2011 Web Conference: A Must-See Roster of Digital Media Experts, Sponsorship Opportunities, and More

January 28 - 29, 2011 -- San Francisco, CA

Today marks the official start of winter, which is the perfect time to start planning your trip to sunny California for AAN’s 2011 Web Conference taking place Jan. 28 – 29, 2011 in San Francisco.

Already confirmed is a solid trio of digital media experts: Amy Webb, the emerging technology native behind Webb Media Group; Retha Hill, director of the New Media Innovation Lab at ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism; and Chrys Wu, the renowned user engagement strategist.

They will be on hand to discuss, among other topics:

  • Top 10 Tech Trends — Futurist Amy Webb’s highly popular talk on the top ten technology trends that you should know about.
  • Semantic Technology — Why should publishers care? Contextual linking and search means more time on site, better search engine optimization and more. There are multiple free and cheap tools at your fingertips. Semantic
    web is no longer the future – it’s here and being used by mainstream publishers. Don’t get left behind.

  • The Social Life of An Online Story — utilizing real-time traffic results, we will follow the life of a blog post from inception to pageviews, monitoring and illustrating how Twitter, Facebook, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon and other tools work together to bring in traffic.
  • SEO — Everything from headlines to title tags to interlinking. We will ask for three site guinea pigs ahead of time and show everyone in the room what they are doing wrong, and right.
  • Mobile Apps — Yes, this is the year for you to launch your iPad/iPhone/Droid app. Come hear about cheap ways to get your mobile app built, and how to monetize it quickly.
  • Deals of the Day — How to fight the Groupon, Living Social wave with your own products…or think about negotiating with them for a revenue sharing model.
  • Behavioral Targeting — Learning how a user consumes information and advertisements is key to keeping readers and advertisers. We will show you the importance of behavioral targeting and some tools that get you the data you need.
  • New Readers ARE Out There — Reaching younger audiences is not as simple as a website. You have to put content in front of them in places they are already gathered online. Hear from both researchers and young people about where they consume news and information and how you can reach this important audience.
  • Better Web Events — Whether a basic webinar or a full-blown digital event, publishers struggle to do online events well. A panel of experts will discuss how to do events so that the technology is seamless and the participants are stoked.
  • Turn Your Blog Into A Daily Destination — Search and referral visitors are important, but your core readers come from the last of the holy traffic triumpherate: direct visitors. They stay longer, eating up pageviews, making comments and building up community. The hardest thing to do on the web is to get someone to come directly to your site on a consistent basis. We will outline 10 strategies to get em and keep em.
  • REGISTER ONLINE FOR AAN’s 2011 WEB CONFERENCE BY CLICKING HERE

    SPONSORSHIP & EXHIBITOR OPPORTUNITIES

    Businesses looking to take advantage of this rare opportunity to reach key decision makers in the alternative news media will want to hurry up and snag one of our limited sponsorship and exhibitor slots.

    For sponsorship options, including speaking opportunities, click here for details.

    To exhibit in the trade show, click here for table options and registration info.

    HOTEL INFO

    AAN has reserved a block of rooms at the fabulous Argonaut Hotel at a group rate of $130 per room, single or double occupancy.

    The deadline for reservations at the special AAN rate is Friday, Jan. 7, 2011; however, we encourage you to book early as AAN’s block of rooms could be reserved prior to the deadline. To make your reservation by phone, call (800) KIMPTON and ask for the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies’ group rate or make your reservation online by clicking here.

    Argonaut Hotel

    495 Jefferson Street at Hyde
    San Francisco, CA 94109
    Tel: (415) 563-0800
    Click here for a map and directions