Proven Strategies and Secrets Revealed for Novices and Experts Alike

By Steve Campbell

		The one-day SEMA Online Marketing Conference, sponsored by eBay Motors and the Street Performance Council, will take place on Tuesday, November 1, in conjunction with the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Top-flight presenters will offer strategies and proven techniques in site optimization, pay-per-click advertising, keyword manipulation search engines and much more for both Internet veterans and novices.

Whether you’re an Internet veteran well versed in site optimization, pay-per-click advertising, keyword manipulation and search engines, or a novice who recognizes the need to take advantage of all the Internet has to offer to make your business a success, the SEMA Online Marketing Conference is a tool you can use to boost your company’s performance. The one-day conference, sponsored by eBay Motors and the Street Performance Council, will take place on Tuesday, November 1, in conjunction with the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The speakers are not only experts in their respective fields but are also top-rated educators.

This year’s conference will feature parallel courses: an Intermediate Track for experienced web users who want to learn the latest technologies and techniques; and a Fundamentals Track for those who need to learn or review the basics before moving on to more challenging topics. And, for those interested in earning an Automotive Aftermarket Professional (AAP) or Master Automotive Aftermarket Professional (MAAP) credential from the University of the Aftermarket, SEMA’s Online Marketing Conference offers .8 CEUs toward your credential.

The conference will open with a keynote address by eBay in the Las Vegas Hilton, and a preliminary general session entitled “Seven Deadly Sins of Landing-Page Design” will follow at 9:30 a.m. The techniques taught by Tim Ash of SiteTuners during this session can lead to quickly increased sales conversions and additional profit. Following the general session, the two groups will separate into their individual tracks for the morning seminars.

The morning Fundamentals Track will focus on how to build a mobile site, including design best practices; ongoing search-engine optimization; how to use analytics; and strategies for customer engagement, development and retention. The Intermediate Track will be an interactive workshop in which attendee landing pages will be called up live (with the attendees’ permission, of course) for immediate feedback on how to increase conversions and improve the pages.

Simon Salt of IncSlingers will present a special lunchtime keynote address. The noted author will speak on “Mobile Marketing and the Enthusiast Customer”—a high-level overview of trends in mobile and location-based marketing, with discussions regarding photo-sharing and location-sharing applications and future developments in quick-response codes, near-field communications and more.

The separate curricula will resume at 12:45 p.m. The afternoon Fundamentals Track will include topics, such as how to develop successful Facebook pages, basic tactics and strategies for successful search-engine optimization and how to use analytics to measure performance and adjust your operations.

The Intermediate Track will include information about the power of website video and best practices for publishing video on a
website; current trends in video marketing; how to maximize platforms, such as YouTube and Facebook; and a comprehensive overview of the latest search-engine marketing strategies and tactics, including search-engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising and conversion optimization.

The day’s activities will conclude with another joint session entitled, “The No B.S. Guide to Social Media Marketing.” Presenter and author Jason Falls will provide the no-holds-barred truth about developing, executing and measuring social-media marketing strategies. Falls will show how to make social media work for your business.

Attendees must be registered for the SEMA Show ($25 prior to October 17; $75 afterward) in order to register for the Online Marketing Conference. Pricing for the conference before October 17 is $119 for SEMA members and $219 for non-members. After October 17, conference pricing is $169 for SEMA members and $269 for non-members.

Seating is limited, and last year’s event sold out quickly, so act now!