headline shouldn’t be a tag line. It needs to keep your promise – @bmassey #ASCENDSummit2014 ? Stephanie Vermillion (@SMVermillion) October 24, 2014
“Forms are not user centric design they are conversion centric design” @oligardner #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Beth Brodovsky (@bethbrodovsky) October 24, 2014
“Your call to action should fill in the blank: ‘I want to _____.'” – @oligardner #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
More forms = lower conversion rate but higher quality leads. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 @southcoinc ? Cassandra Bailey (@cassapedia) October 24, 2014
Landing page optimization “@McGswagg: save share buttons for the confirmation/thank you page, instead of the landing page #ASCENDSUMMIT2014” ? Sushant Misra (@treptalks) October 24, 2014
Email Deliverability: Ask the Expert
Speaker: Mohammed Ahmed
“Make it easy to unsubscribe.”
MORE GREAT TIPS: Don’t get caught in a spam filter! Be consistent. Email your contacts on a regular basis. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Storitz (@Storitzdotcom) October 24, 2014
“Free link shorteners are not effective – use your own links!” – Mohammed Ahmed #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
2 Key Insights Learned From Processing Over 4 Million Opt-Ins Per Month
Speaker: Tim Paige
“Make your page a giving page, not a taking page.”
“Your job as a marketer is to get people to make a decision.” – @TimThePaige #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
Give something away with every blog post – and make customers opt-in again! – @TimThePaige #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 24, 2014
test replacing your side bar opt-in form with a two step button to the form, conversion rate may go up! @TimThePaige #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Amanda (@McGswagg) October 24, 2014
When you tell people its not what they expected it to be – that drives conversion rate through the roof @TimThePaige #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Beth Brodovsky (@bethbrodovsky) October 24, 2014
Agree 128% w @TimThePaige: your welcome email is so powerful, and fertile ground for optimization. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Hunter Boyle (@hunterboyle) October 24, 2014
Your #thankyou page might be the most important page. #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Carly Stunder (@CarlyStunder) October 24, 2014
How to create a great resource guide? Help audience achieve their goals. @TimThePaige #contentmarketing #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Laima Rastikis (@RastikisInk) October 24, 2014
Exploring the Fundamentals of User Experience
Speaker: Jessica Ivins
“To make products useful, we need to understand the needs of our audience.”
“Reduce barriers to entry – don’t make it hard for them to get what they want.”
Good design doesn’t hapen by accident; it happens when you ask the hard questions – @jessicaivins #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 #UX ? Hunter Boyle (@hunterboyle) October 24, 2014
#ASCENDSUMMIT2014 “it’s not what clients want it’s what they need. ” #usability ? samsonmedia (@samsonmedia) October 24, 2014
“Put yourself in the shoes of your user before any design begins.” – @jessicaivins #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
We love this quote from @jessicaivins #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 http://ift.tt/1suDrxP ? Heyo (@heyo) October 24, 2014
A Tactical Toolkit to Conquer the Digital Marketing Trifecta
Speaker: Lynette Young
“Pay attention to social, blog, and email. Where are you strongest? What needs help?”
“Give away your knowledge for free – help before the hype.”
“Make your interactions with your customer fun.”
The #awesome @LynetteRadio of @aweber. “Create, Connect, Consume, Contribute & Collaborate!” #ASCENDSummit2014 http://ift.tt/12S6tD5 ? Ebong Eka (@ebongeka) October 24, 2014
“Listen to your competitors on social.” – @LynetteRadio #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
“Want connections? Take the initiative. Subscribe. Comment. Follow.” @LynetteRadio at #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 You get what you give… ? Andy Crestodina (@crestodina) October 24, 2014
Email is a 1-to-1 communication channel: it’s u talking to 1 customer at a time. Give him something useful! @LynetteRadio #ASCENDSUMMIT2014 ? Natalia Morais (@NatMoraisBR) October 24, 2014
“Don’t try to sell them, try to educate them.” – @LynetteRadio #ascendsummit2014 ? AWeber (@aweber) October 24, 2014
ASCEND 2014 Sessions Available Now for Preorder
Don’t worry if you missed out on AWeber’s inaugural event. You can preorder videos of the best sessions so that you can get the best content from industry experts right to your own device. The one thing not included in the ASCEND session videos is content from the networking parties! No worries, our friends at Wistia put together a little taste of what went on after the talks were done!
via Email Marketing Tips http://ift.tt/1suDucU
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