2020 Agenda

Every brand is vulnerable to crisis in the social media era. We’ll take a look at case studies that effectively prevented or mitigated a crisis that erupted on social media.

This workshop will include:

• An interactive crisis simulation
• Real-world examples of social media crisis
• Proactive and reactive crisis tactics
• A look at social media monitoring and privacy tools

Not every brand has budget for an in-house video team, and those that do benefit from a knowledge of video content best practices. In this workshop, discover how to build a film crew from the office and shoot great-looking social media content for your channels.

We'll cover:

• An overview of visual best practices
• How to use stock B-roll and music to add polish to corporate video
• A look at smartphone and video tools for better looking footage
• Ideal video lengths and metrics across social platforms
• How to find the right talent for your videos
• Case studies in successful video campaigns

Our trainers will share strategies and tools for making the most of a meager social media budget. Attendees will work in groups to brainstorm plans for low-budget social campaigns.

We'll cover:

• Smart staffing
• Low-budget video tools
• Prioritization
• Paid vs. organic social (how low can you go?)

Proving return on investment is one of the biggest challenges that social media marketers face. In this workshop, we’ll look at a range of key performance indicators across various social channels, and discuss how to determine which metrics are most valuable for your brand to track.

This workshop will include:

• A workshop of native social media analytics, noting the most crucial elements of each platform
• Group discussion of the best-value analytics tools on the market
• Case studies of social media campaigns that were aided by strong measurement strategy
• Strategies for adjusting social strategy based on metrics
• Advice for putting together reporting dashboards

#SSU2020 host Brian Fanzo, CEO of iSocialFanz, is here to usher in this year’s virtual event and give you a taste of what to expect.

There are many ways for brands to tell stories on social feeds. In today’s climate, audiences either see ads as an interruption or don't notice them at all, thus making unforgettable storytelling more relevant than ever. In this talk, Twitter’s ArtHouse creator content solutions lead Leah Feygin will cover the guiding principles of making branded content not just noticeable but unforgettable. She'll show how brands can cultivate a voice and connect with audiences in ways that really resonate with their audiences.

You want to encourage your employees to post to social media—within the limits of good taste. But how do you ensure you’re offering colleagues creative freedom without raining down HIPAA, FTC or enraged board members on your top tweeters? We will offer an alternative plan, as well as training and compliance tips for those employees handling influencer marketing.

In this session with two of Walmart's top digital strategists, attendees will learn how to nail their channels’ voice and personality, as well as ways to capitalize on UGC for their channels and source and create content that resonates with audiences and encourages engagement (even during a pandemic).

Get the latest on Google’s algorithm and learn to optimize your site for the most recent changes—and those likely to come. Learn what to prioritize in terms of SEO and paid search, as well as what the latest updates mean for ranking.

Take a break from the day's activities.

Our illustrious host will shake you out of your post-lunch slump, recap the morning’s events and help you prep for the second half of today’s sessions.

Today’s consumers are often overwhelmed with information and choice. With so many options, audiences are increasingly watching videos and scrolling through their feeds for inspiration—finding their next favorite brand or product along the way. In this session, we'll talk through how recent Google and YouTube innovations can inspire new customers to take action.

2020 has challenged and changed the world in so many ways. Content strategy is no exception. At a media company, editorial agility is absolutely critical for serving and reaching readers. We had to act fast, collaborate often, and lean heavily on keyword insights to know what new topics and challenges were arising any given moment. 
 
During this session we'll walk through the lessons learned, as well as the tools and tactics needed to make your content strategy nimble and audience-driven.

Last year, Sephora brought its intentions of cultivating an inclusive beauty community to its first-ever large-scale influencer program, #SephoraSquad. The program was an amplification of the community of voices, perspectives and experiences that have shaped Sephora to be what it is today; a true reflection of Sephora’s clients and employees, the Beauty Insider Community and the beauty industry as a whole. As #SephoraSquad enters its second year, Sephora’s VP of content strategy Emmy Berlind will be sharing the brand’s successes and celebrations along with key insights and learnings of the brand's best-in-class approach to influencer relations.

No social marketer or digital communicator wants to wake up in the middle of the night to a social media firestorm—but in this politically-charged, polarized era, it happens all too often. This session will cover social media crisis prep and ground zero mitigation.

Missed some of today’s sessions? No problem. Fanzo is here to recap the day’s top takeaways and get you pumped for tomorrow.

Your #SSU2020 host sets the stage for Day 2.

• Over the past decade, the LEGO Group's social media presence has grown from being non-existent to a best-in-class, fun and engaging experience across leading social platforms, delivering meaningful and engaging interactions with millions of fans every day. In an ever-changing marketing ecosystem, James Gregson, head of LEGO Social Studios, will take you through how The LEGO Group's developed such a global and evocative social media content strategy across audiences and social channels.

In this fireside chat, Dagger CEO Mike Popowski will interview Brandon Butler, the executive director of digital culture channel Butter.ATL on growing the brand into a local media powerhouse. They will dive behind the scenes of channel growth, content creation and the process of signing on and working with a brand, addressing do's and don'ts for reaching out to and partnering with influencers from the brand side.

The FTC now requires specific disclosures around influencer marketing, with new guidelines released in fall 2019. In this session, FTC attorney Michael Boutros will offer clarity on federal guidelines, sharing do's and dont's for marketers to pass along to the influencers and brand ambassadors they work with. 

In a time of budget cuts, how can your brand reduce the amount of money it is spending on paid social? The secret lies in narrowing your lens, better targeting your audience and using paid social to gather valuable business intelligence rather than simply selling. In this session, learn the latest in paid social, including some of the unexpected social platforms your team might be missing.

Take a break from the day's activities.

Catch up on the morning’s activities and get ready for the post-lunch lineup with #SSU2020 host Brian Fanzo.

From artistic aptitude to strong writing and data savvy, the ideal social media hire has a unique and varied skillset. Does it make sense to staff up your social team with polymaths, or should each member have a distinct social-related talent and role? How much can your social media maven interns be trusted to run the shop? In this session, we'll answer these questions and more, as well as looking at a successful real-world org chart.

From the Arab Spring to the indigenous in Spain to violence against women to Occupy Wall Street to Black Lives Matter part 2, social media networks like Twitter have always spurred connective action and amplified social justice movements. The voices that advocate for social justice use technology to enable personalized public engagement. As we find ourselves in the middle of a current challenging climate, how can social media communications professionals better understand movements and moments with content sharing around issues advocacy?

Given the seemingly endless appetite that audiences have for social media content, many companies have outsourced content creation to agency partners. But this need not be the case: Cassie Savage, associate director of digital content engagement at Nestlé Health Science, helped her team build a content studio from the ground up. In this session, she'll offer lessons learned and how-tos for marketers seeking to craft their own content powerhouses.

With approximately 1.5 billion downloads, TikTok is one of the largest and fastest-growing social media platforms in the world. TikTok's user base is growing well beyond Gen-Z and the platform is beginning to influence internet culture as a whole. In this session, we'll walk you through how to set up a TikTok advertising campaign, incorporating best practices and examples from brands already seeing success with the tool. 

Missed any of today’s sessions? No problem! Brian will lay out the day’s top takeaways and offer a preview of the final day of #SSU2020.

Your ever-present emcee will tell you what to look out for on the final day of #SSU2020.

Forget clicks and views. Video success is about connecting with your target by evoking emotion and leaving an impact. Even still, how do you choose the right video platform for your business or brand? How do you cut through the noise and carve a space on crowded platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram?

Learn tangible strategies on the power of video storytelling from marketing strategist Amelia Oliver and producer Lauren Berger of Green Buzz Agency. You’ll learn how video storytelling can impact its audience with actionable case studies about using video to drive short and long term success, as well as tips for choosing the right video platform for your brand. 

This annual Shake-Up tradition takes a broad look at the brands and nonprofits that have made bold statements in political, social and economic spheres—for better or for worse. Our panel will discuss how brands can better partner with nonprofit and advocacy groups to launch purpose-driven campaigns without missing the mark. 

As the number of social channels continues to grow, social marketers are expected to fill each platform with a never-ending stream of content. Yet most brands don’t have limitless resources for content creation, so smart marketers do the next best thing: repurpose existing content across several channels. In this session, we’ll go over some best practices for creating an efficient content workflow across channels.

Using social listening, how can brands engage with customers in a way that’s not salesy, doesn’t feel creepy, and yet places the brand top of mind? In this session, learn how tools and retargeting can be deployed as part of a smart monitoring strategy, as well as how to listen to trends in your space and adjust content accordingly.

Take a break from the day's activities.

Brian offers the morning’s top takeaways and a preview of what the conference’s final afternoon will bring.

Many social media professionals come in with an understanding of social media tools and features, but how are they trained to create social content that helps drive business goals? Our trainer will share how they onboard and teach new employees to tie social media back to the business.

The 2020 marketing landscape demands specialized, flexible, and agile content. However, social media budgets are not getting any bigger, so we need to work smarter. In this session, you’ll learn how VW adapted its assets to do more with less and produce successful marketing content.

Businesses often see the value of social media as a means to an end. But how can the social marketing sphere amplify the value of the social media professional, rather than simply advocating for social media’s importance as a strategy? In this session, we’ll discuss how social marketers can build credibility in different kinds of organizations, break down silos, and manage their personal and professional brand.   

Your host for #SSU20 closes out the show with his top tips and takeaways from the last three days.

See you at #SSU2021!