Everything You Need to Know About Influencer Marketing at #SMWNYC

From data and creativity and paid media models to the future of brands and publishing, our curated tracks are designed to provide you with a deeper understanding of what tools, strategies, and tactics you should be investing in to advance your career.

Over the last decade, the influencer marketing industry has experienced exponential growth. The social media star can now have as much impact on consumers as a Super Bowl commercial with a well crafted Instagram post.

Fewer than 39 passes remain. Claim yours before they’re gone!

At SMWNYC, we will explore every aspect of influencer marketing from choosing influencers to executing marketing campaigns.

Here is a preview of what you can expect:

From Memes to Media Empire: How Internet Stars Are Forging the Future of Branded Content

Hosted by Jerry Media

The wildly popular @FuckJerry Instagram account was created in 2011. Its founder, a 20something by the name of Elliot Tebele, was bored at his day job and saw social media as a ripe creative outlet for his idiosyncratic brand of humor. Flash forward seven years and @FuckJerry has 13 million followers (more than twice as many as Jessica Biel) and recently spun out into a media powerhouse and creative shop.

In this fireside chat, we sit down with Mick Purzycki, CEO of Jerry Media, to discuss how he and his team used the popularity of @FuckJerry and similarly sticky accounts to build a full-service content studio that lists brands like Burger King, Bud Light, Hinge, Gucci, Brita and TurboTax as partners.

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How Instagram Became The Music Industry’s Go-To Social Platform

Hosted by WeBuyGold

Instagram has become the most relevant and influential platform for music artists and their fans. The most followed accounts on Instagram belong to musicians and amongst the app’s 800 million users worldwide, about 350 million follow 10 or more verified musicians. Some of the internet’s most influential users are fans of these artists and when something is deemed compelling and cool by this audience, it can shape trends and reach the masses.

Whether you’re the internet’s next big breakout hip-hop star or part of the most influential fanbase consuming content and driving culture right from your mobile phone, come hear from a panel of artists and digital media experts who are creating innovative narratives on Instagram. They’ll discuss the many ways influencers can reach their fans including using Instagram Stories, Instagram Live, animated content, sharing behind-the-scenes photos and video in Instagram’s Galleries and much more.

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Brands Are People, People Are Brands: An Intimate Conversation With Rev Run & Matt Britton

Hosted by Suzy

In this unique session, marketing entrepreneur Matt Britton, Founder & CEO of Suzy and an early innovator in influencer marketing, will host a wide-ranging discussion with Rev Run exploring the origins, current state, and future outlook of celebrity influence.

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Creativity Meets Brand Outcomes: There is Where the Magic Happens

Hosted by WHOSAY

Creativity is one of the most underrated and taken for granted components of advertising. Creative advertising content gets attention and stops thumbs. This is where influence marketing can provide the most value when done right. It’s use of talent-driven creative means that the content has the highest potential to be useful, funny, inspiring, relatable, emotional and, most importantly, engaging.

Join WHOSAY CEO Steve Ellis, with special guests Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere, and Matt Patrick, Game Theory for a practical expose about using creativity to execute content marketing campaigns that overcome the challenges faced by advertisers in ad-blockers, shortened attention spans, ad fraud, and brand safety.

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Creating Social Gold: The Art of Platform Specificity

Hosted by That Lot

To succeed on social, you need to understand platforms. You need to be on the right platforms, you need to make the right content for the right platforms, and you need to engage with right people in the right way on the right platforms.

Join David Schneider and David Levin, Creative Directors of the UK agency That Lot, to explore platforms, platform specificity and native innovation. Schneider and Levin will share case studies from clients like Channel 4, Nat Geo, Jamie Oliver and The Voice, and discuss how platform-led brands and broadcasters nailing it on social in creative, highly-engaging ways. Dress code: platforms.

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LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION: The Forgotten Marketing Influencer

Hosted by Doner

It’s been said that when people visit a museum, they often pay no mind to the frame of the artwork, though the framing of said work makes all the difference, so is the same when you think about people and their actions. The frame—or the context of the environment we’re in—has a great deal of impact on what we do, what we say, and how we consume. Therefore, understanding the dynamics of the environment will enable marketers to leverage these conditions in such a way that sways human behavior. In this session, we will explore these environmental dynamics, be they physical or digital, in such a way that will enable marketers to create ideas that move people.

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360 View of Influencer Marketing

Hosted by Julius

When it comes to influencer marketing, it’s important to understand all sides of the booming industry. It’s not just brands in this world; you also have to include agencies, publishers, and the influencers themselves. How do brands choose their influencers? What makes an influencer decide if they want to work with a certain brand or agency? What challenges do these different perspectives face when running a campaign?

In this discussion, these questions and more will be explored by our unique panel that brings together the “buyers”: industry professionals and the “sellers”: influencers in one open conversation.

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Instagram & the Shift Towards Data-Driven Influencer Marketing

Hosted by CROWD.

Join this panel featuring three “OGs” in the influencer industry: Andy Torres, one of the first international fashion bloggers; Daniel Saynt, one of the first creators of a media property; and Vicki Frid, founder of one of the first digital marketing agencies. The conversation will be focused on their beginnings, how Instagram changed the game, and how brands must adjust to thrive and survive given the new algorithm.

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From Impressions to Influence: An Integrated Approach to Influencer Marketing

Hosted by theAmplify

As the influencer marketing industry has matured, so has its ability to play a more integrated role in brand marketing. In this presentation, Lindsay Fultz, V.P Brand Partnerships and Strategy, will discuss how and why taking an integrated approach to influencer marketing delivers the highest ROE and ROI. Drawing on theAmplify’s expertise in building and executing integrated influencer marketing strategies for some of the biggest brands in the world — including Covergirl, AXE, Campbell’s, PepsiCo, Taco Bell, Ford, Lionsgate, and many others — this session will reveal what a data-first optimization strategy looks like and how to collaborate across multiple departments to turn digital conversations to real-life conversions.

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A New Future of Sports Fandom, with GIFs and GIPHY

Hosted by GIPHY

GIFs offer a modern sports fans a new way to rep their teams, favorite players, and the sports they love. The burgeoning creativity of sports GIFs introduces a new way for sports fans to talk with each other borrowing the expression of the players. It’s a unique way for fans to build a relationship with players, and the players with the fans. With so much of our conversations and daily interactions with friends going digital, what GIF we use in our private conversations is a fast growing digital cousin to the pinnacle of sports fandom: wearing your favorite team’s jersey IRL.

This Panel discusses this new future of sports fandom through the lens of GIFs, GIPHY, and the creative collaborations they are doing with leagues, teams, and players themselves. In particular revisiting a collaboration from last summer when GIPHY paired up with Martellus Bennett, the NFL’s most creative Man according to Adweek. He guest directed a GIPHY original production to create a series of GIFs featuring his then teammates on the Green Bay Packers. This “Text Back Pack” went viral, debuting on the NFL Network and racking up an impressive 150M views on GIPHY in about 48 hours through organic growth and the quality of the content.

Join Martellus Bennett and the dynamic GIPHY duo of Julie Logan, director of talent relations, and Tomas Ferraro, senior sports editor, as they discuss the evolving landscape of sports, expression, and fandom.

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The Future of Video: Why Vimeo is Betting on Creators

Hosted by Vimeo

The democratization of video creation has ushered in a new type of creative renaissance: in fact, more video content is shared online in a single month than the major TV networks have created over the past 30 years (source: Forbes).

At the heart of this movement is Vimeo, the world’s largest ad-free video platform. With a newly refocused creator-first strategy and a broadened slate of capabilities across the video workflow (including Vimeo Live and the recent acquisition of Livestream), Vimeo is committed to empowering creators with technology, community, and inspiration.

In this interview, we’ll sit down with Vimeo CEO, Anjali Sud, to talk about the future of video and why Vimeo is placing all bets on creators.

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Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen? Community vs. Individualism in Food + Lifestyle

Hosted by Socialfly

As a result of the influencer marketing industry’s explosive growth, some would argue that the lines between community vs. individualism are blurred. Is how Instagrammable something or some place is the new social norm? Is the judgment of how “Instagrammable” something is, taking away from the actual experience of cooking a meal, decorating a home, or dining out?

We will offer a well-rounded perspective on the inner workings of influencer marketing and how brands, businesses and individuals can partner in social media without compromising their authenticity. This compelling panel will feature food & lifestyle influencers alongside tastemaker Martha Stewart.

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What Marketers Need to Know to Boost Influencer Marketing Strategies in 2018

Hosted by Bloglovin’

Eighty-six percent of marketers reported investing in influencer marketing in 2017, and the majority of them plan on increasing their budgets in 2018. But, how do they ensure their campaigns are successful and drive ROI? This session will explore how marketers can leverage influencers as a successful step in the customer’s path to purchase. It will also emphasize the necessity of working with influencers whose content is authentic, and who understand and abide by FTC guidelines. The session will also explore ways in which marketers can ensure the success of their influencer marketing campaigns, including increased attention to data and analytics, continuous investment in influencer marketing as a core part of the marketing toolkit, and building “always-on,” bi-directional relationships with influencers.

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Gen Z: Redefining Intimacy in a Social Media World

Hosted by MTV

Young people are using tech and social media to redefine what intimacy looks like when it comes to their relationships and friendships. Join Nev Schulman, from MTV’s hit docu-series “Catfish: The TV Show,” alongside Alison Hillhouse, Vice President, Youth Culture and Trends at MTV, for a timely discussion about Gen Z, intimacy, relationship, and self-esteem cycling. The panel will incorporate key takeaways from MTV’s recent study, “Gen Z Teens: Out Loud & Unfiltered.”

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Beyond the Meme: How to Develop Breakthrough Social Content that Matters

Hosted by WP Narrative_

Everyone wants their meme to go viral. And many do. But beyond the pure megaphone aspect of social media, which often devolves into shouting matches that highlight the worst of everyone, there’s room for deeper discussion.

In this panel, producer Will Packer (“Girls Trip” and “Straight Outta Compton”), joins Tricia Clarke-Stone, CEO, WP Narrative_, and activist Michael Skolnik to discuss how brands and publishers can create social content that’s respectful to all sides, captures attention and has lasting impact. Specifically, the session will explore powerful case studies that will provide inspiration and actionable lessons to attendees.

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Influencer Marketing’s Next Frontier: Best Practices for Successful Partnerships Today & Tomorrow

Hosted by DigitasLBi

How is a constantly evolving medium like influencer marketing still able to push the boundaries of standard brand and social advertising since its early inception in the 1890s? In today’s digital-obsessed world, influencers allow consumers to experience the sights and sounds of everything they produce and post through their unique and engaging styles.

How can influencers continue to tailor content to speak to consumers relevantly, delivered right to their smartphone? Along with key leaders in the influencer marketing space, this panel will explore the topic of influencer marketing and how it has evolved from traditional word-of-mouth to celebrity domination, and now into a main marketing channel. The session will also go a step further to explore the future of influencer of marketing and how emerging technologies like AI and VR will take the craft of influence to the next level.

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Join us at SMWNYC April 24-27 to hear from 150+ leading thinkers who will explore our global theme, “Closer,” which navigates the increasingly tenuous relationship between community and individualism. Fewer than 39 passes remain, so don’t wait.