Every year, we think a lot about how to best serve the social media and digital marketing community as we prepare for the #SMDayPHL conference. We give a lot of thought to how people learn, what they need to know that year, how they will interact with our speakers and each other, how to support our sponsors, and what kind of energy will be created. It’s a very detailed and intensive planning process, which we think makes our conference different from many others.
In 2022, we face a set of complex challenges. We want to make sure everyone has an opportunity to participate in the conference in a way that fits their comfort level. We also know from experience in the past two years that anything can change at any time without warning. And ultimately we recognize that in a lot of ways, our community is exhausted, burnt out, largely underappreciated, and are just trying to keep up with everything they’re being asked to do.
For all these reasons, we are planning a #SMDayPHL conference that is going to be quite different from previous years. There are going to be three very different ways that people can engage so that everyone can choose their own adventure.
Social Media Stars Awards
We are looking to recognize and reward the best social media teams and practitioners in the Philadelphia area. We have partnered with The Philadelphia Business Journal for the awards, and they are managing all the nominations and judging so it is totally independent and impartial. We’ll announce finalists in May and the winners will be revealed at a special reception following the #SMDay conference on June 30th. It’s a wonderful opportunity for all to get involved and shine a light on our community which has been resilient over the past two years.
In-Person Conference
We are so excited to bring back our live, in-person conference this year at Live! Casino in South Philadelphia. Once again, we will have three rooms of speakers throughout the day. In one room we will have “Level Up” talks for those who have been working in social media for years and are looking for more advanced learnings. Our speakers will be showcasing new approaches, new techniques, new tools, and new insights for digital marketers who have been in the business for 5+ years. In our “Emerging” room, we will have talks and panels for those who are relatively new to social media and other digital marketing strategies. Think of these as our “Intro To” sessions. On the main stage will be our Flash Talks. These 14-minute talks grouped in sets of three will be focused on a common theme that has proven to be very popular year after year. Designed to be for everyone, this fast-paced room will leave you with lots of new ideas and inspiration.
Online Conference
We know that not everyone can or wants to attend an in-person conference just yet. For those who don’t want to travel to Philly or just feel more comfortable at home, we are creating a conference that will run parallel to the in-person conference. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., we will have keynote speaker after keynote speaker bringing you the best content from across the country. This online conference will be filled with interactive breaks and opportunities to network that are designed for the at-home or remote attendees.
We are looking forward to having our whole digital communications and social media community engage with each other once again at Social Media Day PHL. General Admission tickets are now available!