Performance Marketing Insights has returned to London, once again bringing the industry together under one roof in the Westminster Park Plaza hotel.
As Monday came to an end, we looked back at a bustling day of expert-led speaker sessions and networking, while PerformanceIN was on hand to gather a few thoughts from some of our attendees.
Capture, Cultivate, Create
The PMI registration team welcomed over 1,000 ticket holders from an array of both international and local names in performance marketing as they flooded into a venue adorned with the livery of Performance Marketing Insights’ Capture, Cultivate, Create event tracks.
The exhibition floor was buzzing as ever, with company stalls once again showcasing a fine display of originality – the afillinet TukTuk a personal favourite. The hall also played host to the Create Track, debuted yesterday morning by Social Superstore and ex-Red Bull Marketer Harry Drnec, in a consumer-focused session on s-commerce and C2C selling. Social Superstore is the ‘the next big thing’, according to Drnec, who also indulged the audience with a few tales from a company perhaps more famous for its marketing exploits than its product.
Away from the exhibition floor we had the Capture and Cultivate rooms, where attendees gained insight into subjects including big data or, according to Jeremy Waite, the questionable existence of it. There was also Helen Southgate’s presentation on the future of affiliate marketing which, as stated by IAB’s Clare O’Brien, had the room ‘spilling into the aisles’. In addition to this, day one saw ex-professional poker player Caspar Berry deliver an inspiring keynote speech on the role of risk in both business and everyday life.
New Guests
This year’s event has attracted a wealth of specialised and emerging names in performance marketing. PerformanceIN Managing Director Sarah Parsonage was just one of the many who noticed the change in exhibitors and attendees.
“At this year’s Performance Marketing Insights we’ve seen a big difference in the companies that have taken place, largely due to the number of acquisitions recently in performance marketing, but also the number of exhibitors and sponsors that don’t represent traditional affiliate models that perhaps PerformanceIN has been known to showcase”.
Four companies we wouldn’t normally have expected to see were those taking part in a new feature called Publisher Innovation: a chance for new publishers to showcase their original approach to e-commerce and present their wares in 10-minute ‘Power Pitches’, an effective solution to ‘long and painful speeches’, according to Haveyouseen’s founder Ben Van Rooyen.
That told the tale of day one at the conference, and PerformancIN will be back for another round of updates soon.