Affiliate Summit East 2013
August 18-20 marked this year’s Affiliate Summit East, held at the beautiful and spacious Pennsylvania Convention Center in downtown Philadelphia. The sold-out conference, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, featured exhibits, vendors and merchants, and extensive networking opportunities. Guests attended lectures and seminars by numerous speakers, among them keynotes Rae Hoffman, CEO of PushFire, Dr. Randal Pinkett, founder, chairman, and CEO of BCT Partners, and Wil Reynolds, founder of SEER Interactive.
The popular conference had something for everyone in the industry, from beginners to seasoned online marketing professionals. Some of this year’s many informational sessions for participants of varying experience levels included “How to Choose an Affiliate Program and Make Money,” “Creating Authority Blogs and Passive Monthly Income,” “How and Why to Use Video in Your Marketing Strategy,” “Effectively Managing Organic Campaigns for Small Businesses,” and “Optimizing Affiliate Marketing Campaigns Using Mobile.” The full agenda is here.
The three-day schedule was packed. Professionals just getting their feet wet in affiliate marketing were able to ask industry experts their most pressing questions in a special Newbie Lab. Guests also had the opportunity to mingle with other professionals at the Meet Market and several hosted meals. Credentialed journalists and writers convened in the Blogger Room to conduct interviews with industry leaders. The official party of Affiliate Summit, the Affiliate Ball, was held on August 19, headlined by 11-time Grammy nominee Busta Rhymes.
First-time attendees had the unique opportunity to connect with veteran participants before arriving at the conference in order to get the most out of the experience. This is a great idea for newcomers, as walking into a tradeshow unprepared can be overwhelming. Having a few insider tips on what exhibits or seminars to check out is always helpful.
Founded in 2003 by Missy Ward and Shawn Collins, Affiliate Summit is a leading conference and tradeshow held specifically for professionals in affiliate marketing and related fields. Affiliate Summit events have also been held in New York, Las Vegas, Boston, and London. Guests typically include agencies, affiliates, merchants, networks, and vendors. This year’s host hotel was the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, located just across the street from the Convention Center and accessible via sky bridge.
The 2013 attendees included representatives from noteworthy companies like Micosoft, Best Buy, Nutrisystem, Overstock.com, and Priceline.com, among many others. You can check out a more comprehensive roster of participating brands here.
Are you interested in attending an event like this? Do you think it would take your affiliate marketing program to the next level—or inspire you to develop a new one? Mark your calendars now: Affiliate Summit will hold its next conference in Las Vegas from January 12-14, 2014.
If you attended Affiliate Summit, what were the highlights of this year’s event for you and your team? What was the most important thing you learned? Did you meet a helpful colleague or develop a new partnership? We’d love to hear from you, and so would our readers.