Wow! We are still riding the rush of Co-Lab22, our marketing conference which took place on October 4th. In the future we look forward to hosting more Co-Lab marketing events in order to maintain connection amongst the Seattle marketing community.
We thought we’d take this opportunity to highlight some of what we learned. And to pay gratitude for all who helped Co-Lab22 to come together….
Hansen Belyea is not new to planning and hosting events, but Co-Lab22 was the first all-day marketing conference we’ve organized and it went above and beyond our expectations. In June the seed was planted to organize a new marketing conference for the Seattle marketing community, and little did we know that the idea would grow into what it became. We are ecstatic that Co-Lab22 came together so successfully.
Amy Balliett kicked off Co-Lab22 by speaking about “Visual Content Marketing & the Age of the Visual Strategist”
One of the most important goals for us with Co-Lab22 was to keep the attendance numbers relatively low. While this might seem counterintuitive from a profit standpoint, our motivation behind organizing this conference was very truly about human connection. We wanted to bring the marketing community together in a meaningful way.
This goal was met, and the event was indeed small and intimate with a grand total of 70 professionals in attendance. We were at the beautiful venue Metropolist that provided lots of natural light which added to the sense of intimacy and closeness.
Ron Hansen and Brianna Home led the roundtable discussion on the topic of Brand Evolution.
Co-Lab provided opportunities for new connections to be made. Not only did we meet new people at the event, we met and partnered with Josh Dirks and his team at Project Bionic to present the conference. They were great partners who brought a particular sense of enthusiasm to the event. They were very easy to work with and we combined well to make an effective conference team.
The speakers, panelists, and moderators each brought their own unique point of view and niche insight regarding their speaking topics. Ron and Brianna were able to represent Hansen Belyea and were honored to share the stage with Amy Balliett, Johan Lysne, and Kim Bayer-Augustavo who were strong presenters in each of their own ways. And the panelists, Chris Pirillo and Hannah Smolinski, as well as the Project Bionic leadership team helped to provide Co-Lab22 attendees with food for thought about perceptions of online content creators and the landscape of the social media world.
Johan Lysne engaged Co-Lab22 attendees in a workshop discussion about authentic identity.
We really are grateful to the Co-Lab22 sponsors, Entreprov, Live Oak A/V, Lysne Wagoner Creative, and SeaMonster Studios. They were willing to provide financial support for a brand-new conference which is tremendous. The help that sponsors provided made such a difference. Even without the metrics and track record of a previous conference, they were willing to trust and support us. That means so much to us.
“This felt more authentic and less scripted, which made it feel more honest and real. I liked the fast pace and the wide variety of topics. All the speakers were excellent.”
-Lori Castro, Marketing Manager, Perteet Inc.
“This was a day hosted by great marketing minds, but it was not just for marketers. Anyone interested in bettering their understanding of creative design for business and communication should attend.”
-John Crase, Senior Associate & Unit Manager, Wiss, Janney, Eistner Associates Inc.
Attendees listen to the panel discussion about “Creators, Influencers, and Thought Leaders” as moderated by Josh Dirks.
For those who were there, thank you for being a part of this community and for making this very first conference possible through whatever means you contributed, whether that was as a participant, sponsor, speaker or vendor.
If you weren’t able to join us this year, sign up for the Co-Lab email list and keep up to date on future gatherings. We’ll also update the Co-Lab web page with information about related events and content.
We want to keep the momentum going forward with this wonderful community of people. We hope that in the future you will join us.
Brianna Home and Josh Dirks were the driving forces in moving Co-Lab22 forward.