This list is from 2016. For the 2017 version, go here.
Attending conferences are a great way for you to network with like-minded individuals within your industry, learn best practices from experts working with today’s hottest brands, and from industry leaders who are at the forefront of identifying upcoming trends. Firebrand Group has had the opportunity to attend, or speak at several social media conferences in the past few years, and know first-hand the experiences of the marketers who have attended. Instead of providing a list of all the social media conferences that are out there, we’re focused on delivering the ones that are A+ in our books. Whether you’re a small business owner who is trying to bridge the gaps between finding your company’s best advocates, social tools to invest in, the types of content others are finding success with or a marketing executive who is simply looking for inspiration to help your team think BIGGER — now’s the time to book your tickets (there are plenty of early bird specials). We’ll be adding events to this list as additional details roll out throughout the year — so, be sure to check back for other promising conferences to attend. If you know of any which aren’t on the list (yet), tweet us at @FirebrandGrp.
Social Media Strategies Summit
When & Where:
Las Vegas: February 9 – 11
Chicago: April 26 – 28
New York: June 1 – 3
Cost: $495 – $1,799
2016 Speakers: Jeremy Goldman of Firebrand Group, Christine Cassis of Pinterest, Lisa Perez of Mattel
Conference Hashtag: #SMSsummit
#SMSsummit is a multi-city, 3-day social media marketing summit that addresses challenges marketers are facing in social media marketing, customer service, employee engagement, measuring ROI, and more. Beyond the basics of social media; you’ll leave this summit with new ideas on how to integrate strategic insights on social and how to make it fit with corporate objectives. Attendees includes: VPs, VPs, Directors and Managers, Communications, Digital Marketing, Branding and Business Strategy.
Our CEO, Jeremy Goldman, will be the opening keynote speaker at Las Vegas on 2/9 at 9:45 am.
When: February 22 – 26
Where: New York (for additional events, visit: http://socialmediaweek.org/)
Cost: $639 – $999
2015 Speakers: Dennis Owen of Cathay Pacific, Jacob Warwick of Xerox, Ricky Van Veen of CollegeHumor
Conference Hashtag: #SMWNYC;#SMW16
Social Media Week is a worldwide conference, taking place in 18 cities, that allows marketers and business managers to share ideas, innovations and insights into how social media is changing the face of business. The event is now in its 8th year, and it will welcome 10,000+ attendees from New York’s top advertising and media industries.
The exact location of the Social Media Week – New York 2016’s official programming is at The TimesCenter and SVA Theater. Furthermore, speakers includes industry leaders from: Facebook, Instagram, R/GA, Ogilvy.
When: April 17 – 19, 2016
Where: San Diego, CA
Cost:
Speakers: Guy Kawasaki, Mari Smith, Kim Garst, Ann Handley, Chris Brogan
Conference Hashtag: #SMMW16
Deemed as the world’s largest social media marketing conference, expect to rub shoulders with the biggest names and brands in social media. Attendees will discover marketing techniques and new ideas to transform your social media marketing while having the opportunity to connect IRL with the industry leaders whose content is often circulated on channels like Twitter. Aside from the learning, and networking (yes, there’s more!), find yourself aboard an aircraft carrier for opening night. Not. Kidding.
When & Where:
Houston: April 10 – 17 (Cruise)
New York: May 12 – 13
Toronto: May 19 – 20
Santa Monica: June 15 – 16
Cost: $595 – $1,095
2016 Speakers: Loni Stark of Adobe, Luke Summerfield of HubSpot, Sameer Khan of IBM
Conference Hashtag: #Digimarcon
DIGIMARCON multi-city conferences showcases the most thought-provoking speakers in digital marketing. Attendees learn emerging strategies, the latest innovative technologies, best practices, and insights from successful digital marketing campaigns geared to create brand awareness, develop better use of digital tools and improve customer advocacy through social media . Immerse yourself in topics such as Content Strategy, Web Experience Management, Usability/Design, Mobile Marketing, Customer Engagement, Social Media, Targeting & Optimization, Branded Search, Marketing Automation, Analytics & Data and much, much more.
When: April 12
Where: Hyatt Regency at Boston
Cost:
2015 Speakers: Dennis Owen of Cathay Pacific, Jacob Warwick of Xerox
Conference Hashtag: #SocialTools
The first of its kind, Social Tools Summit is a unique conference for executives and managers in social business, social media, marketing, public relations, corporate communications, sales, business development, and human resources that showcases the variety of social media tools available for small & large companies. Learn how these tools can be fully leveraged, while hearing examples of how businesses are generating ROI from them. This conference provides an opportunity to learn from social media power users and the vendors themselves, in a fun, highly-interactive environment.
When: April 26 – 28
Where: New Orleans
Cost: $350 – $2,395
2016 Speakers: Steve Huffman of Reddit, Alan Boehme of Coca-Cola, Hayley Barna of Birchbox
Conference Hashtag: #CollisionConf
According to USA Today, this conference is noted as “The anti-CES” and the “fastest growing tech conference” created by the team behind Web Summit. In the past two years, Collision has grown to 7,500+ attendees from over 50 countries. Attendees include CEOs of fastest growing startups globally and the world’s largest companies.
When: April 28 – 30
Where: Toronto
Cost: $20 – $99
2016 Speakers: Gregory Brown of asapSCIENCE, Allen Lau of Wattpad, Danielle Faber of 88 Creative
Conference Hashtag: #digifestto
Digifest 2016, which will take place April 28 – 30, 2016 is Toronto’s international festival celebrating digital creativity. It is an immersive three-day event that showcases groundbreaking creations and trending content in digital media, art, design and technology. The festival fosters connections by bringing together industry, academics and the public, to inspire us to think about how digital tools and technology will shape our lives and our future. From architects to designers, creators and entrepreneurs take centre stage to share their stories and showcase the digital and technological discoveries that will re-shape some of today’s pressing challenges. To attend: http://torontodigifest.ca/2016/tickets-2016/
When & Where:
Boston: May 3 – 4
London: October 17 – 18
San Diego: February 23 – 24, 2017
Cost: $899 – $1,199
2015 Speakers: Jeremy Goldman of Firebrand Group, Justin Cutroni of Google, John Gagnon of Microsoft
Conference Hashtag: #SearchLove
A two-day event, #SearchLove brings together some of the world’s leading thinkers in online marketing. To learn the latest in search marketing, analytics, content creation, optimizing your website, paid promotions and more, visit this multi-city conference. Last year, we had the pleasure of speaking at #SearchLove on why social media and ROI do go hand-in-hand. Speaker-lineup will be announced in February, so stay tuned!
What makes Social Fresh different? They keep it simple by focusing on quality content with actionable insights with one speaker at a time honing in on success stories, tactics, and visual examples. Enjoy multiple happy hours, speed networking, snack breaks, and a chance to connect with 500+ top social professionals all at one place. Gabrielle Archambault, Senior Social Media Manager at eos says, “This conference is all meat, no fluff. I loved that I didn’t have to choose between tracks, and every speaker inspired me or sparked my creativity in one way or another.” In 2014 & 2015, we had the honor of sponsoring and attending this nationally-trending event, and in case you missed it, here are some of the lessons we learned in 2015. See you at the 2016 conference!
When: August 18 – 21
Where: Windham Grand Resort in Orlando, FL
Cost: $1450
2016 Speakers: Jeremy Goldman of Firebrand Group, Peter Shankman of Shankminds, Sarah Evans of Sevans Strategy
Conference Hashtag: #SocialFresh
When: September 6 – 9
Where: FirstMerit Convention Center in Cleveland, Ohio
Cost: $495 (post-show video access) – $2,235
2015 Speakers: Rand Fishkin of Moz, David Beebe of Marriott, Michael Brenner of Newscred, Jay Baer
Conference Hashtag: #CMWorld
With Content Marketing World, you’ll leave with all the materials you need to take on a content marketing strategy back to your team and be able to execute a content marketing plan that will grow your business and increase your audiences’ affinity with your brand. Overall, this conference is meant to inspire you to create your own epic content, while having the opportunity to network with some of the brightest in content marketing. In 2015, 3,500 marketers from 55 countries joined #CMWorld – and the conference is expecting even more this year. Will you be a part of it?
When: November 8 -11
Where: Boston, MA
Cost: $299 – $1,598
2015 Speakers: Jeremy Goldman of Firebrand Group, Seth Godin, Chelsea Clinton
Conference Hashtag: #Inbound16
INBOUND’s purpose is to provide the inspiration, education, and connections you need to transform your business. With four days of inspiring events filled with inbound experts, innovative talks, and happy hours, and networking, and 170+ educational sessions with over 10,000 attendees. Expect powerful talks from diverse, exciting, influential people across the digital marketing industry, and entertainment industry influencers, like Amy Schumer, guaranteed to impress you in 12 minutes or less. Last year, our very own, Jeremy Goldman educated INBOUND attendees with tips on how to leverage your site analytics to create valuable content.
