Agenda: The Nottingham Digital Summit 19th September 2024

The agenda

The brightest minds from across the industry all in one venue

8:45 - 9:15

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Registration

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9:15 - 9:30

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Welcoming Everyone

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9:30 - 9:50

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Julio Taylor

Opening keynote

Hallam's CEO, Julio Taylor, welcomes speakers to the Nottingham Digital Summit and discusses the state of marketing in 2024.

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Joy Talbot

It’s the end of brand vs. activation as we know it

We’ve had good mileage out of "the long and the short of it", which worked based on multiple sources. But now there’s a third aspect to consider... Wherever people buy online, it’s not just brand versus activation any more. Businesses that want to sell on the internet need to be visible there and this need has caused a large increase in digital advertising spend. Offline budgets fell throughout the Covid-19 pandemic (as is normal in a recession, too) and as shopping went online, so did ad budgets. So, now brands have to be easy to find online first, before activation or brand. The new budget allocation question? When to spend on Google vs Amazon. Supporting advertisers means helping them navigate this transition. Online activity can do all of these jobs (brand, activation and making products easy to find online) and next-level measurement and media planning will prove it. Joy Talbot explains how.

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Alice Preece

Talk relevancy to me: why links don’t matter if your Digital PR campaign strays too far

We’re seeing a huge increase in Digital PR campaigns that just aren’t relevant to the company behind them. In this talk, we’ll be exploring why relevance is so important and how ignoring it can cause more pain than gains.

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Tim Bassford

How to create content that delivers real change

We’re all creating digital content to bring about change aren’t we? More clicks, more purchases, more brand awareness or encouraging more alignment with your organisation’s message. But how do we go about producing impactful, creative content that doesn’t get lost amongst the white noise? Tim Bassford takes you on a whistle-stop tour of key tactics and strategies to help your content bring about change that matters…

10:00 - 10:20

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Oliver Yonchev

Creativity with Artificial Intelligence: dispelling the myth that AI isn't creative

In this talk, Oliver builds the case that generative AI is inherently creative, highlighting mind-blowing creative applications and providing practical steps to better leverage AI for growing your brand or company.

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Maret Reutelingsperger

How email marketing can boost your brand in search results

In this talk, Maret will go into the importance of relevant and useful content on your website and beyond, and then make it work harder by using email marketing. As a fully owned channel, email marketing will not only help you speak directly to those who are interested, but also help you gain more visibility in search results. This talk is especially interesting for those who already have an established website with (regularly added) content, who want to further make use of what they already have and grow the conversation they have with their leads.

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Simran Harichand

Beyond the Click: unlocking consumer behaviour in paid media ads

In today's attention economy, bog-standard paid ads just don't do the job. In Simran's talk, she'll explore the consumer behaviour behind the click: how consumers move through the purchase journey and how you can create paid ads that will make them click and convert.

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Emma Easton

Unlock the marketing superpower that most SMEs don’t know

Discover the game-changing marketing strategy that most SMEs overlook. In this interactive session, we'll demystify this powerful approach and show you how it can transform your marketing efforts, regardless of the tools, channels or formats you use. You'll gain clarity and confidence in your marketing decisions, learning how to identify your most profitable customers and craft messages that resonate deeply with them. Through practical exercises, you'll start applying your new knowledge to your own business, leaving with actionable insights and a renewed enthusiasm for setting yourself apart from competitors. Don't miss this opportunity to unlock your marketing superpower and take your business to new levels of success.

10.30 - 10.50

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Marielle Legair

The best-known wins: 3 personal branding success strategies

In today's competitive world, the most important conversations about your career often happen when you're not in the room. That's why establishing a strong personal brand is fundamental to your success. In this interactive session, you'll learn how to leverage three key strategies—Performance, Pitch, and Presence—to build and maintain a personal brand that keeps you front of mind when opportunities arise. By gaining clarity on your brand values and learning how to communicate them more effectively, you'll stay ahead in your career and future-proof your professional journey. Whether you're looking to get a raise, secure a promotion or pivot in your career, this session will equip you with the tools to ensure that the best-known truly wins.

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Ben Wood

Navigating AI Overviews, SearchGPT and the era of AI Powered Search

Learn how to adapt your organic strategy for the era of AI powered search, including a proven framework for best practice when it comes to performance marketing campaigns.

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Molly Scanlan

How to stop your website from destroying the planet

What’s the carbon footprint of your website? Yes – sorry – it does have one. Learn how to measure it, understand it and do something about it. And find out why we should even bother. In this talk, web designer and developer Molly will take you from confused and guilt-ridden to optimistic and inspired.

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Cormac Clarke

How a Digital PR-fuelled approach to building topical authority can boost your organic visibility

Some businesses may look at the SERPs in despair, ranking in SEO wilderness for target keywords with little organic traffic but how can you change this and compete at the top table? Cormac Clarke discusses how Digital PR, paired with an SEO strategy focused on building topical authority, can help you rise through the SERPs and supercharge your organic visibility.

10:50 - 11:20

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Break Time

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11:20 - 11:40

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Chima Mmeje

How to do a product-led content audit on an enterprise website

Chima will be sharing everything she's learned about doing a product-led content audit for the Moz.com website versus the traditional content audit and why this targeted approach yields better results for large enterprise sites (with a tonne of pages...)

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Adam Hetherington

Unlock a season of opportunities this Q4: how to meet every shopper mindset with Google’s AI

Google’s Strategic Agency Manager, Adam Hetherington, shares his expertise on how Google’s AI can help e-commerce brands meet the customer at every stage of the journey.

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Jonathan Catton

Get the full picture on performance with measurement frameworks

Cookies are blocked, attribution is broken, econometrics is too expensive. Learn how to actually understand how well your marketing is performing by setting up good strategic frameworks.

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Emma Bagley

Succeeding on Amazon & TikTok Shop in Q4: why it’s important to think holistically this Christmas

In this talk, Emma will explore the critical importance of adopting a comprehensive marketing approach to maximise online growth during the holiday season. As competition intensifies, relying solely on one platform isn’t enough; Emma will explore the synergy of Google Ads, robust organic social media presence, Meta ads, and email marketing to create a cohesive strategy that drives sales across multiple channels. This session is essential for brands and agencies looking to balance immediate sales with long-term growth in the digital marketplace.

11:50 - 12:10

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Joyann Boyce

Rethinking Bias: Creating Inclusive Content Using AI

In this talk, Joyann will take you on a journey to explore how bias and AI can be leveraged to create inclusive and impactful campaigns. Discover strategies that use bias as a tool for creativity, understanding audiences, and AI content creation. Gain insights into the role of marketers in reshaping narratives, breaking stereotypes, and fostering positive change. Key takeaways: Understanding the role of bias in Gen AI Key principles of inclusive marketing Leveraging bias in AI for Creative

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Tania Gerard

Creating accessible marketing: how neurodiversity can influence design and communication

In this session, Tania will explore the powerful impact of embracing neurodiverse perspectives to enhance your marketing efforts. Learn practical strategies for crafting clear messaging, designing visually accessible content, and improving user experience to resonate with a diverse audience. Whether you’re aiming to refine your marketing approach or simply seeking to understand how inclusivity can drive innovation, this talk will provide actionable insights and real-world examples to help you create more effective and inclusive marketing campaigns.

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Molly Watters

Navigating uncertainty: agile strategies for turbulent times

We know all businesses across all industries are facing turbulence, whether it’s budget cuts amidst economic factors, supply-chain concerns or cultural and behavioural shifts in consumers. In this talk, Molly discusses practical ways to pivot your media strategy and where to encourage your wider team to adapt as well. Molly delves into her advice with an advertising angle and how some of these challenges have played out and been resolved with real life case studies.

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Jade Faulconbridge

How to build profitable growth without extra resource

Hear how Equifax went from $0m of marketing opportunities to $10m in 4 years with the exact same team, budget, and technology. Jade's talk will cover the four core focuses which got the exec team excited, stakeholder backing, and sales asking for more leads. By understanding what wasn't working, the marketing team was able to become more efficient and effective, delivering more with the exact same resources. Jade shares what her team did and how they gained increased opportunities, bigger revenue and cemented the belief that Marketing was a much needed part of the business.

12:20 - 12:40

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Jennifer Shaw-Sweet

Category entry points in a B2B world

“The most important search engine is still the one in your mind” This statement makes a profound point all marketers should internalise about buyer behaviour: most purchases start not by searching Google, but by searching our memory. If you believe most buyer behaviour starts with memory, it then follows that the primary job of marketing is not to generate clicks, but instead to generate memories. In this talk, Jennifer will explain how CEPs can introduce clarity and quantifiable value to your brand messaging strategy.

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Dan Morehead

Mining SEO gold at Paris 2024

In this talk, Dan will discuss how you can make a Product-led SEO strategy the bedrock of your SEO roadmap. With details on how the Paris 2024 Paralympics took over all parts of Channel 4 and how departments can align for SEO success.

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Francis Williams

Human-centred design: How to deliver more, for less, quicker

How using UX design methodology can help you ask the right questions, to deliver more efficiently and effectively.

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Susan Hallam MBE

Agency life Q&A session

Susan Hallam MBE organised the very first Nottingham Digital Summit and is the founder of Hallam. She started her agency journey exactly 25 years ago this autumn. Working on her own initially as a startup, over the years she scaled up the business and eventually participated in a successful management buy out (MBO). Join Susan and your fellow digital entrepreneurs for an interactive Q&A session where we will focus on the practical steps you can take to grow your business and how to take your next steps in your own agency journey. It's a chance to unpick your most pressing concerns and talk through some of the most common issues facing startups and agency owners.

12:40 - 1:40

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Lunch

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1:40 - 2:00

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Kirsty Hulse

Staying calm and confident in chaos 🚀

Gear up for a power-packed session that will redefine how you thrive in the fast-paced world of marketing. This is your practical playbook for building an unbeatable workplace spirit that laughs in the face of challenges. In this session: ✅ Discover how to develop a growth mindset, to keep cool and confident, no matter what the day throws at you. ✅ Learn how to quickly regain focus and keep your team driven during high-stress moments. ✅ Equip yourself with simple, daily practices that boost morale and turn tough targets into exciting milestones.

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Jack Brown

Mastering the art of the unforgettable ad campaign

Are your ads failing because you’re ignoring the real reason people engage? Join us to uncover why traditional metrics are misleading and how understanding the attention curve can revolutionise your strategy. Discover why your platform choice might be costing you more than you think — and how to fix it.

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Alan Gormley

Driving higher online sales with Contextual AI to understand the customer's mission

Contextual AI has the ability to sell not just what a customer is looking for but understand what their mission is and fulfill a wider range of needs for that mission. Imagine the sales impact of selling for the customer's entire holiday not just selling a swimsuit. Critically it can adapt the store in real time, as they are shopping, creating a unique store for their needs. Alan will discuss how this can be applied and the sales impact seen in the real world.

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Steve Pannett

How to make boring stuff, not boring

Steve delivers a crash course in creative thinking, why you need it, and how to embed it into your organisation.

2:10 - 2:30

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Cameron McClellan and Niki Grant

Navigating the digital maze: mastering programmatic advertising and PPC for optimal user journeys

We all know the digital consumer journey is getting increasingly complicated, and it can be tricky to navigate all of the options available. We'll be sharing how a cohesive approach between paid search and programmatic can build a conversion-driving, through-the funnel solution to reach and remind your customers at the right time

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Mel Barfield

Brave content: how to brag online, grow your network and win clients

Copywriter Mel Barfield looks at how showing off more online will help you grow a productive network of peers and potential clients. Whether you’re an indie business owner, freelancer or employee, it’s time to get over that gross feeling and show off more. This talk will cover practical ways to use success stories to narrow the gap and build invisible rapport with your clients.

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Si Beales

How to learn happy

Steven Bartlett says: ‘The most successful people in the world are the ones who never stop learning’. But there’s a problem: education can sometimes seem impersonal, ineffective or even outdated. So how can we learn to learn smarter, deeper and happier? Writer, academic, entrepreneur, Si Beales, has a few ideas.

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Rebecca Peel

A content goldmine: leveraging internal data sources for Digital PR

Businesses often have heaps of internal data and information that nobody else has access to. But how can you utilise this potential gold mine for your Digital PR and SEO efforts? Rebecca Peel discusses how to analyse your own data, including customer habits, sales trends, seasonal changes and survey results to pick out the most newsworthy hooks, and provide original research to journalists that will secure backlinks, improve search rankings and strengthen your organic visibility.

2:40 - 3:00

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Joe Glover

How I learned to embrace quiet confidence

Confidence is not an expression of your volume, it's an expression of showing up as yourself. Joe Glover lays out the magic of quiet confidence

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Wayne Barker

Game over? The fight for quality and originality in the time of robots

The recent Google Core Update, coupled with Google's evolving indexing practices, has significantly influenced SEO strategies for marketers everywhere. In addition to this, the rise of AI and its potential to generate informational content raises concerns about the decline of in-depth, original content. Wayne Barker, an SEO veteran of 15+ years, talks you through adapting to the dynamic SEO landscape and how businesses must shift from traditional strategic planning to scenario planning, allowing for greater flexibility and adaptability.

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Panel discussion: The future of data and measurement

Join Hallam's Head of Brand, Julie Reid, as she explores the future of data with Senior Director of Economics at Magic Numbers, Joy Talbot, and Hallam's Head of Data & Insights, Jonathan Catton.

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Kieran Sheridan-Lawler

Marketing mastery: unlocking strategic insights for business growth

Marketing is often impacted by wider business decisions, but how often does your marketing inform business decisions? In this presentation, Kieran explores practical ways that marketing teams and business owners can gain a competitive advantage through utilising strategic insights for business growth.

3:00 - 3:30

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Ice cream break 🍦

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3:30 - 3:50

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Azeem Ahmad

How YOU can become an audio and video multimedia marvel with your marketing

Azeem will dissect the timeless appeal of iconic marketing campaigns, focusing on their use of audio and video. From historical benchmarks to contemporary digital strategies, he'll explore how these elements have shaped lasting impressions. Gain actionable insights to leverage audio and video effectively in your organic marketing, as well as discovering how to craft campaigns that resonate across generations and drive both short-term and long-term success.

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Quarina Sultana

Navigating the digital maturity curve: key steps for senior leaders

Digital transformation isn’t just about technology — it’s about evolving your business at every level. In this presentation, Quarina will guide senior leaders through the stages of digital maturity, helping them identify where their organisation stands and what targeted actions are needed to advance to the next level.

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David Coghlan

How to do radical marketing without screwing your career

"I've been called innovative. The reality is I'd be a lot more innovative if I didn't have a family, a mortgage and loads of bills to pay!" We're all guilty of doing just enough. Making sure we hit our targets but always with one eye over our shoulders to make sure we don't do anything too crazy that could backfire and ruin us professionally. But what if you could make a stand, make a change or do something radical without risking your livelihood? In this session Dave will discuss how we can face our fear, make big impacts as marketers and do more fulfilling work. All while not getting sacked!

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Stage closed

4:00 - 4:20

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Luke Carthy

How to customise GA4 to grow ecommerce sales and conversion

GA4 can be a bit of an arse but, once customised, it can be incredibly instrumental in surfacing friction areas and opportunities to grow sales and maximise conversions. In this session, Luke will showcase some real-world wins and examples you can implement right away to boost sales and conversion.

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Julio Taylor, Jack Brown and Adam Hetherington

Panel discussion: Advertising in the AI era

AI is now impacting every area of paid advertising, from account structure, management, audience targeting, reporting and optimisation. In this session, we’ll discuss the latest trends, tools and how to use AI to increase paid media performance.

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Tom Bestwick

Food for thought: how to create a thought leadership strategy that builds awareness and conversions

Research shows that thought leadership content influences buying decisions. In this talk, Tom will explore and analyse the importance of thought leadership on awareness and conversion, and explain how to build a multi-channel thought leadership strategy that delivers real results.

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Stage closed

4:30 - 7:00

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Afterparty drinks

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Coming Soon

The agenda is still being finalised, please check back soon!