On May 12th, I hosted The Digital Marketing Strategy Bootcamp in Toronto. After spending 5 years providing training directly to in-house clients, this marked the first time that I opened up a session to the public and managed all aspects of the experience. The event was hosted at Brightlane, along with a delicious lunch excursion to Pizza Libretto next door. I am pleased to report that it was a success on all fronts (and I have the exit survey results to prove it :-)
Thanks largely to positive word-of-mouth (from people like you, dear readers), I was able to sell-out the event and have 25 passionate, smart, and engaged marketers in attendance. Together, we worked through a mix of content and interactive exercises designed to increase our collective confidence and competence in digital marketing strategy. At the end of the day, groups applied the curriculum by solving a digital strategy brief from a “real client”. Palak Dave and Malcolm Gilderdale from TIFF attended the session (coincidentally around the time cocktails were being served), distributed the TIFF briefs, and chose the winner. It was an awesome group, and a fun day.
One of the aspects that I find valuable when facilitating training with a larger group from different organizations is the in-class discussion. It is always fascinating to hear what different people are working on, interested in, and struggling with. It is also a great opportunity for fellow marketers to learn from each other and to share. There were a few key topics that bubbled up for the class that generated some great discussion:
- Content. How do marketers produce enough high-quality, on-brand, impactful content to fuel marketing programs? A few client-side marketers discussed the benefits from partnerships and creating new positions for full-time in-house editors.
- Organization: How do marketing departments best organize to deliver stronger digital marketing programs? Many discussed hybrid models that focused more on alignment and communication, and less on channel ownership.
- Measurement: How can marketers best measure the results from investments in social media marketing? A few folks responsible for social media spoke about the importance of educating senior management and mapping measures to larger marketing goals.
Finally, thank you to everyone who helped me shape the event and supported me along the way. Your advice, LinkedIn shares, referrals, and words of encouragement meant a lot to me and made for a better event. For those that have asked, I am planning another Bootcamp for the Fall. More on that later. For now, thank you again for making this past event such a success.