11 Reasons I'm Excited For SMX East 2011

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By Greg Finn
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Just under a month from now, SMX East will be getting underway and I am pumped. This is my absolute favorite conference and I wanted to share why that is the case, and what I am excited for this year.

Disclaimer, I write for Search Engine Land and am moderating panels for SMX, so my opinion may be biased.  With that being said, here are the things I am looking most forward to this year:

The NYC Audience

One of my absolute favorite elements of this show is the wide range of people that attend. The Big Apple is truly a diverse place, and  the audience reflects that. From publishers, to agencies, webmasters to content curators ... SMX East draws the most interesting crowd of people. There is always and interesting person sitting across from you at lunch, and I really love that!

Image Courtesy of JavitsCenter.com

A Double Dose of Marty

Undoubtedly, one of the  most captivating speakers on the search circuit, Marty Weintraub is on not one- but two panels! If you haven't seen Marty speak yet, it is worth the price of admission. Catch him on "Facebook Ads, Meet Search Ads" on Day 2, and "Beyond Rankings: Actionable SEO Reports Your Boss Will Love" on day 3.

Image Courtesy of SearchMarketingGurus.com

The Social Media Clinic

On Day 3, I am putting together a great panel with both marketers and in-house social media specialists! We will cover everything from Facebook & Twitter to Tumblr & Buzzfeed. If you have any questions at all on how to ramp up your social presence, this will be the must attend panel for you!

Tiffany Will Be Attending!

Our newest team member, Tiffany Tcheng, will be attending. She is the personality behind our site, our Twitter and our Facebook account and this is her first show.  If you see her, make sure to say hi!

Annie Cushing Is Presenting On Analytics

Director of 'Annie'lytics at BlueGlass, Annie Cushing is the go-to source for anything analytics related. I meet Annie back at SMX East 2008, and this will be the first time that I will get the pleasure to watch her present. Make sure to bring a notepad, as Annie brings great detail to everything she does.

Image Courtesy of BlueGlass

Ask The Search Engines Session

Always a strong panel, it gets even more interesting when Blekko is in the mix. With presences from Google, Bing and Blekko, this should be a great look at the multitude of changes that have occured in the search realm as of late.

Image Courtesy of SearchEngineRoundtable.com

SMX After Dark

What's better than meeting up with others in the search marketing space? Doing so for a good cause. For only $50, you can help support the Susan G. Komen Search for the Cure at the SMX After Dark Event sponsored by Covario.

The Venue

What better place is there than NYC? With the conference hotel being located right next to time square, you couldn't ask for a better location. Shuttles ship you back and forth to the conference center and there is so much to do if you can find any downtime.

Ask The SEO's

This is my absolute favorite panel at any show anywhere. Just take a look at the people on the panel:

  • Alex Bennert, In House SEO, Wall Street Journal (Q&A Speaker)
  • Greg Boser, SVP of Search Services, BlueGlass Interactive, Inc. (Q&A Speaker)
  • Bruce Clay, President, Bruce Clay, Inc. (Q&A Speaker)
  • Vanessa Fox, Contributing Editor, Search Engine Land (Q&A Speaker)
  • Todd Friesen, Director of SEO, Performics (Q&A Speaker)
  • Rae Hoffman-Dolan, CEO, Sugarrae SEO Firm (Q&A Speaker)


Image Courtesy of Search Engine Topic on Flickr

The Evening Forum With Danny Sullivan

I would pay to see Danny do stand-up, so blending his unique search humor along with current topics is a must-see. With so much going on in the search world, this forum should really cover a lot of ground while being highly entertaining.
Image Courtesy of aimClear

Up Close With Google+ and Google +1 Panel

There is so much to talk about with this Google's new social networking service and Christian Oestlien, Lead Project Manager at Google, and Tiffany Oberoi, Software Engineer at Google, will be dishing out answers. Danny Sullivan heads up this panel, and he is the perfect person to ask all the hard questions!

So if you are looking for more information about SMX East, head over to the official site, and if you are attending, make sure to stop me and say hi!

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By Greg Finn
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Meet the Author

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Head of Performance & Innovation / Partner

Greg Finn

Greg is the Head of Performance and Innovation for Cypress North's digital marketing team and one of the founders of our agency. In 2010, he and Matt Mombrea started Cypress North in Buffalo. Greg oversaw the opening of our second office in 2022, located in his hometown of Rochester.

As Head of Performance and Innovation, Greg co-manages our digital marketing department and works closely with our team to ensure all our clients achieve the best possible results. He is always looking for ways to test new digital marketing techniques and technology, and oversees all teaching and training efforts to ensure our agency stays ahead of the curve.

Greg is also a co-host of our weekly Marketing O'Clock podcast, where he and the team provide updates, insights, and hot takes on the latest SEO, PPC, and social media marketing news. In addition to weekly news shows, Greg hosts our Marketing O'Torial digital marketing tutorials and often co-hosts bonus Marketing O'Talk episodes that bring together panels of digital marketing experts.

With nearly two decades of experience, Greg is a known and trusted voice in the digital marketing community. He’s a contributor for Search Engine Land, a member of the Search Marketing Expo (SMX) programming team, and has been a featured speaker at some of the largest search engine conferences, including SMX, eSummit, and Pubcon. 

When he’s not working or staying updated on the latest trends, Greg enjoys watching his kids play sports and coaching their soccer team. He’s been named the runner-up “Greg of the Year” on Marketing O’Clock’s annual Clockscars Awards four years in a row. While the coveted award has evaded him for many years, Keanu Reeves has not. Greg once saw him at Gabriel's Gate tavern in Buffalo (and noted he was very tall.)