Woman having virtual meeting.
Covid-19 has led to the cancellation of almost every conference and corporate event planned for 2020. While this was initially a heavy blow, video technology has allowed speakers and companies to start organizing virtual conferences to make up for lost events.
A virtual conference has all the benefits of a physical conference, only it’s done remotely rather than in a conference center. I’ve asked a lot of virtual speakers and here are upcoming conferences for you and your team:
E-commerce
1. E-Commerce Week - September 28th - October 2nd
Los Angeles has become quite the e-commerce mecca, and Hawke Media (headquartered in LA) is proud to spearhead a week to celebrate the city's e-commerce businesses. It will be an opportunity to share ideas on how to grow e-commerce brands with some of the best in the industry. From September 28th to October 2nd, Hawke Media is teaming up with the City and Mayor of Los Angeles to bring you the inaugural LA E-Commerce Week.
Although it’s focused on the LA e-commerce community, this week is meant to include participants from all over the world. Due to the global pandemic, and in the spirit of e-commerce, all of the programs will be held online, so anyone is welcome to participate.
Customer Experience
2. Five9 CX Summit - September 16th
Five9 knows how important it is to treat customers right. Its software is built to help businesses do just that, and its CX Summit will be just as beneficial for business owners. A panel of keynote speakers from Five9 will discuss how customer service can unlock your business’ potential by creating a more human experience. It’ll also touch on adjusting during Covid-19, something most businesses have been grappling with recently.
Entrepreneurship
3. Global Leaders Organization (GLO) - Recurring
This free event was created for business owners to help grow their businesses. The recurring events are all interactive and free to attend via Microsoft Teams Live each Thursday at 10 a.m. ET. Past speakers have included names like entrepreneur extraordinaire Mark Cuban and music moguls Pitbull and Akon. If you miss a livestream, you can always catch it in their archives. The content provided since the Coronavirus has been very tactical for business owners, helping them not only to survive but thrive during the pandemic.
4. INBOUND - September 22 & 23
INBOUND's purpose is to provide the inspiration, education, and connections that their attendees need to grow their businesses. Speakers in previous years, including 2020, include Scott Belsky of Adobe, Bob Iger of The Walt Disney Company, Jim McKelvey, co-founder of Square and CEO of Invisbly, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Bozoma Saint John, CMO of Netflix, Elaine Welteroth, best-selling author and former editor in chief of Teen Vogue, Scott Harrison, founder of charity: water. There will be over 250+ breakout sessions on marketing, sales, customer service, and leadership. INBOUND’s virtual conference features international-friendly time zone-based sessions, as well as new types of virtual sessions. Selected talks will be offered with French and German subtitles. Attendees are given the opportunity to not only be inspired by their speakers, but to also be inspired by one another.
5. Startup of the Year Summit - November 16-18
The 8th annual Startup of the Year Summit is a free, online event that is a culmination of the 2020 Startup of the Year program and will showcase the top 100 startups in the competition. Find out who will be named the Startup of the Year in this “Shark Tank” style pitch competition. There will be several influential speakers featured, such as Tim Draper, Rohit Bhargava, Kara Goldin, and many more! You’ll also get a chance to network with some of the great mentors from the Startup of the Year community.
Recruiting and Talent
6. Talent Development Virtual Summit - September 14-18
Hiring practices are extremely important, but employee retention is even more so. Talent development pays off the investment you make in each employee, and helps them be happier and more successful within your organization. The Talent Development Virtual Summit will focus on key aspects of that idea, from development programs and culture building to diversity and inclusion practices. It’s also now hosting a Talent Development Think Tank membership, built to help organizations work together to meet their goals in this area.
Marketing
7. Brand ManageCamp - October 27th - 29th
Your first concern when looking at virtual conferences is sitting through hours of speaking. Brand ManageCamp promises to take the proper approach, breaking the days up evenly and allowing for proper breaks for everyone participating from home. Not only will this help accommodate your needs better, it complements the slate of marketing lessons they have prepared for almost every category imaginable.
8. Retail Ascendant - October 27th, and Digital Ascendant - October 28th - 29th
Some of the world’s most progressive marketing and retail leaders come together at these closed-door/no-press forums to share their stories and build relationships. These meetings have enabled an impressive community of CMOs, Chief Customer Officers, and marketing leaders to elevate their personal and professional influence. The semi-annual face-to-face events are now 100% virtual due to Covid-19. Retail Ascendant (October 27th) will focus on helping retailers lead their companies back to growth. Digital Ascendant (October 28th - 29th) will focus on marketers and the adaptations they’ll need to market in a “cookie-less world”.
9. MarketingProfs B2B Forum - November 4th & 5th
This forum has been a highlight for business-to-business (B2B) marketers for years. While Marketing Profs are disappointed they can’t hold a physical event this season, they’re putting a neat twist into their upcoming event. The two-day event will have over 41 sessions with all the information you need to take your game to the next level. When you purchase tickets to their jam-packed digital forum, you’ll also receive a year long subscription to all of their training resources and B2B community.
Management
10. Empower Conference - September 8th - 10th
This conference caters to the needs of HR leaders, executives, team managers, and any one else in a position of leadership. The goal is to help create a world-class workplace within your organization. So many problems can be solved and even avoided through good leadership and a unified team. Attending this conference will give you the leadership tips and advice you need to move your team forward.
Decide which aspect of your business needs the most improvement, and check out the corresponding events. Each of these conferences will be well worth your time. Don’t let the Coronavirus slow you down, use it as a chance to grow through virtual conferences.
