As promised, we’re back for round two of this year’s Zenith Social Media Marketing Conference’s speaker preview! Zenith is exactly one week away, and we’re looking forward to a brilliant gathering of some of the online marketing industry’s most respected thought leaders.
If you haven’t registered yet, don’t fret. There’s still time! If you have, then start setting your agenda based on which sessions and tracks you’re interested in—Down & Dirty, Channel Wizards, or Advanced! We’ll help you get to know the speakers a little better with a glimpse into what they’re thinking.
AIMCLEAR: Are there any tools you absolutely cannot live without? What are they and what do you use them for?
Regis Hadiaris: Our award-winning Business Intelligence team has built a set of tools that combine our business analytics with our web analytics and a/b testing platform. This enables us to get very specific about how we judge every marketing dollar based on how many dollars it brings back in revenue.
Ryan McGrath: Definitely Sysomos Heartbeat and Mention. Heartbeat (in conjunction with Sysomos MAP) provides an in-depth platform to gather data and monitor conversations, analyze the information, and report metrics that matter to better understand things like topics, themes, demographics, sentiment, competitors, and more. Mention monitors the internet including social networks, in 42 languages while providing the added bonus of being able to view the alerts via mobile.
Lisa Buyer: First, Google Analytics. If you are not using the social reporting inside GA, you might as well be wearing a blindfold in social media. Second, Buffer App is a tool I could not live without, I use Buffer to go back to take pieces of content and slice and dice it into social news segments to be reported across social. The latest Buffer for Business hits a social splash of brilliance! It is the best $50 a month a brand can spend if you are handling multiple accounts. Third, more of a platform than a tool - Rebel Mouse is incredible for offering a very easy way to integrate your brand’s social networks into one customized social publication. You can create a blog, website or social page in seconds by connecting your social networks like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google+ and LinkedIn.
AIMCLEAR: How do you stay up to date on the latest industry happenings?
Josh Braaten: RSS feeds, podcasts, books, blogs, conferences and social media. I try to drink from the information fire hose as much as I can. I may not get it all, but I should absorb a lot if I let it wash over me.
Megan Demarais: Twitter. It’s a real-time newspaper. Following hashtags for industry chats, hangouts, or conferences provides major insight on industry happenings and best practices.
Merry Morud: It’s definitely challenging staying up to date in a continuously changing industry.
First and foremost, I subscribe to SearchCap – so every day Search Engine Land delivers me the latest industry news to my inbox (not only their own!) across social, mobile, marketing, PPC, and more. I also find my social communities incredibly valuable: Twitter, G+, & Facebook – as I follow industry friends, thought-leaders, agencies, & tool companies who are always serving up current, relevant content.
AIMCLEAR: Name one TV show you cannot live without. Go!
Gretchen Egeberg: Park & Recreation, hands down!
Joanna Lord: Nashville…I watch it when I can’t sleep and I need some country music, drama, and cowboy living in my life! 🙂
Neal Rodriguez: House of Cards; I make Frank Underwood look like a puppy; kidding 🙂
Now that we’ve whet your appetite for some online marketing goodness, take some time to figure out speakers and sessions you’re planning to attend. We hope to see you in Duluth next week! Any questions? Tweet us at @ZenithSocialCon or leave them in the comments below!
