STRATEGIES AND SECRETS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS, YOUR AUDIENCE, AND YOUR CHANNEL
Who should attend the Industry Track?
- Creators and Influencers
- Marketers
- Agency Execs
- Brand Strategists
- Audience Development Professionals
- Business Owners
The Industry Track brings together the top creative, audience, and revenue growth experts in the world to share their secrets. Each of our speakers will share insights that they’ve never before revealed. Top digital leaders will share strategies for success that will inspire you to build your own success, and top execs from the leading video platforms will present and answer your questions as well.
A note from VidCon General Manager Jim Louderback
Hi, Jim Louderback here, GM of VidCon. We’ve been improving just about everything here in Anaheim, including expanding our insightful speaker roster for the Industry Track, bringing on an entirely new conference center to expand our creator-based content, and highlighting a renewed emphasis on helping attendees build big businesses in the rapidly expanding digital video ecosystem.
You know how rapidly things are changing – otherwise you wouldn’t be considering attending the Industry Track. But it’s moving even more rapidly than ever! Traditional TV bundles are fading, new OTT entrants are rising, and the influencer economy is changing marketing, branding, and what it means to be a celebrity.
Pure play digital video platforms are expanding as well. Instagram is now one of the biggest video platforms in the world, Snapchat continues to expand, Musical.ly is capturing an increasingly large share of attention, and LinkedIn is now emerging as a powerful new platform.
Financing, too, is turning upside down, as the blockchain, ICOs and Bitcoin are rewriting the rules on how to raise money, engage audiences, and build businesses – and in turn dramatically changing the relationship between creators, fans and industry.
And that’s why you have to come to VidCon this year. We’re building an amazing program that will tackle all these issues and more.
You need to come back to VidCon this year. Your career success depends on it. And you won’t find a better or more excited group of attendees, speakers, creators, and execs.
Confirmed Industry Sessions
- The 8 Formats You Must Know To Build Your Audience on YouTube
Many creators and digital brands struggle to answer the question “what should we make?” They struggle, in part, because they don’t have a system of development in which to analyze their content. Matt Gielen hopes that understanding the taxonomy of digital video will allow breakdown the complexity of these programming choices into a structure and a system of thinking that ensures your videos will get watched. - Features and Franchises: How BuzzFeed Takes ‘Viral’ and Creates A Brand
BuzzFeed has turned one off viral hits into world-wide brands. We’ll examine a couple use cases and dissect the planning and ideation of brands like Tasty, Goodful, Bringme, Worth It, and others that never saw the light of day. - Demystifying Demographics: The Secrets Of Targeting Audiences Through Platform, Content and Format
As digital video has exploded over the last decade, so too have the opportunities for content producers, social platforms and – most importantly – video-hungry audiences! Hear how today’s top content producers figured out the magic behind successfully reaching target audiences across the multiple distribution outlets available today. - How to do Champagne Viewer Research on a Diet Coke budget
Often digital creators and even some larger independents skip out on viewer research. Typical excuses are that focus groups, panels, screenings, and people meters are too costly, that you don’t know what to with the data, or you don’t have time. However, waiting to see how many likes and comments a video gets puts limitations on the creative cycle and doesn’t provide the deeper insight of “why” people responded the way they did to your content. In this workshop, we’ll discuss how viewer research is done, understand how to leverage this data and explore some low-cost tools that can be used to get started. - Brands and Creators: Is this Marriage Working?
The explosion of content and the destruction of conventional media channels has transformed the world of advertising, opening the door for a new creator class who bring their own audiences. But for all of the opportunity in the influencer space, it comes fraught with complexity. Where are we in the evolution of the brand and creator relationship? What have we figured out so far and where is the friction? What tools are helping and what models show promise? - Squatty Potty Secrets: 6 Tips on How to Use Video to Sell Millions Without Banking on Virality
The Harmon Brothers have built a world-class business creating hilarious video campaigns that have driven over $300 million in sales. In this session, they share 6 secrets of creating videos that sell and don’t depend on virality — all gleaned from their campaigns with top brands you know and love. - Brian Solis and the State of Influencer Marketing
In this keynote, researcher and futurist Brian Solis shares the results of his groundbreaking research on the state of influencers, influencer marketing and what the future holds. - Annual State of Video from Mike Vorhaus, Magid Media Advisors
Magid Media Advisors President Mike Vorhaus (and VidCon Industry editorial director) brings us the latest research on what’s happening with online video, along with a pinpoint analysis of the key trends, reversals and unexpected conclusions emerging from the latest data. He will also present recent data on the the latest platforms and formats sweeping the world.
Mike Vorhaus, (President – Magid Advisors) - Growth Hacking YouTube: Triggering Algorithm Driven Views
More than half of all viewership on YouTube comes from the video discovery algorithm. These traffic sources are the true key for massive channel growth on YouTube. Come learn how this algorithm works, the main triggers, and how to use it to make it work for your channel.
Derral Eves, (CEO – Creatus) - Hacking the Facebook Algorithm – Inside Facebook’s Secret Promotional Code
Jumpwire Media is constantly testing and re-testing Facebook’s promotional algorithm, varying image types, elements and other meta-data. CEO Gavin McGarry shares the secrets his organization has learned to help you drive more exposure, more likes and more shares for your Facebook content.
Gavin McGarry, (President – Jumpwire Media) - How To Master Your Instagram Strategy
Join Instagram’s Jackson Williams as he shares secrets on building a business on Instagram. With new features like Instagram Stories, live video and more, creators and brands can authentically connect with global audiences in new, expressive ways. What’s the best way to leverage Instagram Stories and amplify global reach for your content? How do you take advantage of Instagram Live and establish an engaged audience? How can creators and brands leverage Instagram as their master toolkit for content production and curation? Bring your questions, because you’ll have ample time to ask Jackson anything.
Jackson Williams, (Strategic Partnerships, Emerging Talent – Instagram) - How to Spot Fake Influencers
With the rise of micro-influencers on social video channels, there’s been an explosion of fake accounts that are siphoning millions of dollars from brands. These fake accounts are buying followers and engagement, creating the illusion of reach and influence, and then selling sponsorship opportunities. So how do you protect yourself? Jeremy Shih from Mediakix conducted a year-long study into how these accounts are built, uncovered the defining features, and developed insight into how you can protect yourself, your company and your clients from being lulled into complacency and losing money. IN this session Jeremy will discuss the research, explore how fake accounts buy views and engagement, and share strategies and secret techniques to help you spot the fakes.
Jeremy Shih (Head of Marketing – Mediakix) - SuperSession -Looking Further Into the Future of Media
Where’s the white space over the next few years? What are the best opportunities to build the next $100 million business? We’re at the beginning of the online revolution, what’s next? This session takes a concrete look at where the online video industry is going, with real quantifiable predictions. This session pulls together some of the top experts and futurists to dive into which platforms will rise, which will fall, and how viewing habits, advertising and entertainment itself will change over the coming years.
Ivana Kirkbride, (Chief Content Officer – Go90 at Verizon)
Kathleen Grace, (CEO – New Form)
Mark Robertson, (The Dude – FFWD.Co)
Mike Vorhaus, (President – Magid Advisors)
John McCarus, (CMO – WatchMojo) - How to Dominate YouTube Trends and Rapidly Grow Your Audience
Think it’s too late to build a big presence on YouTube? Think again. Stephen and Carter Sharer and their partner, Elizabeth Chang, built their channel from nothing to millions of subscribers in under 12 months. In this workshop they share their secrets of using detailed data analysis to determine what content to make, how to package it, and how to build a consistent brand that’s also extremely attractive to sponsors and advertisers.
Stephen Sharer, (YouTuber – Sharer Bros)
Carter Sharer (YouTuber – Sharer Bros)
Elizabeth Chang, (YouTuber – Sharer Bros) - How to Produce TV Quality Programming on an Internet Video Budget
Escape the night was one of the most popular YouTube Red series, featuring Joey Graceffa, Liza Koshy, Tyler Oakley and many more online video stars. In this seminar, the producers of the series share how they produced at TV quality levels of photography, VFX, effects, sound, script, photography, crew, sets, and prop rapidly on an internet-style budget.
Ian James Duncan, (VFX Supervisor, Post Producer – Chariotdrive.co) - SuperSession – What Kids Really Watch, Use and Do
You’ve probably already heard the debate about how GenZ and GenY are very different. But what does the Snapchat generation really want from their media? How and where do they consume video? Do they ever watch TV? How quickly do they adopt new platforms? Be part of a round-table discussion with 4 actual GenZ teens (from 14-18) as we explore this and more!
John McCarus (CMO – WatchMojo) - How Blockchain, BitCoin, and ICOs Will Change the Face of Media
The world of currency, fundraising, and monetization in media is fundamentally changing. New financing options, built on the blockchain, will change how creators are funded, how artists work with brands, and how audiences and creators connect. This session explores what the tokenized business of the future looks like, how you can raise financing for your projects through cryptocurrencies, what you need to know to do an ICO, and much, much more.
Samantha Radocchia (Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer – Chronicled)
Marie Leaf (Founder – Lemma Ventures) - Secrets of Influencer Commerce – Supersession
Creators sell things — it’s a proven fact. From clothing to makeup, toys, and more, commerce offers one of the more alluring ways for creators to augment — or even supercede — advertising revenue. This session explores the options available, provides secrets for building successful product lines, insight from those who’ve built their own brands, and how to maintain a sustainable business even if your popularity wanes.
April Foster (CEO – Inked Brands)
Bonnie D’Amico (Senior Affiliate Manager – Shopify) - How To Build A Top Channel On LinkedIn
One of the oldest social networks finally added video last year, and it’s quickly become a great place to build a strong brand presence. But what works on Facebook or YouTube won’t necessarily work on LinkedIn. In this session the first #1 LInkedIn influencer shares her secrets of success, including details on what to post, how to post, how to market and what works and what doesn’t.
Suzanne Nguyen - SuperSession – Creators Tell Brands and Agencies How to Work With Them
Want to know how to work with creators? Find out from the horse’s mouth. This session brings together four of the top online video creators and will explore just how they like to work with brands on activations, sponsorships and other collaborations. Topics to explore include how they like to do creative ideation, which brands have resonated the most with their communities, best practices on setting and communicating KPIs and what are the best non-monetary items brands can deliver to creators. - Adapting Global Storytelling Techniques to Local Markets
This seminar provides hands on tips, tricks and secrets to help brands, creators and companies identify global trends and trending stories, and then how to adapt them to local markets to maximize engagement.
Cassie Roma (General Manager – Content Marketing & Experiential – NZME) - Research Debut: Youth Video Diet
Following up on last year’s brand- and ad-focused study that debuted at VidCon, DEFY Media’s Acumen research arm will revisit its groundbreaking study on the Youth Video Diet. The prevailing wisdom says youth are primarily spending their video viewing time watching YouTube, but this point-of-view ignores the dramatic changes in video from social media platforms, emerging video players, and the potential for “skinny bundles” to replace traditionally bundled cable television. The study will document and measure this audience’s specific video habits — where, when, how, and why they watch video — as well as detail the devices, the platforms, and the hours of watching, charting this information against the 24-hour breakfast-to-bedtime cycle of today’s “always connected” youth.
Andy Tu (CMO – Defy Media) - How to Find Your Own Best Practices
There are no easy, cookie cutter answers to every problem – particularly when it comes to developing strategies and processes for building your channel and engaging your audience. Insights and secrets help, but every audience is unique, and every platform is unique as well. An audience for, say, a gaming channel will interact with content and platforms MUCH differently than an audience for a beauty channel. Even within a specific genre, your audience is unique; no two audiences interact with content in quite the same way. This session will arm you with the knowledge, tools and insight to deeply understand what will truly appeal to YOUR audience, with a focus on the behaviors needed to discover and super-serve their needs, wants and desires.
Gwen Miller, (Vice President of Audience and Platforms – Kin Community) - Fireside Chat with Jamie Bolding – CEO Jungle Creations
Still sitting atop the charts as one of the most viewed channels on Facebook, Jungle Creations has come a long way in the last year. From hiring a dedicated sales force in the US, to embracing Facebook’s constantly changing video expectations, this conversation explores how Jungle Creations has expanded, what the revenue opportunities on Facebook are now, and how longer form content is faring — with a look to the future of Facebook, Instagram and other social video platforms.
Jamie Bolding (CEO – Jungle Creations)
