With 70% of marketing execs reporting increased use of content as a marketing priority, it's wise to assess what’s new and innovative in the blending of digital data, content and strategy to lift results through relevance. Learn what’s working to move leads through the funnel, based on insight marketing and engagement science. When digital and social data and content work in concert, there is heartbreak no more.

Key Takeways:
• The opportunities in real-time data overlays and appends
• Learn the importance of tailoring content for individuals
• Examples of utilizing data like online behavior, tech installs and ownership, intent to purchase, location and firmographics

• Ruth Stevens, President, eMarketing Strategy

• Gary Skidmore, CEO, Aberdeen
• Steve Kozek, Managing Director, Commercial Operations, GE Capital
• Ajay Gupta, CEO, Stirista

The first milestone in the conversion funnel is successfully contacting the consumer, yet most brands have a contact rate of less than 50%. That means that half of marketing spend gets dropped on the floor before even arriving at your doorstep. Brands have been focusing on increasing contact rates for years. Are any strategies really working? In this session, we will do a deep dive into contact strategies that have moved the needle, and we’ll discuss the importance of having a specific and unique strategy optimized for each milestone in the conversion funnel.

Key Takeaways:
• Discover what data is most predictive of each milestone in the funnel, from contact, to transfer, to application and through to close
• Find out how to build a strategy specific to each milestone
• Uncover the most common mistakes performance marketers make in conversion optimization strategies
• Learn key performance indicators you’re not measuring and should be

• Ross Shanken, Founder & CEO, Jornaya
• Jason Wehner, Director of Enrollment Ops & Contact Center Mgmt., Northcentral University
• Mark Silet, Director of Marketing, AccuQuote
• Dave Haggert, Senior VP, Marketing, Freedom Mortgage

Today, buyers consult as many as 15 sources before reaching out to a company. Consumers are seeking out trustworthy, user-generated content that will help guide them to a clear decision, often before they ever interact directly with your marketing messaging. The result? 80% of the buying decision is already made by the time the buyer actually displays interest and becomes a lead. So how do you connect with these purchase-ready consumers and fill your lead pipeline with highly converting end-of-funnel leads? Your brand can increase lead generation efforts by managing the conversation online and maximizing consumer-generated media, but how do you connect with consumer-trusted sources to increase demand and affect purchase intent? Join Zac and Stacy as they provide one weird trick for closing leads and managing your online brand health.

Key Takeaways:
• Understand why online consumer reviews are important even when they aren’t all 5 stars
• Leverage earned media through review collection to manage online brand reputation
• Optimize social proof to generate and close leads

• Eric Jenkins, COO, Consumer Affairs
• Stacy Kashy, Marketing Consultant, Endurance Warranty Services

The lead generation industry has traditionally faced significant challenges with transparency, quality and fraud. Getting the right leads to the right advertisers has been difficult, creating trust issues between lead sellers and lead buyers. With the advancements of machine learning over the past several years, technology can now play a very active role in helping bridge the gap of trust by leveraging machine learning combined with multiple data sources to allow for a foundation of transparency of lead exchanges. Learn how machine learning can be applied to generate leads at scale with verifiable data.

Key Takeaways:
• Learn how machine learning can be applied to the exchange of leads
• Find out how leads can be scored on a real-time basis using both internal and external data
• Learn how the value of leads can be optimized both pre- and post-sale of leads

• Jeff Deisner, Executive Vice President, PX, Inc.

Buyers don’t do business with companies they’ve never heard of. “Buzz” is the evolution of PR in the age of digital marketing. It amplifies. It works with timely precision to insert your brand into the right conversations. It changes narratives. It is a continuous and strategic act of positioning your brand as a trusted resource in your industry, of raising the profile of your executives to a position of authority, and of earning air cover to help your business grow.

• Katie Martell, On-Demand Marketer, Katie-Martell.com

These days users need a lot more than a simple testimonial on a page to push them to convert. In this session, Dave French of Growella will explore how Brands have increased conversion rates by using showcasing real life use cases within their content and how other companies can do the same. Users are craving something real and authentic, and by providing that within your content will do far more for your conversion rate than anything else.

Key Takeaways:
• Get real-life examples of how providing a use case within your content can affect conversion rate
• Discover showcase sites that are still using testimonials vs. those that go deep with social proof to drive users to convert
• Learn about tools and methods to collect use case examples and how to apply them to any website

• David French, Director of Business Development, Growella

Some sales professionals are sabotaging their own sales efforts without even knowing it. Our newest research on lead response tactics uncovered significant room for improvement among lead buyers. In this back-to-basics session we’ll have a panel of best-in-class lead buyers on hand to comment on the research findings and how they are applying best practices in real-world scenarios. We’ll share effective techniques to improve communication timing and frequency, plus ways to make messaging more persuasive. And we promise a few surprises along the way. Attendees will leave with more confidence in how to build a winning sales process and hone their sales skills to increase contract and conversion rates.

Key Takeaways:
• Discover call and email strategies that results in the highest win rates
• Gain insight into the impact of lead response speed on conversion
• Understand the importance of quality email and voicemail messages for optimal lead response
• Learn the right balance of persistence to avoid turning prospective buyers sour

• Jorge Jeffery, Director Research and Analytics, Velocify by Ellie Mae

• David Williams, Agency Owner, Allstate
• Kevin Rhea, Senior VP, Director of Business Development, Mortgage Investors Group

In any given industry, there can be only one Marketplace Gorilla – that leader who will take over 50% of the revenue and 75% of the profits. Unfortunately, most other market participants will fail. Why? Because traditional approaches to sales and marketing operations like inside or direct sales stifle lead generation and prevent hyper-velocity growth. In this session, learn how to transform your funnel with a sales assembly line, and increase sales 10X at a lower cost to become your industry's gorilla.

Key Takeaways:
• Get a high-level overview of the strategy and tactics required to build a high-velocity sales assembly line from lead generation through to close, taking the core concepts used in modern manufacturing and applying it to sales
• Gain an inside look at how to build and implement sales specializations - rather than having a salesperson who does everything from cold calling to customer success
• Find out how to use AI and automation tools to optimize and keep your assembly sales line in equilibrium

• Donald Scherer, Founder & CEO, AssemblySales.com
• David Bukovac, CEO, CrossBorderSolutions.io

Your marketing budget is precious. No one wants to come back from a trade show with little to no qualified leads. This session will explain how to develop an integrated and effective strategy designed to achieve the highest return from shows. Hear from Firestone Building Products, Whirlpool and a leading B2B marketing agency as they discuss the planning and implementation strategies that worked together to drive high-value leads at their most successful shows in 2017.

Key Takeaways:
• Understanding of the planning and strategy process needed to create a show presence that helps meet business goals and objectives
• How to develop an integrated plan that makes the most use of the trade show budget, including PR, social media, paid media, booth concepting and booth promotions
• Identifying themes and tactics that work for your brand
• Post show analysis metrics for continued improvements

• Liz Brohan, Co-CEO, CBD Marketing

• Matthew L. Loos, Executive Director, Marketing, Firestone Building Products
• Kevin Sulaiman, Associate Brand Manager, Whirlpool

Sales and Marketing teams today are more challenged than ever with following up on all the leads they receive. How do you make sure that you are not letting sales opportunities fall through the cracks? In this interactive session, you will learn how hundreds of leading companies – and indeed any company – can significantly boost the conversion rate of their leads into sales opportunities, and how AI can be applied to automate the process.

Key Takeaways:
• Discover best practices for boosting lead conversion rates, with or without automation
• Find out how Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing companies’ ability to engage prospects
• Learn how to optimize your prospect time spend and maximize their success

• Gary Gerber, Senior Director, Head of Product Marketing, Conversica
• Roman Vinfield, President, Assure Funding

The world of recycling your “junk” traffic, has never been harder to navigate. FTC regulations, Malicious Campaigns, Non-Relevant Campaigns, along with Link & Brand Integrity are just a few of the areas you have to wade through. But what if there was a solution which took all of this to mind, applying a clear, direct trajectory forward, while providing value for your company? Join this session for case studies, applied experience, horror stories, & humor!

Key Takeaways:
• Understand how you can read the data to make the best programmatic decision on your traffic
• Learn how to incorporate best practices & FTC standards into redirect traffic
• Discover where we need to improve as an industry and become more conscious of how to monetize your "JUNK" traffic efficiently
• Participate in a short, simple, Kundalini Yoga breathing exercise to help clear your mind

• Josh Kopac, Strategic Sales Partner, Advolution