I know how tough it can be to justify the expense of attending an industry conference. I also know how easy it can be :) In the world of search marketing, ROI is often based on traffic and conversions (or page views if advertising is the primary revenue model), and despite the fact that attending a conference won't always bring you tons of traffic and conversions (at least not directly), there's far more value to them than most managers or even attendees realize.
- Hiring & Scouting
You may not even realize you're doing it, but at every conference, you're meeting potential employees, co-workers, clients, and business partners. This is different from the standard "networking," which for many has lost its appeal due to a lack of obvious value. The hiring & scouting that you conduct at conferences doesn't require any face-to-face interaction - you can do it purely observationally. When I attend conferences nowadays, I'm always keeping an eye open for talent - not just for myself, but of any kind whatsoever. Knowing who the brilliant minds on any given topic are has infinite benefits as a business owner AND an employee. - Competitive Analysis
There's no environment like a conference to check out your competitors (direct and indirect) and learn the ins and outs of their success. I can't tell you how many people openly share their traffic stats, marketing tactics, and business plans - I know I personally do it all the time (though I'm also prone to doing so on this blog, which is considerably rarer in the business world). Even if you don't directly interrogate your competitors, simply attending site clinics and panels (especially for Q+A, when folks bring up their specific sites) will give you a wealth of insight. - Tactical Brainstorming
I often hear folks complain that they didn't get much out of a particular speaker or session, but the beauty of conferences is that if you approach them with the right mindset, you don't need to learn something earth-shattering in the seminars to come away a winner (not that it doesn't help, and as speakers, we certainly try to make sure you do). The trick is to use the time you're at the conference to think about your business and your website and apply everything you hear to the creative brainstorming process. For every trick that you've seen a dozen times on blogs or forums, hearing it again in context can trigger the creative spark you need to have a brilliant application for it. I've found that time and again, I'll hear speakers or audience members or participate in conversations and lie awake that night jam-packed with new ideas (some that don't even correspond remotely to the concepts discussed that day). Conferences are a brainstorming paradise and a terrific opportunity for new ideas to come bubbling to the surface. - Elevator Pitch Testing
No matter what you do and who you do it for, you need to have an elevator pitch, and there's no testing ground like a conference to refine and perfect it. Whether you're selling something or just yourself, you'll be asked dozens of times every day "What do you do?" The next 20 seconds is a golden opportunity to shine and if you can perfect your technique and shine every time, the future will assuredly be bright. - Goal Setting & Self Analysis
There is perhaps, no better time or place for a marketer or business person to do a little introspective thinking than on the plane ride back from a conference. You've seen the competition, the speakers, the industry luminaries, the trade show booths, and the backroom deals, and now you can begin to look inward and identify the traits about yourself that are valuable, those that need improvement, and where to go from here. If you've been lost and can't see the forest for the trees, the conference is your chance to float 1,000 feet above the canopy and really examine what you've built and how it fits into the broader ecosphere. - One Good Tip = Incredible ROI
Finally, from a pure SEO perspective, learning the right tip or how to apply a piece of knowledge in the right way could save you thousands or even bring you millions. I've seen and participated in so many examples where a business owner or in-house marketer suddenly awoke from a fog of ignorance on a specific topic and was able to apply that singular tactic to the tune of untold new revenue. I think those are my favorite emails - the ones that start "Rand, it was great meeting you at SMX Advanced - I took your advice and we've seen our traffic double in the last week and a half. I'm up for a promotion next month and I think, thanks to your advice, I'm sure to get it!" I promise you that if I'm getting a couple of these, Danny Sullivan and Chris Sherman must get hundreds. That's the beauty of SEO - once you realize that your menu wasn't spiderable or your content was in iFrames, you can clean it up to the tune of drastic improvement.
So, why SMX West? What's so amazing about that show - actually, a lot. It's the first big show from the SMX conference series and the organizers are going all out to make it the best conference experience possible. That means:
- Great Food - if you've been to SMX Advanced, Social, or Stockholm (mmm... Stockholm - just thinking about it makes me hungry), you know that SMX really prides themselves on making sure you're well nourished and well cared for.
- Great People - with Danny Sullivan, Vanessa Fox, & Chris Sherman choosing the speakers, you're getting the very best of the best. I had heard that there were more than 50 applications for some of the panels, so you can be assured that the cream of the crop is going to be contributing. That doesn't just mean better content, it also means better presentations and better flow.
- New Sessions - SMX has seriously re-programmed the lineup for SMX West, taking advantage of many new trends in the industry and also re-formulating some of the old standards. This forces speakers to bring new material and high quality stuff as well - if anyone gives a presentation you've seen before, I'll make sure to have Rebecca crucify them in the coverage :)
- The Right Timing - Not only is February a month when most of us northerners desperately need some sun, it's also a perfect break from work - and a time when no other holidays or deadlines are looming (tax season's months away & New Year's is far behind)
- The Right Length - I know Danny debated furiously with himself before deciding on three days, and I think it's the perfect decision. Four day conferences are just barely too much and two day shows feel a little too insubstantial (at least when they're not on a singular, specific topic).
- The Right Location - Silicon Valley is the hub for search activity in the world, and by having the show there, SMX is ensuring that a ton of great minds from VCs to founders to engineers to product managers and search marketing luminaries will all be in attendance. That, and it's sunny and warm, which sounds so nice compared to the usual February/March trek to New York (not that I don't love New York).
- Holy Crap; They Have Free WiFi! - Yep, the conference actually features completely free wifi (that works) for all the attendees. I know because SEOmoz is sponsoring it :)
- Built-in After-Hours Parties - Although they have yet to be announced, my understanding is that there will be events that everyone can attend, every night of the show.
- Breakthrough Content from Everyone - Chris & Danny have built up a lot of terrific relationships over their 12+ years in the industry (each), and now they get to call on many of their friends and contacts at the engines, from startups (Louis Monier from Cuill sounds like he may actually have something truly revolutionary in search - unlike Mahalo or Wikia) to companies and independents, to help give back. I have very high expectations.
Am I biased? Yeah, somewhat - Danny, Chris, Michelle, Karen, & other Chris aren't just people I respect and work with; they're friends. Does that make any of this less true - no. I believe you'll be truly impressed by what SMX West has in store.
BTW - I'm telling you this now, because there's only 2 more days to get $400 off the $1,595 registration fee. All the registration information is here - SMX West Registration. You'll also note that you can get a hefty discount on SEOmoz premium membership
FULL DISCLOSURE: No! We don't make any money if you attend SMX West, and those aren't affiliate links. However, SEOmoz does have a partnership with Third Door Media for which we run banners for their shows and offer discounts to our premium members (20% off the already discounted early bird rate - which means you only pay $956 to attend!). We're also running a booth at SMX West, which is our first time doing so - more on that in a future blog post :)
Also - apologies in advance for the somewhat promotional nature of the latter half of this post. I'm honestly just really excited about the show and hope that everyone in the industry turns out for it. That, and I really want to see SMX do well - I think they deserve it. So go register!
So, my reading of your post Rand, went something like this...
Attend SMX..blah, blah, blah..networking...blah...blah...sessions...blah...blah..blah....FREE WIFI!!!!
Kidding aside, I'm glad someone realized the value of sponsoring free wifi - thanks dude!
Hey Rand, nice rundown. But you did leave out an important addition to SMX West that I have not seen at other conferences:
a networking-only pass.
If you're not from the Bay Area it seems kind of silly to fly all the way out here and only go for the networking, but if you're from somewhere where you can get a $49 Southwest flight, or are within driving distance like myself, it's kind of a neat option...
yep, nice rundown Rand. We'll be there, too. This is my first speaking gig at SMX so I'm pretty excited about that (and excited to retire my long-tail ppc deck from last year).
Looking forward to seeing you again, Jon! I really enjoyed hearing you speak at SES--hopefully you've got more good stuff up your sleeve this time around. :)
Thanks for the post Rand - I agree with you on pretty much all of it.
As you've set the bar as to West being a must-attend, I'll ask you to solve my problem in this area.
For a number of reasons, I feel that I can probably attend a max of two shows in the US (both financial & ethical - how many airmiles should I be racking up in the current environment?!)
So, last year it was SMX Seattle & PubCon.
This year, I'm really not sure.
I think SMX Seattle will be a definite, but after that I can't decide between:
SES NY, SMX West, AdTech (much wider topic selection that search, which in many ways is a selling point for me) or PubCon (probably least favourite option at the moment).
Which ones should it be? Do I really need to attend 2 SMXs? I know that you guys may not be at SES NY - will there be enough top people there to make it worth my while?
Decisions, decisions...
SMX west and Adtech.
I am doing a post, prob tomorrow, on why I am attending SMX west (at least part of it) even though I have a million reasons to be elsewhere. (I have to be in Miami for a gadget conference - fotw )
but I still will go to SMX west.
West will be particuliarly good. And I, like you, will go to Seatlle as well.
Adtech is good too. So I sugest three:)
SMX West, SMX Seatlle and Adtech.
"How many airmiles should I be racking up in the current environment?!"
Thumbs up from a fellow treehugger for considering this in your business decisions. :-)
Ciaran, I'll do my best to find Santa Clara's answer to Parasol before your arrival...
You're all about assigning yourself tough tasks, huh David?
You are a likely benefactor of such research Jane
If David found something that remotely compared to Parasol, his efforts would be well rewarded. Possibly with jaegermeister in red party cups.
Anything but a Long Island iced tea, even Jager! :D
How about you come over to London, and I'll show you some bars!
;)
sounds good to me... anyone else?
Im in, but only if you can find Ambers British third-cousin.
She'd probably have British teeth and disappoint you!
Ciaran - I think it's a tough question and really depends on your goals. However... if you're set on SXM Advanced in Seattle and you're based in London, I might actually make SMX East in NYC the other show you attend. NYC is going to be far easier to get to than anything on the west coast (5 hour flight from London vs. 10 for San Francisco), and you'll be going there at a really good time (nice weather in October usually and no bumping up against holidays).
Of course, it is hard to say that Pubcon Vegas isn't a tremendously good show, too. I think we can both agree that last year's was pretty terrific.
If you are in London I think SES London is a good fit... many panels geared towards the European market.... hell sign up for an exhibit pass at least and come let me buy you a couple of beers...
most learning is done around the bars and over dinner
Thanks for the responses guys; I'm replying here to some of the comments below too.
SMX East? To be honest, I'm not convinced of the value of going to two shows in the same programme - am I really likely to get much out of them?
SES London - I'll be there in some form - especially as we may well be sponsoring an associated event. But as far as buying a session pass - probably not. I'll be happy to take up your offer of a beer though Frank!
A lot of people talk about the varying quality of the content; to be perfectly honest, the best one for content I've been to was SES NY back in 2006 - I was reasonably new to the game, but what I got out of it most was a feeling that I knew more than I realised. Since then, the main value has been from networking.
That said, some of the best sessions I've been to have been at more general marketing events where you get big brands talking about real-life case studies - Lego Factory at last year's Online Marketing Show for example.
I'm still undecided, but it's looking more & more like SMX Seattle & adtech.
Just to clarify, SMX Advanced (Seattle) and SMX East are two completely different shows, both put on by the same company. SMX West and SMX East are the same general type of show. But certainly, you're right that adtech is even more different in terms of its audience focus.
Hi Vanessa - I realise that and as I would think that my level is probably closer to that of Seattle, I was posing the question as to whether there are any reasons to attend both: I can't really think of any.
And Jane just reminded me that I hadn't even considered San Jose (admittedly I don't know the way - sorry!)
I will attend with bells on if you are naked or vertical
Ciaran, like Vanessa said, SMX West/East are much different than SMX Advanced. The West/East shows have much more content for the beginning and intermediate search marketer, though there's still plenty for the advanced person. But if you've been to a general event -- or you're having to pick between two -- Advanced is probably the one for you. That's the reason we run it, so that those who feel very comfortable with search marketing can go to sessions aimed at a higher level, plus all the other attendees are at that level. There's no "what's a meta tag" pulling down the Q&A.
Thanks Danny - could you clear that up for me whilst your here? What is a meta tag?!
;)
Also rand I want to suggest another point, which was a HUGE selling point for me.
SMX Offers a satisfaction guarantee
To quote the SMX website : "If you are not satisfied with SMX West, we'll give you a credit towards a future SMX event of equal or lesser value.
Just tell us in writing how to improve SMX in 500 words or more and e-mail your comments to smxwest at searchmarketingexpo.com"
I am fully planning to have a GREAT time and learn a LOT, but the fact that Danny and the crew are willing to back up their product, and the fact that they willing to take a financial setback on this shows to me that they are expecting good things from this conference.
Not to mention you may get to see a Redskins fan wearing a Seahawks jersey while on a panel... :p
What are peoples views on the benefit of sending multiple people from the same company?
Based on a lot of the discussion here, whilst the sessions can be useful it seems a lot of the benefit is the networking side of things (I can certainly see this, having got a lot from just attending the networking (read party) at SMX London)
I suspect therefore that the more people that go the less benefit per person you would get, and the extra expense of the 2nd or 3rd person may not be worth it, which is annoying since I'm 2nd or 3rd in the "who should we send to conferences pecking order"
I wouldn't send a larger group of people to a small show that only has one track. You have a smaller audience with whom to "network" and your six employees all come away having watched the same presentations.
You take a show like Pubcon or SES and there are about four sessions going on at once. I think SMX London always had two and sometimes three sessions at any one time, too. The nice thing about SMX Seattle last year was that, although there were only two tracks, one was organic and the other was paid.
Main benefit of sending two people is that you can split sessions - and you've always got a drinking buddy if you don't meet anyone!
It can definitely be worthwhile; 3 might be pushing it..
I attend with one of my long-term clients, and I will say that there's a real value not only to being able to split up tracks but to talk to someone daily about what we're learning. We're able to do a lot of brainstorming onsite, at dinner, etc. that increases the value of the sessions by a factor of 2-3X.
Duncan, we're actually struggling with that same question. For Pubcon (and for the upcoming SMX West), we brought practically the whole crew, but we'll probably try to figure out how many people make up "the magic number" (aside from three ohhhhh it's the magic number, yes it is).
Thanks everyone. Will and I can have a fight about this tomorrow! Until then I'll be trying to get "three is the magic number" out of my head..
Be sure to push the drinking buddy angle; I don't think anyone's grapsed the full benefits of that..
A lack of people to drink with isn't normally the main problem....
Great post Rand - looks like SMX West is shaping up nicely, that said - I do not think the SMX events have reached a critical mass so the networking is likely not as good as it is at SES events. SES, on average, draws 70% first time delegates – most of which are very hungry to learn and command large budgets, defn people SEOs want to meet to grow their practices.
SES London is around the corner (Feb) with SES NY a few weeks after (March) - we are going for a St Paddy's day theme (that’s March 17th is the first day of the show).
If I was a potential delegate I would likely pick the event that is in my backyard to save on the travel expenses. History shows that Search events (unless there is only one or two a year - e.g. PubCon) tend to be extremely local in nature, drawing from a 200 mile radius or so. It doesn't matter if they are massive conferences and expos (like SES NY and San Jose - 7 to 8k in attendance) or smaller forums like SES Travel (200 in attendance) or SMX Social Media (150 or so in attendance). I hope all is well and I look forward to seeing you soon - Matt
When I attended SES NY I found it thoroughly worth-while, but didn't really meet that many people - maybe I was backward in coming forward, but I found the number of people made it difficult to really network. The smaller nature of SMX meant that I found it easier to do there.
Having said that, you're absolutely right that there are likely to be more potential clients at the bigger events.
ses byron bay is the only conference to attend in 2009.... it come swith a weekend on the reef includedd.... learn to sail and hang with the ultimate australian!
Oh, SMX events have plenty of critical mass. We expect the attendance for SMX West to match what seemed to be the attendance of SES Chicago. And SMX West is specifically meant to pull in first time, new people as well -- for those looking for potential clients. But especially in terms of networking, SMX sees that as a crucial thing that's not to be left to chance. That's why we organize parties and networking events directly, so people can meet (SMX Search Bash, SMX Search Bowl). We also have some additional things new for SMX West that I'll be announcing shortly. But short story -- if you're looking for networking, there will be plenty organized at SMX West.
As for what to choose, I agree with Matt -- if there's a show near you, and importantly, you like the content, there's a lot of sense in going. But when people were debating the PubCon / SES Chicago thing last month, this is what I posted:
https://searchengineland.com/071112-110355.php
"Had your heart set on hitting a show this year and don't know what to do? My advice is look through the agendas of both shows and head for the one with sessions that seem to be of most interest to you personally or sessions involving speakers you know and like from your online reading."
That's the core of it. If you're going to buy a full conference pass, then you want to go to a show where that pass is going to pay off in value. So look at the agendas and speakers.
If you're just going to network, as a confernce producer, I feel I've failed you if you say the sessions were OK but I bought a ticket to network. That's one expensive ticket! That's why for SMX, we have the networking pass mentioned above -- so those who want to do networking only can get around to key networking events.
Speaking of brainstorming, there's something magical about conference sessions that, even if I'm bored out of my skull, I find myself thinking about SEO topics and suddenly finding answers to long-standing problems. I walked away from a really dull session at PubCon with answers to 2 major issues that just popped into my head while I was daydreaming.
Just to piggyback on this, someone wrote a blog post recently on getting your boss to foot your conference bill (oh wait, that was me :) ). Of course, if you work for yourself and, like me, your boss is a total bastard, you're on your own.
Edit: I just realized someone might read this and think that I'm saying PubCon was dull, which couldn't be further from the truth. I got a lot out of most of the sessions, but there's just something about the atmosphere and being surrounded by experts that makes even the worst sessions fruitful.
Actually, you've hit on a really good point. At SES NY I often found myself just taking the time to think about issues that I'm too busy to consider at work.
I think you're right; putting aside that 2-4 days and saying "this time is all about SEM" just puts you in a different frame of mind, and that alone is worth some time and money.
As an independent, Pubcon was, honestly, almost half of the real dollars (i.e. not my own time) that I spent on marketing last year, but I have no hesitation about saying it was worth the money, as was SES the year before.
Your "Bosses are people too" point is the most questionable statement I have ever seen before btw. Well, you definitely should get to know my former boss! You would at least add "with some exceptions though," I bet!
I'm excited about SMX West... for all the above reasons, so typing them out again isn't exactly necessary!
Picking only two in the U.S. would be tough. Overall, I didn't get as much out of the Pubcon sessions this year as I did last year. I went to some good ones, but I think I picked some bad ones as well. I've heard better things from other people so hopefully my "bad ones" were just poor picks on my part. My experience with the sessions in 2006 was very good.
I've only been to one SES (NY '07) so I probably don't have enough experience to comment on that one yet.
As said Pat, SMX West will rock. London and Seattle were great and I think this one will be a step up from those, too.
well, we independents have to make tough choices - like new computer or SMX. LOL
Answer - SMX
My real question was
(SMX West or SMX Advanced)
Kentucky's got mild winters so the weather thing isn't that big of a deal to me - plus I lived in Santa Clara for 10y.
:-)
We were just debating this exact question... but didn't get an answer, so would certainly appreciate any feedback.
SMX West vs. SMX Advanced really depends on your skill level and what you're looking to get out of the conference.
If you're not really advanced with SEO, then definitely SMX West, as it has tracks for all skill levels.
If you are advanced, then I think it depends on what you're looking to get:
-If you want large-scale networking and overall insight into where search marketing is heading, along with a variety of choices in choices about what topics to get advanced tips about, then SMX West.
-If you're looking for a cozier networking environment, and specifically for advanced tips on what's working now in very targeted areas (take a look at last year's SMX Advanced agenda to see what I mean), then SMX Advanced.
Thanks Vanessa. That about sums up what we thought. The other thing in favour of SMX West is that it is a lot sooner :-) and for us impatient types that has a big benefit, albeit not a benefit to the business, just personally.
Hey Vanessa - it was nice to meet you at SMXLOMO - I was at SMX Advanced last year and it was nice to catch up with some folks and meet more. SMXAdvanced blew SMXLomo out of the water IMO.
Looks like I'm going to have to go to West and Advanced. I can eat hot dogs and mac/cheese for a while afterward.
If you track down Pat he will take you to a card game and help you win the money to buy the laptop!!!
SES value is really for the beginner.
SES sucks if you know your stuff already, I know that is a harsh assesment, but the innovative ideas and people are at SMX's, the "old school" cough*ineffective*cough are at SES.
I wrote about this before at length, and I do not want to say SES totally sucks, because it does not. However it's value is introductionary learning. It has value for that. But the real deal for those who have been in the game a bit is SMX's.
lol how many people that speak at SMX are also speaking at SES? Sorry feed but I don't buy your assessment and I also do not think this is an appropriate place to bash SES - which gave many of the experts you speak of their start in Public Speaking. Of course I try to be a consummate Diplomat as often as possible. :) I look forward to it because it is different, but not because it is any better...
A great start at diplomacy is to not thumbs down me :)
But, if you didn't notice, I pimped SES as a wonderful resource for someones first conference.
You may not know this but I got mucho respect for you Chris, and you may not know that I have written extensively about the SES to SMX thing.
Like a good mother I like them both in their own special way :)
However, for the people who know me, the truth is SMX is the better choice, and that is a very small amount of people dude, so chill.
I am frank, and if Ciaran asks me something, I will give a frank answer. If someone else asked me "Hey Pat, I am just getting into SEO and I think it is time for a conference, which one should I go to?"
I would answer SES.
But for me and other advanced SEO's , I recommend SMX.
lol... I did the thumbs down....
Bastard... :)
Sorry Chris, I totally apologize for assuming
Dude Patrick I am a big fan of yours too...nothing personal in my comment just replying to your post. :) You are someone who always has good comments so it was a surprise to me to see that one. I take back some of the harshness in my rebuttal, since you are right that you did clarify that SMX is better for advanced peeps. I can’t agree or disagree with you on that point yet since I have yet to go to an SMX. However, the "SES sucks" is what got me bent out of shape I guess. Again, thanks for clarifying and certainly no hard feelings...I look forward to tipping a brew with you in Santa Clara on the 25th?
Pat..... a bit harsh... plus it presupposes that one "group" is better than another one.... there is talent at all the events and the 'old school' would include Danny and Chris - afterall they started SES.
The people who were there at the start are split among a few conferences now.
People have made decisions to attend one group's events more than others for various reasons - many times based on business decisions and associations.
The industry is big enough for a number of these events as we can see.
Dude, that WAS harsh, Pat! I wouldn't say SES sucked at all; I probably got as much out of the sessions as I did at PubCon or even SMX Advanced last year.
The problem with SES is its ridiculous pricetag (at least for solos who don't have big marketing budgets). I would say unequivocally you definitely get better VALUE at the SMX's, but both are worth attending.
harsh, perhaps, but this is a really useful opinion for me. I'm personally aiming for a trip to Seattle this year, but am still weighing the other options for the rest of my team. SES London is handily just down the road, but I'm definitely looking at the NY shows as well...
Check the various conference's pricing structures for the details on multiple-person bookings. Some conferences offer extra tickets at a substantial reduction, if the people are from the same organisation and the tickets are all booked at the same time.
Food. I can attest that the food at SMX London was also good (Rand mentioned every venue except London, above). It was nice to have hot food available. There wasn't a huge choice, but what was there was tasty and filling. It was well done and everyone appreciated that, compared to the crisps-sandwich-can-fruit in a bag option elsewhere.
Each of the conferences is going to need to find a way to differentiate themselves from all the others, as it is a very competitive space: SES, SMX, PubCon, ad:tech, etc. However, there are a huge number of people that are in the industry that have yet to attend any of them, and many that have yet to hear they exist. This year and next are going to be very interesting.
I wish I lived in the states so I could take advantage of some of these marketing events. It would be incredibly nice to go to some of the better conferences.
On a side note by taking your advice offered in the Shanghai Radisson we've ended up penetrating every single keyword we're targeting. I've had 2 promotions due to this, and expect another soon. I have to say our old strategy is working quite well though; domination on semi-long tail keywords in google and yahoo.
John - it's great to see you here and I do indeed hope that we get to see you at one conference or another in the near future :)
Thrilled to hear that our time together was beneficial, too! The Shanghai Radisson really was something else - I've still never seen anything like it...
For the free wi-fi alone, i salute you! But even more importantly, there's something about getting into another environment that can really encourage creativity - conferences, where you're surrounded by people just like you, talking about the things you think about all the time is worth its weight in gold. Sure, you don't always hear a brand new, revolutionising comment, but it's amazing how inspiring the whole experience can be. We're really fired up for weeks after attending stuff in London.
Another great reason to register early for SMX West is that not only will you save money on the registration, but you will also save money on your travel and hotel.
It is also good to just commit. I arranged for PubCon three months in advance and I saved a couple grand, literally. But more importantly I commited myself, which helped shaped everthing for me, and eased my simplistic mind.
It is good to plan ahead as far as possible.
SMX West will rock, btw, trust me.
- devious grin :)
Yep, totally agree with this. I am just getting ready for the SES London 2008 conference and can't wait. 3 days of pure Search Engine indulgence. I think I might have to get the pro plus in. Richard, might see you there I am guessing! :)
I know the topic of this is SMX West... but are there any Aussie SEOmozzer's going to be attending SMX Sydney in a few months time?
I know I'll be there to attend the first ever SMX that's made it's way to the land down under
I think Jane might be speaking at it...
I'm desperately hoping that if Jane does speak Danny will decide to reunite the team supreme from SMX London, as I'll have a hard time getting a trip to Sydney past accounts unless I'm invited!
Dude, I'll have a hard time getting to Sydney unless I either stowaway in Jane's luggage or I murder and scalp her hair and face, Hannibal Lector-style, and pretend to be her.
I will have you as a speaker for SES Byron Bay 2009 - come to hang in my country.... I will pay for you to speak out of my pocket
Hell yeah, dude!
I will be speaking at SMX Sydney as will Jane! I'm also going to SMX Madrid in May & Social in Los Angeles in April. It's a busy, busy Spring.
Ciaran - I'll get you in touch with Barry Smyth, who's doing the programming for Sydney :)
SMX Madrid, eh?
Rand, ¿dices que yo hablo español, verdad?
Truly Rand, you are a scholar & a gent.
Luckily Sydney wouldn't require any language courses (once you've got the hang of bonzer, ripper & schooners)!
Well that's my trip ruined, then. I have no idea what two of those three things mean.
hehe last time I went to Brisbane the signs for "hooters and jugs" specials on the bar windows surprised me until I realized they were just plain old shots and pitchers. :)
I have been affiliated with search industry for some time now, but I have never attended these conferences.
This may be my first :-)
I'll be there. I can't wait! Hopefully this time I can meet you, Rand.
I dont have clients. I do a little for my own websites, but primarily am a voracious reader of SEM. I just want to become the best at it (I'm not half bad), but do not have the budget. I don't have the budget for this. Does anyone want to sponsor me to go in their behalf to any of these conferences, take good notes, etc..? If your someone who lacks the time, but can send me as an agent in your behalf, let me know. Let me who you have questions for, and want to network with, etc...
Timely post Rand, it appears there's a new conference series we can all add to our list of events to attend, Danny just announced SphinnCon.
I really liked SMX Advanced and will be attending SMX West in Feb. Can't wait to compare the two, I don't expect too much difference, new people, new topics, new place, same ole conference fun though!! See you there.
I'll be there and i've already RSVP'd on the seomoz events calendar.
You should too.
Rand - from your point of view, if you could attend one:
SMX West or SMX Advanced?
Which would it be?
From where I live (Canada), it's super expensive to fly to the US (and too far to drive). If I start saving now, I might be able to go next year though. There's at least a couple of dozen people I've been dying to meet!
Wow, another great event I can't attend because I don't have American visa yet. As usual, I hope you will be covering it on this blog. Enjoy all the parties!
I can attest to #3. When I spoke about link bait in San Jose, one of my colleagues came up to me later that day and said that one of my tips sparked a Eureka! moment in his head, and he left right after I said it so he could write down all of the ideas that came to mind.
"he left right after I said it so he could write it down
Sounds like an excuse to me...
Miaow!
;)
Hey, it was during Q&A!
lol... that is open to so many replies....
Once again I'm missing out here: it's simply not justifiable for me right now. But I'll be in the US again this summer, so is anything set for July-August? :)
SES San Jose