What do you get when three B2B thought leader brands come together to form a combined event featuring top B2B marketing experts? B2BSMX
This week in Boston, a new event launched called the B2B Sales and Marketing Exchange combining the best of three of the best resources in B2B: FlipMyFunnel from Terminus, RevTalks from the Pedowitz Group and Demand Gen Summit from Demand Gen Report. Together with another track focused on Labs and Case Studies, they powered over 50 sessions for about 1,000 registered attendees.
As a media sponsor, TopRank Marketing was invited to shine a light on some of the talent at the event though speaker interviews and liveblogging presentations. Nick Nelson and I attended numerous sessions each day allowing us to accelerate our B2B sales and marketing knowledge as well as our connections with thought leaders, practitioners and vendors in the industry.
B2BSMX Liveblog Coverage by Nick Nelson:
- Sangram Vajre on Mastering ABM through the T.E.A.M. Framework
- Sandra Freeman of Engagio Explains How to Avoid the ABM Upside Down in B2B Marketing
- CMO Maria Pergolino Charts the Path to Creating an Industry Category with Strategic Marketing
- The 10 Commandments of Modern B2B Marketing – Dave Gerhardt, Drift
B2B Marketing Spotlight Interviews by Lee Odden:
- Shonodeep Modak, CMO NA at Schneider Electric
- Omar Al-Sinjari, Sr Digital Marketing Manager, RelayHealth McKesson
- Alexandra Gobbi, CMO at Secureworks
In addition to interviews and liveblogging, we also shared insights in real-time through Twitter. Here are some of the most engaged Tweets shared during B2BSMX:
Brian Kardon, CMO at Fuze
Three ways AI can accelerate marketing performance:
1- Finding the right target accounts
2- Dealing with “too many leads”
3- Help secure prospect meetings by finding personalization opportunities for gift giving@bkardon @fuze #b2bsmx pic.twitter.com/fMoQ0ttD4H— Lee Odden (@leeodden) August 12, 2019
Dave Gerhardt, VP Marketing at Drift
People don’t want to work with logos, they want to work with people. One of the best marketing investments you can make is to encourage employees to develop their personal brand. @davegerhardt #b2bsmx #revtalks pic.twitter.com/392I4yCryk
— Lee Odden (@leeodden) August 13, 2019
Rob Leavitt, SVP at ITSMA
What types of B2B marketing campaigns really connect? Integrated, multi-channel approach:
– Targeted thought leadership
– Face to face meetings
– Roadshows event
– Email marketing
– Digital ads/content targeting
-Web personalization
Via @ITSMA_B2B research. #b2bsmx— Lee Odden (@leeodden) August 12, 2019
Scott Brinker, VP Platform at HubSpot
66% of companies don’t believe they have the skills or the talent to make use of marketing technology. @Econsultancy via @chiefmartec #b2bsmx pic.twitter.com/04Du14MrhD
— Lee Odden (@leeodden) August 12, 2019
On top of the great educational content, there was plenty of networking with both new connections and longtime friends in the industry. It was great to see familiar faces like B2B guru Ruth Stevens (R) and conference photographer Steve Hall (M) as well as new connections like the publisher of Chief Marketer, Beth Negus Viveiros (L). Also sighted were Erika Goldwater, Brian Fanzo, Katie Martell, Michelle Liro, Joe Chernov, Scott Brinker, Brian Kardon, Tim Riesterer, Jeffrey Hayzlett, Dave Munn and of course Andrew Gaffney and his team from DGR.
The last thing I should mention in this light wrap-up is the venue. The brand new Encore casino and hotel in Boston was surprisingly amazing. The casino is kept distinctly separate from the hotel and conference area so you never have to see that if you don’t want to. The entrance lobby (above) featured a carousel decorated with 83,000 flowers and 11,000 jewels. The rooms were also an amazing mix of comfort, luxury and technology. If the hotel were not in such an out of the way part of Boston, I would easily make this a go-to hotel for any future visit. I travel a lot, and the rooms were really impressive and that added to the overall conference experience.
Well done to the teams at Demand Gen Report, Terminus and The Pedowitz Group!
The B2B Marketing Exchange conference is scheduled for its 9th year in Scottsdale February 2020 and after speaking at that event each of the past 7 years, I can say it is a can’t miss conference for B2B marketers at every level.
