Back to All Stories

Today's back to work essay is, What I Did on My Dreamforce 2013 Vacation. OK, Dreamforce wasn't really a vacation. I was writing, working and walking over 30 miles in four days, but it was more fun than some family vacations I can remember.

Even if you didn't make it to San Francisco, you can take advantage of all the great content that came out of it. For the grand tour, check out Marissa's post, The Ultimate Dreamforce Content Guide. (I didn't even know there was a Peter Gabriel Session!)

From a marketing perspective here are the six topics that I found most compelling:

1. Biggest News in Marketing: The Internet of Customers

If you are into podcasts, listen to us talking about it here. Salesforce stakes a claim as the first to add "The Internet of Things" to CRM and Marketing Automation. In other words, we are leaving the dark ages of marketing automation integration. Read the post >>

2. 3 Mistakes that Cost You Leads at a Trade Show 

The Dreamforce trade show floor is massive and there's always new and exciting booths at every turn. Learn the most common failures on the floor so you can avoid them and succeed at your next trade show. Read the post >>

3. 4 Strategic Lessons from Dreamforce

One of the greatest parts of Dreamforce is you get a bit of time to think about strategy away from the pandemonium of your office. It works on three fronts - you hear big ideas in keynotes, learn about the technologies in sessions, and see companies put their strategies in action on the Expo floor. Here are four strategies from the conference. Read the post >>

4. Big Experiences for a Marketer at Dreamforce

If you're a marketer who's never been to the event, here's why it's unique. From the energy to the parties to the bigger and better mentality, Dreamforce always delivers something new and exciting. Read the post >>

5. Dreamforce will Affect Your Marketing Data

Athough Dreamforce is all about the human, face-to-face experience, there was still plenty of news on the data front, especially for marketers. This post looks at three data plays for marketers. Read the post >>

6. The Managed Customer Experience for Marketers

The phrase "Managed Customer Experience" came up in a number of keynotes and sessions, and it's the true heart of the Marketing revolution. Learn more about what it means in this post. Read the post >>

If you'd like to see the best images, this post of the top 50 photos from Dreamforce had a great run.

My final thoughts: Make your hotel reservations for 2014 now. I'm working on a gas powered backpack generator for my phone. I thourougly enjoyed covering Dreamforce and hearing from all the successful admins and MVPs. Feel free to swing by and see me at Marketing Over Coffee.

I was going to close with a link to Alec Baldwin's SNL skit where he gives the Glen Garry speech to the Christmas Elves, but I'll just say, "Happy Holidays, see you next year!" and "ABC - Always be Cobbling!"

 

Learn more about marketing automation, as discussed at Dreamforce, with the free Salesforce ebook below. 

Salesforce-CTA