By From new perspectives on emerging trends to discovering new tools and tactics to grow your business, the benefits of attending industry events are still as relevant as ever as we step into the new decade.
Conferences also open up the door for new business, brand awareness, and invaluable networking with your peers and industry leaders. It is one of the best ways to stay ahead of the game in a constantly changing industry.
We’ve compiled a list to help you decide which digital marketing conferences will give you the most bang for your buck in 2020.
JANUARY
Affiliate Summit West
Date: January 27 – 29
Location: Paris Hotel, Las Vegas
Cost: $380 (Networking Pass) - $750 (Affiliate Pass)
Description:
Kick the New Year off in Vegas at the Affiliate Summit West. Expect to be joined by 6,000 affiliate marketers from top companies and key decision-makers from the affiliate marketing industry including publishers, bloggers, media owners, advertisers, global brands, networks, technology firms, agencies, and other solution providers.
With three tracks, 310 exhibitors and sponsors, and 75 speakers including Tim Burd, Co-Founder of AdLeaks, and Jenny Fleiss, Co-Founder of Rent the Runway, Affiliate Summit has countless opportunities to learn and grow. Don’t miss out on the daily Affiliate Summit running club and the Affiliate Ball to maximize your networking time!
FEBRUARY
SMX West
Date: February 19-21
Location: San Jose, California
Cost: $897(One DayPass) - $1495 (All-Access Pass)
Description:
Stay ahead of the game with the latest in SEO and SEM at SMX West. Marketing Land’s West coast conference is programmed by Search Engine Land editors and features two jam-packed days of 60+ tactical sessions, as well as workshops with experts like Bruce Clay. The new Digital Commerce Marketing track, SMX will have the best insights and tools to design successful, profit-generating campaigns. With tons of opportunities to network with fellow attendees, speakers, and exhibitors, SMX West has everything for the SEO and SEM obsessed.
SMX also hosts SMX East, SMX Advanced, SMX Munich, and SMX London.
The Gathering
Date: February 19-21
Location: Banff, Canada
Cost: $1,499 (Basic pass) to $3,699 (VIP pass)
Description:
This is not your typical marketing conference! 1,500 attendees come to learn from and celebrate global cult-like brands and their leaders, such as Spotify, Coca-Cola, and ESPN. The three-day event features intimate sessions called Inner Sanctums — a question and answer session with industry trailblazers,—keynote sessions, and musical performances deep-diving into the ever-evolving intersection of brands and bands.
B2B Marketing Exchange
Date: February 22 - 26
Location: Hyatt Regency, Scottsdale, Arizona
Cost: $895 (one day pass) to $1,495 (all access pass)
Description:
The B2B Marketing Exchange is one conference you won’t want to miss! It is home to the latest and greatest innovations in the B2B space. Promising “Real stories. Real takeaways. Real value”, B2B Marketing Exchange has over 100 sessions, six unique conference tracks, and keynote speakers including Brian Fanzo and Lee Oden. They also host the Killer Content Awards, known as the Finny’s, to celebrate companies that are embracing new rules of engagement and transforming them into cutting-edge campaigns. Catch the awards ceremony on day one and catch up with the winners at the opening night party! Top the day off with the B2B Marketing Exchange fireworks display.
MARCH
Social Media Marketing World
Date: March 1 - 3
Location: San Diego, California
Cost: $697 (Virtual pass) to $1,697 (All-Access pass)
Description:
Hosted by Social Media Examiner, this 3-day conference is a must for social media marketers, consultants, agency owners, marketing managers, network marketers, and corporate marketers. Hear from top social media experts like Jay Baer, Mari Smith, Jasmine Star, and Dennis Yu.
An All-Access pass will give you access to the professional development workshops, choose any of the 17 sessions tracks covering topics like Instagram marketing, Facebook Ads, YouTube for Business, Live Video, and Local Business Marketing. There’s no end to the opportunities to connect with other social media marketers with networking power walks, runs, and yoga, as well as a networking plaza and dedicated staff to help you make the connections you want to make.
Adobe Summit – The Digital Experience Conference
Date: Mar. 29 – Apr. 2, 2020
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Cost: $1,695 to $2,019 (Summit and Imagine Full Pass)
Description:
B2B marketers descend on Las Vegas to learn how to reimagine the customer experience, gain insights, and discover strategies to transform their business. There are over 400 sessions and labs across 11 content tracks including sessions on Analytics & Customer Journey, Cross-Channel Advertising, and Platform, Machine Learning, and AI. Leading brands like Under Armour, BMW, and Fox Sports have shared their expertise in the past so expect more from top brands in 2020. Global commerce conference, Magento Imagine, has joined Adobe Summit, bringing together both audiences and creating more opportunities for attendees to learn best practices for building B2B commerce strategies. The co-location of Magento Imagine and Adobe Summit also means more networking opportunities for attendees. Check out Braindate networking on the Adobe website (more information to follow).
Traffic & Conversion Summit
Date: March 31 - April 2
Location: San Diego, California
Cost: $1,499 - $2,595 (All-Access pass) to $1,995 - $3,295 (VIP pass)
Description: Traffic & Conversion Summit has increased attendance to 10,000 since its inception 11 years ago. It is now one of the world’s premier digital marketing companies boasting celebrity speakers like Sir Richard Branson and Gary Vee in past years. The 2020 speaker lineup includes experts like Ezra Firestone, Mari Smith, and Mark Roberge. If you are a digital retailer, digital advertiser, content marketer, conversational marketer, or growth hacker, one of T&C Summit’s seven tracks will have something for you. T&C Summit prides itself on delivering the content that has tested and proven tactics to increase traffic, conversions, and sales. Connect with fellow marketers after hours at their Gaslamp District block party!
APRIL
Advanced Search Summit Napa
Date: April 22-24
Location: Napa, CA
Cost: $1,099 (All-Access Pass) to$1,349 (VIP Pass)
Description:
Advanced Search Summit invites digital marketers to Napa Valley for all the latest marketing trends from industry experts, as well as extraordinary networking opportunities with peers, sponsors, and experts. Bring a plus one (Social pass $349) to enjoy the vineyard tours, wine tasting, and the masquerade party inside a Tuscan castle. Don’t let the size of this conference fool you. The conference may be intimate with 250 attendees expected, but Advanced Search Summit still manages to attract big brands like Disney, Bing, PayPal, and Google.
MAY
SiriusDecisions Summit
Location: Austin, TX
Dates: May 3 - 6
Cost: $2,895 - $2,995 (Early Bird - expires February 28th)
Description:
Forrester and SiriusDecisions have joined forces to research and deliver the latest trends in B2B marketing. Sales, marketing, and product innovators will learn how to supercharge the opportunities for intelligent growth from the best and brightest in B2B. The theme for 2020 is “Feel the Energy: Aligning. Empowering. Performing.” Expect keynote sessions unveiling new innovations across the B2B space, track sessions with hands-on learning opportunities, and dedicated networking events to connect brands, service providers, and marketers.
JUNE
Conquer Local 2020
Location: Montreal, QC
Dates: June 8 - 10
Cost: $899 - $1,299 (Conference Pass) to $1,199 - $1,599 (Conquerors’ All-Access Pass)
Description:
Conquer Local is the must-attend conference for companies selling digital solutions to local businesses. Learn the strategies and tactics developed by industry leaders to transform your business into a recurring revenue machine. Past speakers include Kevin O’ Leary from ABC’s Shark Tank, Tiffani Bova from Salesforce, and Yan Bellerose from Google.
The pre-conference hands-on workshop is the ultimate guide on how to conquer local in the new decade. Get best practices and actionable takeaways from some of Vendasta’s most successful partners.
Conquer Local is more than just a conference, it’s an experience. Enjoy the many networking opportunities including the Conquerors’ Bash at Cirque Eloize and go-karting at North America’s premier indoor go-kart circuit.
Purchase a ticket before January 31st and be entered for a chance to win an F1 Grand Prix Package, which includes TWO weekend Grandstand tickets and a three-night stay post conference (June 12th-14th inclusive).
JULY
MozCon
Date: July 6-8
Location: Seattle, Washington
Price: $999 (earlybird) to $1,699 (standard price)
Description:
As one of the pioneers in the SEO space, Moz is a company that prides itself on being at the forefront of content marketing innovation, and MozCon is no exception. For those that are passionate about SEO and content marketing, there is no better opportunity to deep dive into the world of SEO, conversion, optimization, and local search. With so much content to take in, MozCon keeps it simple with one track over three days.
AUGUST
INBOUND
Date: August 18-21
Location: Boston, MA
Cost: $799 (Early Bird All-Access Pass) to $2,199 (Power Pass)
Description:
Established in 2012, INBOUND has grown to one of the biggest marketing conferences in the world with 24,000+ attendees from 110 countries, and over 250 speakers! Hosted by the sales and marketing powerhouse, HubSpot, INBOUND’s four-day event includes sessions covering everything from automation to lead nurturing to innovation, and spotlight sessions featuring keynotes like Michelle Obama, Deepak Chopra, and Katie Couric.
Whether you’re in digital marketing, sales, or customer success INBOUND will have something for you! Discover the excitement, innovation, and networking that you need to continue building your content strategy at this “must-attend” conference.
SEPTEMBER
Call to Action Conference
Date: September 29 – October 1
Location: Vancouver, BC
Cost: $300 (Early Bird rate) to $900
Description:
Call to Action Conference is a two-day single track conference covering every facet of digital marketing, including pay-per-click, email, copywriting, landing page design, and more. One thousand marketers attended the Unbounce-run event in 2019 and 20 industry experts including Larry Kim, Andy Crestodina, and Oli Gardner. Expect more next-level, actionable marketing tactics in 2020 to help you navigate the ever-changing marketing landscape.
OCTOBER
Content Marketing World
Date: October 13 -16
Location: Cleveland, OH
Cost: $899 - $1,399 (Main Conference pass) to $1,799 - $2,599 (All-Access pass)
Description: If you’re looking for the next big content idea that will grow your business and captivate your audience, then it just might be waiting for you in Cleveland. With 4,000+ forecasted attendees, 225 of the industry's top content marketing leaders and thinkers, and over 125 sessions, you can be confident in the return on your conference investment when attending this world-class event. Past keynotes included, Mindy Kaling (actor), Lee Odden (TopRank Marketing), Ann Hadley (MarketingProfs), Jay Baer (Convince & Convert). Don’t miss out on the annual Content Marketing Awards (CMAs) Gala honoring the best content marketing projects, agencies, and marketers in the industry.
NOVEMBER
ONWARD 2020
Date: November 16-18
Location: New York, NY
Cost: TBD
Description: 2020 marks the fifth anniversary of Yext’s ONWARD conference. The conference has grown to bring together over 1,600 attendees to learn about the future of search with experts giving insights on industry trends, as well as topics like intent marketing and digital innovation. Past years have seen keynotes from former CTO of the United States, Megan Smith, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Late Night host Seth Meyers, and Magician David Blaine. If past ONWARD after parties are anything to go by (a party at the New York Stock Exchange and performance by Gavin DeGraw), you won’t want to miss out in 2020!
CONCLUSION
It’s important to do your research on which conference is worth your time and money. Whether your goal is to improve lead generation, increase sales and ROI, tackle SEO, or meet with like-minded peers, we’re confident that there’s a conference on our list to suit the needs of every sales and marketing professional.
Feel like our list is missing something? Let us know what conference you’d like to see added to our list in the comments below!