At its core, marketing is all about the relationships that brands build with their consumers. A perfectly timed email, a piece of video content that wows, a witty social post — all of these seemingly simple moments show that marketers are matchmakers.

And there’s perhaps no better place for marketers to learn how to build better relationships with consumers than at Connections, the digital marketing, commerce, and customer service event of the year, happening June 12 - 14 in Chicago. As marketers from across the world huddle in the “Windy City,” here are the things they won’t want to miss:

 

Thought Leadership

 

THE FUTURE OF MARKETING: PREPARING FOR A CONSUMER-DRIVEN WORLD

 

Consumers expect organizations to truly know them as individuals, even as they use an increasing number of channels and technologies like voice, augmented reality, virtual reality, and the ever-expanding internet of things (IoT). By 2020, consumers will have an average of 10 connected devices. That puts marketers on the hook for collecting and analyzing all of these additional data points to inform future marketing decisions.

In this session, hear from Alessio Rossi, Global Chief Digital Officer of Shiseido, and Jon Panella, Group Vice President from SapientRazorfish/Publicis, on how marketing will evolve over the next five years and what organizations can do today to set themselves up for success.

 

Google Analytics 360

 

CROSS-CHANNEL INSIGHTS AT SCALE WITH GOOGLE ANALYTICS 360 + SALESFORCE

 

At Dreamforce 2017, Salesforce announced its strategic partnership with Google, which helps companies connect sales, marketing, and advertising data across Salesforce Sales Cloud, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, and Google Analytics 360.

Join this session to learn how turnkey integrations will help marketers visualize analytics across channels, activate audiences across platforms, and measure marketing effectiveness more accurately.

 

Email

 

DESIGN BEST PRACTICES: CREATING ENGAGING EMAIL CONTENT

 

Consumers’ inboxes are crowded, so marketers need to continuously adapt to stand out among the long list of quippy subject lines and relevant content. That’s where smart, intuitive design and engaging email content come in.

Learn best practices from email design experts for creating emails that look great on every device and drive results. And if you just can’t wait for Connections, check out our Email Design Toolkit in the meantime.

 

Mobile

 

DRIVING BUSINESS IMPACT WITH SMS

 

If a company doesn't offer an easy-to-use mobile experience, 50% of consumers say they're likely to switch brands. With an open rate of nearly 100%, SMS can be a key asset in a marketer’s arsenal.

This session highlights real-world examples of brands that are driving revenue and engagement with SMS messaging.

 

Social 

 

SOCIAL CUSTOMER SERVICE: CONNECTING SOCIAL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

 

Listen, listen, listen. These days, social media success for marketers can hinge less on producing content and more on responding to consumers. Social listening isn’t just for fielding complaints; it’s also one of the best ways to strengthen relationships with consumers. 

In this session, find out how leading companies provide exceptional service to their customers on social.

 

Advertising & DMP

 

TRANSFORM YOUR DIGITAL ADVERTISING BY BUILDING YOUR DATA ASSET ACROSS CRM & DMP

 

Data is now at the core of every solid advertising strategy, which is why more than 90% of advertisers use CRM or some type of online data to target their ads. Data isn’t just used to target ads, though. It’s also a way for CMOs to build a valuable, long-term data asset to create powerful, seamless consumer experiences. 

Check out this session to learn how combining CRM, online data, and peer-to-peer data can change the way companies advertise, and get tips on how to develop a successful digital advertising strategy.

 

Interaction Studio

 

TRANSFORMATIVE CONSUMER EXPERIENCES WITH INTERACTION STUDIO

 

In a world where companies constantly compete for consumer attention, reaching consumers with relevant offers can be a game changer. The reality, however, is that most brands struggle to do this effectively.  

Join this session to listen to Salesforce experts talk about offer management and how it optimizes product and service offerings. Also, see how to develop a real-time, end-to-end visualization of the customer journey and deliver the next best offer based on a consumer’s desire.

 

Journey Builder

 

CREATING CONNECTED CONSUMER JOURNEYS IN MARKETING CLOUD

 

67% of marketing leaders say creating a connected customer journey is critical to their overall marketing strategy success. For many marketers, though, it’s a big challenge to understand exactly how, when, and where to reach consumers.

Our panel of marketing experts — featuring Vimeo, Ancestry, and Benjamin David Group — will share insights how to leverage data, content, and channels to deliver consumer engagement at scale.

 

And More!

 

WHAT’S NEW IN MARKETING CLOUD: AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT THE LATEST FEATURES

 

Be the first to get an exclusive sneak peek of new features and functionality in Marketing Cloud that will transform the way you connect with consumers. Hear about the latest additions and improvements, including Google Analytics, Journey Builder, Advertising Studio, Content Builder, Salesforce DMP, and more.

 

Consumer Engagement Command Center

 

It can be difficult to understand how every engagement your company has with consumers performs. How can marketers do this effectively by avoiding multiple meetings with multiple stakeholders?

Join us on the expo floor to learn how brands are achieving digital alignment across multiple departments by connecting marketing, sales, and service to the Consumer Engagement Command Center.

Want more information about Connections? Check out the full session list here.