For those who missed last week’s AdSpace / AdTech San Francisco 2009, panel presentations are available for downloading. There are some very useful PowerPoint files made available, including my closing keynote where I shared tips about generating traffic to HealthCastle.com and monetization methods used to increase overall revenues. Looks like audio podcasts will be made available soon too. Download presentations here.

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In addition to sharing and learning, one of the best things about attending conferences, for me, is making great connections. I attended AdSpace last week and was glad to have met a bunch of great people including my fellow panelists from the day-ending keynote “The MasterClass for AdSense Rock Stars“:

• Leora Bloomberg
• Chris Raimondi
• Kim Kaplan
• Barbara Feldman

To the right is a photo of me standing beside our session stand.

It was also fantastic to finally meet, in-person, a few of the Google team members that we have worked with. A shout out to Sunil Subhedar, Arlene Lee and Cherie Yu. Thanks for inviting me to be on a keynote panel and for putting on a great show! See everyone at a future event!

Conferences are much more than just presentations and seminars. It’s also about connecting with like-minded individuals and learning from them. So the next time you attend a conference, prepare ahead of time and come up with some goals before booking the show. Be sure that one of those goals is to connect with others who are as passionate about your interests as you are. By following this one tip, you could literally turn a good conference into a great one!

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Last week, I spoke at AdSpace San Francisco about how we generate traffic at HealthCastle.com and about how that traffic is effectively monetized. I thoroughly enjoyed sharing our successes and learning from others on the AdSense Rock Stars panel. So what was the take home message from my presentation?

Lesson from an AdSense Rock Star to Boost Revenues

Essentially, every website is unique and has its own dynamic. You must do your own experimenting and testing to maximize revenues. Below are two real world test cases from my presentation that surprised many attendees. Through our own testing, we found what has worked for others, did not work for us.

1. 120×600 Text Ads Performed 15% Better Than 160×600 Text Ads

2. Text Ads Performed As Well As Image + Text Ads

So be ready to test, test and test again! Every website is unique and it’s an on-going process trying to increase eCPM and overall revenue.

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Attending internet marketing conferences like AdTech San Francisco 2008 will help you stay up to date with new developments in the marketing and advertising realms. In addition, these events are also where you find new business contacts and strengthen current relationships. I just returned from AdTech and once again, the out-of-conference relationship building was just as important as the actual conference itself.

The evening prior to AdTech, my Editor-in-Chief, Gloria Tsang, and I were invited by Kowabunga! to watch the San Francisco Giants baseball game in their amazing club suite at AT&T park. The club suite had a fantastic view and was filled with abundant food & drinks. Connecting with old friends and meeting new people at the event was fun. A big thank you to Todd Farmer & Tanya Boggs for the invite! Here is a photo of Todd Farmer (Founder of Kowabunga!) & myself at AdTech San Francisco 2008.

Here are a few photos from the game itself:

Great view of the bay from the club suite.

Here comes a fast one!

Swing batta! Can you see the ball?

After Hour Gatherings are Key

Having attended AdTech 2007 and AdTech San Francisco 2008, I know first-hand that conferences can be extremely tiring. But after the work day is done, it is also important to recharge with good eats and do some networking at the same time. In most cases when you make an effort, you will end up meeting new and interesting people. More importantly, these new contacts can lead to future business and friendships.

Size Does Matter – The Smaller the Better

Normally at conferences, I prefer the smaller, more intimate gatherings. It’s simply much easier to get to know the people you are with in a smaller group setting as compared to the large conference parties. After completing Day 1 of AdTech, there were 9 of us who had dinner at Asia de Cuba. The food was scrumptious and the dinner guests were a delight. Thanks to Geofferson Marcy for choosing my dinner. The sea bass (photo below) was absolutely fantastic!

Here is a photo of everyone at dinner.

From left to right – Bob Buskirk, Danielle Nagami, Geofferson Marcy, Brian Littleton, Missy Ward, Lisa Picarille, Connie Berg and me.

After all the meetings and sessions were completed on Day 2 of AdTech, I attended a private party hosted by Glam Media. Glam is rated by comScore as a Top 30 US property and it was refreshing to put some faces to names that I have been working with over the last few months. Thanks for putting on a great event Glam gang!

Staying with the small gathering theme, I then attended another dinner event with a group of bloggers – some of whom I have met from the blogosphere. Meeting everyone at Anabelle’s was fun and the creme brulee was yummilicious! Thanks to Danielle for organizing the dinner. Here is everyone who attended.

From Left to Right – Greg Morgan, Garrett Gee, Wesley Mahler, me, Gloria Tsang, Bob Buskirk, Danielle Nagami and Ian Fernando.
(Photo Source: IanFernando.com)

Pre-Planning Ensure Success

All of the above events and meetings were pre-scheduled before I even arrived in San Francisco. I learned from my own previous conference experiences and used them to make this a super productive trip.

The people who get the most out of conferences are the ones who prepare before hand and clearly define goals for the trip. Being productive at a conference can be hard work and will require some pre-planning. Being prepared will not only help you get the most out of any conference but also add an element of fun into an otherwise tiring ordeal. So to ensure that your next conference is a successful one, be sure to dedicate some time organizing your itinerary for day meetings as well as after hour gatherings before you even get on the plane.

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