Attending and speaking at events continue to be two of my favorite activities. Meeting in real life continues to be my favorite way to forge connections over time.
For many years, I hosted local events and meetups so I've come to appreciate the amount of work and energy that goes into creating one of these experiences. Which is also how I learned to spot the really good ones.
If you work in and around Philadelphia (I work in Conshohocken), you should keep an eye on three organizations.
Breaking down the silos
First off, you should attend the upcoming event organized by my friends at SEER Interactive. Wil Reynolds is one my favorite founders — his skill and love for the community he's helping build are infectious.
Join him and five pros at the Search Church for a conversation on breaking down marketing silos to build an integrated online presence.
When: Thursday, May 16, 2013, 3:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Where: The Search Church, 1028 N 3rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19123
Cost: $25 — the best part, all admission will be donated to a charity nominated by each of the speakers. Event attendees may choose which charity they would like to support at the event.
Advances in technology
Philly Tech Meetup convenes technologists, entrepreneurs, investors and the broader innovation community regularly to learn and share. Each month, hundreds of innovators gather to see demos, launch products and meet their future co-founders, partners and funders.
This is a group to watch. You may see the demos presented at their April meetup here.
Communicator role more strategic
The ubiquitous use of social technologies and tools has made the role of internal and external communications critical. Brands are defined by experiences, and by necessity we need to collaborate with colleagues across the organization to succeed.
Communicators need to evolve with the demands placed upon their role by a more complex business environment. To support a brand and business means acquiring business skills, experience dealing with many stakeholders, as well as technology savvy and analytics know-how.
At IABC Philadelphia events, we look to provide a variety of perspectives and experiences to help marketing and communications professionals meet their jobs demands.
I've been active on the local board as VP, Marketing for a couple of years and am a long time member — this is a very diverse group of experienced pros, and a nice group of people to boot. Being around nice people has a halo effect, you can count on that.
Sign up for events here.
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PS: there are rumors I might even start speaking more locally again. Stay tuned.
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Valeria is an experienced listener. She is also frequent speaker at
conferences and companies on a variety of topics. To book her for a
speaking engagement click here.