Consumer generated content, social networking, widgets, online video, ad networks, activation, engagement, mobile marketing, the death of television as we know it and so much more—The digital revolution is in full swing and the velocity of change only seems to be increasing. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) estimates that online advertising spending will surge well past $20 billion in 2008 as marketers increasingly leverage digital media and technology platforms to establish a dialog with their customers, optimize messaging and delivery and, ultimately, drive brand preference. But what about the looming recession and its impact on media and advertising? Will digital media suffer along with other platforms or might our industry benefit from these tough times as marketers shift a disproportionate amount of spending to performance-based marketing channels? Once again, we are pleased to partner with the IAB to present this State of the Industry session and welcome back moderator-extraordinaire—IAB President and CEO Randall Rothenberg. If you need a primer on where things stand today and also need to prepare to embrace and leverage what comes next, don’t miss this annual, bellwether state-of-the-industry event.

BRAND CASE STUDIES FROM NRMA AND DIAGEO
Digital marketing opens up a world of opportunities for companies to communicate, market, and increase brand awareness online. However, without a specific digital plan in place, companies risk more than just their marketing dollars, they risk their entire brand. This session will provide you with best practice examples of tools and techniques to develop an effective digital strategy and offer insight into effective ways to launch and manage the strategy for success. Hear practical case studies from Diageo and the NRMA as they explain the development of their internal digital strategies, the deployment, and the management to stay current with the digital landscape. In this session you’ll learn:

- Why having a digital strategy is essential

- The infrastructure challenges in developing a digital strategy: how are NRMA harnessing their people, technology and content infrastructure to make the shift from a paper to a digital experience

- How to manage the execution of a digital strategy: how Diageo are managing the challenges of integrating digital into their marketing calendar

- Measurement techniques and the role they play in strategy development

Our panellists will discuss their learnings and experiences providing you with key takeaways for deploying your own internal digital road map.

If you’re trying to understand how an AdNetwork can be valuable to your advertising strategy and ultimately your business, then this is the session for you. Join our panel of AdNetwork experts as they provide a clear understanding of what networks are and the value that they provide. They’ll discuss:
- The differences between vertical, horizontal, premium and specialist networks

- The relevancy of working with AdNetworks

- How companies can increase revenue generation activities through AdNetworks

Join Max Interactive, Adify, Gourmet Ads and Adconion as they equip you with a precise understanding of the bottom line benefits that AdNetworks can bring to your advertising strategy.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM PERNOD RICARD
As digital marketing has evolved, third parties have broadened their offerings to appeal to every aspect of digital strategy development. In particular, the agency landscape has exploded and the range of agencies available to help you with your marketing strategy has become increasingly complex.

In this session our panellists will tackle the debate around the advantages and disadvantages of working with a specialist agency vs. a non specialist agency as you seek to develop the marketing plan for your business. The panel will focus on:

- The most effective way to develop a core strategy

- The most effective way to develop your digital channel as part of that strategy

- Specialist digital offerings: who do you work with, and how?

With case study examples from Jameson, this session will provide you with concrete evidence to assist in selecting your agency partners.

Virtual worlds are maturing at a rapid rate and brands are realising there are valuable business opportunities within them. Whether the objective is engagement, research or brand presence, virtual worlds are proving to be a legitimate marketing channel. In this session our panel will look to provide insights into the business benefits of working within a virtual world. Our panellists will provide:
- An overview of virtual worlds and why they’re suitable for business

- Insight for brand involvement including what’s in it for both the brand and the consumer

- Considerations before entering a virtual world and how to be successful

- Identifying the KPIs and how to measure the success of a campaign

- Engagement and brand presence

- With case study examples, this session will bring to life the importance of engagement and brand presence in a virtual world and how organisations are testing, developing, connecting, and marketing within these communities.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM SHOPPING.COM
With increasing pressure on digital marketing and the need to demonstrate performance in all marketing channels, the debate is raging around how to tailor your SEO strategy. Our panel of experts from large and small businesses will debate the most pressing issues and present relevant case studies from leading online companies such as Shopping.com (an eBay company). You will be able to get answers and learn new strategies for your organisation as the panel debate the importance of approaching SEO differently depending on your size, and explore critical the questions:

- Is Social Media Marketing part of SEO?

- How do you measure ROI of your SEO efforts?

- What will be the biggest area of change for SEO in 2009?

- Which converts better: SEO or paid search?

- What are the key reasons that SEO fails?

Come prepared with your thoughts and questions to make the most of the expertise and opinions available.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM ORACLE
With the plethora of digital media channels in the marketplace there are many ways that you can engage with your customers and achieve brand buy-in. But are you willing to actually release control and really put your brand in the hands of your customers? And what results can you expect if you do just that.

Join our panel of marketing experts, as they discuss their different perspectives on how, when, and what works when allowing your customers to have control. This session will discuss:

- What 'handing your brand' means and which channels and tools can make this happen

- Getting the tone right. The importance of a relaxed culture vs. corporate tone, and informal vs. formal messaging

- Case studies of lessons learned, specifically from Oracle, who will share their experience of engaging their developer community and the results it generated

- Takeaways addressing considerations in starting the process including transparency and legal & compliance issues

You don’t need to be worried about handing your brand to your best advocates, it’s all about making sure you do it right the first time to enhance branding and engagement with your consumers. This will be an informative session giving you the tools to start today.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM TOURISM VICTORIA
With multiple digital channels at a marketer’s fingertips the branding opportunities are endless. So, how does an organisation manage to keep its messaging and branding consistent across all the digital platforms? By identifying its target market, organisations can start to develop a strategy to take full advantage of all the branding opportunities digital media offers. This session will discuss:

- What digital branding is and how to manage it as part of your overall marketing strategy

- The importance of brand consistency

- The key challenges to achieving brand consistency through strategy and execution

- What’s considered successful branding online and how it’s measured

Through case studies from Tourism Victoria and Kellogg’s brand Sultana Bran, you’ll gain specific insights on how to implement a digital branding strategy that will keep your brand consistent in the digital world.

Marketing managers, agency execs, and online enthusiasts alike should all be interested in the Data Portability debate. As you know, data portability allows your applications and/or company to become part of the world-wide ecosystem of user data. By getting involved, companies are able to increase the understanding of their users, their friends and their interests. So, how important is data portability to the future of marketing and information sharing? Join our panel of experts as they answer the question, is data ownership 'king' or should online services look at opening up to Data Portability, allowing individuals to regain control over their personal information? This is a session for you learn more about data portability and how it will affect the digital landscape.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM LUBE MOBILE
Email is no longer about pushing marketing messages to your customers’ inboxes. It’s about smarter messaging and creating an actionable communication that accomplishes a specific purpose. It’s about driving consumer behaviour and ultimately seeing the results on the bottom line. Creating a campaign that achieves all these business objectives while engaging consumers is not an easy task but it’s not impossible with the right knowledge. Join our panel of email experts as they:

- Identify and define trigger based action email and what a campaign should accomplish

- Outline the fundamental factors of creating a successful trigger based campaign, including the importance of content

- Define the importance of segmentation and how to use behavioural targeting as a trigger

- Review the steps involved in creating a trigger based communication strategy

Through case study examples, this session will provide a good overview of how a trigger based email campaign can enhance your communication strategy, add value to your marketing mix and ultimately provide insight into your customers’ behaviours.

BRAND CASE STUDIES FROM DICK SMITH AND STOCKLAND
Email marketing is quickly maturing from a mass marketing tool to a personalised communication tool with many companies working on making the shift. To make that shift, organisations need to evaluate their email acquisition, retention and growth strategies. In this session you’ll hear how two very different companies, Dick Smith, a large organisation part of the Woolworths group and Stockland, a billion dollar real estate company, have evolved their email strategies to capture that elusive customer. Through two dynamic case studies, you will learn how:

- How to develop email objectives and KPIs for your overall email strategy

- How acquisition strategies such as incentives were used to engage customers

- How retention strategies such as creating emotional content must be used to increase ROI

- How growth strategies such as viral competitions can help increase the quality of a database

Through these case study examples you’ll take home insight into how Dick Smith and Stockland have been able to develop and implement a more advanced and personalised email program.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM AUSTRALIA POST
As marketing professionals, it’s our job to know what our consumers are up to and how they interact with digital media. But understanding their specific presence, behaviours and habits can be difficult. In this session, our panel of industry analysts will look to give you their ‘take’ on the current state of the Australian digital consumer and how they’re utilising digital. You’ll also hear case study highlights from Australia Post and their unique findings compiled from internal market research. This session will answer the questions:

- Who are the consumers of marketing and how do they use digital?

- What are the major implications for marketers?

- What responsive actions should marketers take and why do they matter?

Join our panel of experts as they give you a better understanding of what the Australian digital consumer is doing online and how you can capture their attention.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM JOHNSON & JOHNSON

The unprecedented growth of social media channels has presented marketers with a tremendous opportunity to engage with their target audience. However, since this channel is so new it presents unique challenges to reach & engage the consumers. You can easily walk into a minefield if you approach it the wrong way.

Join us for an 'eye opening' session as Mandeep Grover of Johnson & Johnson and Erik Ingvoldstad of McCann walk you through the development and execution of the “Wink” campaign on Facebook. Not only did this campaign deliver on Johnson & Johnson’s objectives but it outperformed other media channels.

You’ll hear how Johnson & Johnson:

- Increased brand awareness through consumer engagement

- Approached social media tools from their consumers' point of view and integrated them into a campaign

- Engaged a target audience through the online channel without handing over the brand

Come prepared with your questions and hear firsthand, how this global company is taking advantage of social media channels and integrating it into their marketing mix.

BRAND CASE STUDIES FROM STARWOOD, UBANK AND NEWMARKET LIVESTOCK
Public or private, an online community can provide a powerful tool to easily connect with and engage your customers 24/7. Whether you are looking to get customer insights and drive co-innovation, promote products and services, build brand awareness and improve customer advocacy, or provide a platform for customers to help each other, an online community can help you grow your business faster and have a real impact on your business goals. In this session you’ll hear three unique perspectives on building an online community. Our panel will discuss:

- The drivers behind building an online community

- Differences between public vs. a private community

- How to do it: identifying testing methods, hosting considerations, and managing risk before launching

If you’re considering building a social network for your company or organisation, join this session and you’ll hear success factors and lessons learned on how building a trusted community can not only enhance customer engagement but provide valuable benefits to the organisation.

Cash for comment or dark marketing is as old as the hills but of late has bubbled over into the broader consciousness. As social media emerges we can expect to see more blurring of the ‘old rule’ guidelines.
Marketers are exploring creative ways to engage consumers’ participation and brand advocacy but when is it 'cash for comments' or 'dark marketing'? Is it effective and what are the repercussions on the brand? Do we need a new set of guidelines or is it on for young and old? In the world of Web2.0, new rules of engagement are yet to be written.

Join us as we delve into the most important issues:

- Deception vs. transparency of dark marketing

- Where is the line for cash for comment?

- What is happening globally and what does that mean for Australia?

- Writing the future rules of engagement

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM TELSTRA/BIGPOND
Twitter’s move from a niche online community to mass adoption amongst consumers has gathered interest from all sides of the digital marketing industry. But what is its relevance in business? Used correctly as a marketing tool, Twitter can increase your customer relationships and your bottom line. In this session, we’ll focus on the specific experiences Telstra/Bigpond has had in implementing a Twitter presence while our panel debates the true relevance of Twitter in the marketplace. Join the panel as they discuss:

- The key functionalities Twitter offers

- How Twitter can support business objectives

- The evolution of the B2C Twitter relationship

- The value of Twitter networks

- How to monetise Twitter for business impact

Come with your questions as we discuss these five topics and see if Twitter is relevant to add to your communication strategy.

BBC.com, the BBC’s international website outside of the UK and run by BBC Worldwide, has come a long way since its inception in late 2007. Now with globalisation at its doorstep, the challenges have been massive as its transition from a local news site to a content-rich publishing portal has come to life. ad:tech is proud to welcome Managing Director of BBC.com, Kym Niblock, as the opening Keynote on 11 March 2009. Kym has been a part of BBC.com’s transition from day one. She will spend the first half of her Keynote outlining the strategies behind BBC.com’s launch and transition, ultimately reaching profitability while continuing to connect with their audience. You’ll hear Kym describe how BBC.com:
- Identified interests, behaviours and patterns of their audience outside the UK through global and internal research before committing to a strategy

- Moved to rebuild the BBC.com site infrastructure so it could support new capabilities

- Used display to launch into new markets and acquire market share

- Created a content strategy, based on localisation, that will ultimately enhance audience engagement

Through this transition, you could consider BBC.com the largest start-up in the world and they have felt and experienced all the same challenges new companies, agencies, and publishers have faced.

For the second half of this session, she’s all yours. Come equipped with questions as we open the mic for you to engage directly with Kym. You will have the chance to ask Kym about what’s next for BBC.com and how it’s looking at alternative revenue streams to increase their ROI. So, make sure you join us at ad:tech Sydney to learn how BBC.com has changed the way they do business in these ever changing times. They really have learned how to connect and engage with their audience.

With 8% of all internet traffic in Australia going to social media sites it is no longer the latest fad in digital marketing but an important consideration in any marketer’s planning. This session will explore:
- What trends we observe in consumer’s social media usage and the role of brands within this

- The importance, opportunities and risks presented by open APIs and portability of personal data

- How brands can expect to recognise a return on social media investment

- Dos and don’ts within these environments

- Future directions and things to look out for

This panel will look to some of the leaders in the social networking space to explore how this environment will evolve in the future and the important factors that marketers need to consider when investing.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM VODAFONE
Many marketers today are trying to optimise their search strategy and their display strategy as individual channels within the overall digital mix. In knowing this, the question becomes, are marketers really more interested in 'the click' or the conversation? In this session, our panel will discuss all the factors around the click as well as the conversation by discussing:

- The definition of search vs. display advertising tactics: what does a click mean?

- How to get better ROI on display

- Case studies showing the benefits of search, display and the combination of both

Ultimately getting the most out of your search and display strategy is about being flexible and able to change your digital mix. By layering digital channels and having a good measurement strategy in place, companies will be able to get the best results. This session will dive into all this and offer a complete look at how you can get the most out of search and display.

In the digital space the use of rich media (audio and video) has been around for 15 years, so why do many still think that it’s almost at its tipping point? Join our panel of experts as they discuss a myriad of issues and opportunities surrounding the video channel. You’ll learn:
- Different definitions of monetising strategies and how monetising video means different things to different people

- The pros and cons of video through the discussion of case studies including a discussion around the Barack Obama inauguration

- The importance of measurement

The session will wrap up with a discussion of the future of monetising video and how the NBN (National Broadband Network), mobile devices, and consumer adoption will give this piece of the digital landscape its lift off.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM NIKE
Gaming platforms, of all types, can seem complex and foreign to many in the marketing industry with numerous ways to get involved. But for Nike, focusing its efforts on in-game advertising has proven to be a successful channel in further building its brand. Join Sean Jenner, of Nike, Ryf Quail from Nike’s Agency Razor, and Brian Neal from Massive as they show you how Nike:

- Created an in-game marketing campaign that engages the gamer and increases branding

- Implemented multimodal marketing and how it’s impacting its audience

- Developed a metrics structure behind the in-game advertising to achieve results

The panel will also compare the differences between last year’s campaign and this year’s campaign giving you full insight into the strategy. This will be a unique case study session providing an overview from the client, agency and media point of view.

Social networks are a platform for participants to indulge their interests. They are environments rich in interaction and communication where the zeitgeist is both defined and captured. And this of course can be a marketer’s dream environment if they can tap into the community. So, how do marketers, social network owners, publishers as well as participants gain revenue from this channel?
Join our panel of experts as they provide an overview of the types of revenue generating activities currently happening on social networks. Models such as PAYG Subscriptions, merchandising, API based sales, virtual goods, and of course display advertising can potentially become a real revenue generator, if done properly. With the revenue streams identified, the session will then go through a number of case studies of what works and what doesn’t. Finally our panel will discuss the differences of these monetisation models versus other online marketing activities. It’s about the ripple effect and not the broadcast messaging we’re used to. If you’re looking to learn more about how social networks are gaining momentum in the revenue generating game, then this is the session for you!

CASE STUDIES FROM LONELY PLANET & TIME OUT
Advertising on traditional media has always been sold based on audience demographics. Traditional digital media, if we can call it that, has also been and still is sold on impressions and eyeballs. But now, with consumer behaviours changing the way they consume media and information, the online environment is changing and marketers need to see the importance of creating a campaign aligning the brand with relevant online content. Join our panel of content experts as they discuss:

- Different types of content, the context in which it’s published and the value that content can bring to your brand

- The content value proposition: audience, environment and relevance by looking at the nature of the content environment and how it’s presented

- How to create an integrated digital content strategy complete with performance factors, metrics and placement considerations

If you’re looking to upgrade your digital advertising strategy, then this is the session for you. You’ll see why having a content strategy can be brand building while impacting the bottom line.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM RABOPLUS
To build a relationship with your consumers you need to listen to them carefully, then engage them through an authentic conversation about your product or service. It’s no surprise, with the personalisation of the online platform that companies are able to create opportunities to add value by conversing with people openly and transparently. In order to help design the best engagement strategy, our panel will discuss challenges they have faced in creating effective consumer engagement. Using case studies as examples, in this discussion you’ll learn:

- How to define your business engagement objectives

- Which digital channels to use and how often

- What content actually drives engagement with consumers

In this session you’ll gain first hand insights from our panel’s experiences and take away key ideas to develop and implement a highly successful engagement strategy for your business.

CASE STUDIES FROM XBOX & JOHNSON & JOHNSON
Collecting and sorting through metric data can prove to be an arduous task but understanding how the information will be used is the backbone to making sense of it all. In this vendor neutral session, Jennifer Reddington will provide an overview of the main metrics used by digital marketers and businesses, and provide a summary of how to best apply metrics to different business scenarios. Once the landscape is drawn we’ll hear from two brands, Xbox and Johnson & Johnson, on how they are using metrics and the benefits they’re providing.

Drew Parkes from Xbox will discuss how metrics play a key role on a macro and micro scale. From enhancing his day to day activities and optimising either his website or a campaign, as well as insights into overall business enhancements and outlining to upper management the increased revenue or ROI. You’ll also hear from Nicole Still at Johnson & Johnson on how they are linking metrics with sales and how they use metrics to maximise the bottom line.

Our panel of experts will chime in on all issues discussed in the session, giving you a complete look at the what, how and who should care of online metrics.

Consumer use of social media has increased dramatically in Australia. But what does it mean for your business? Do you know what your consumers are looking at, contributing to and engaging with? And how can you measure their activity and the effect that their activity has on your campaigns? All of our panel have a great experience and opinion on the subject and they’ll be addressing key areas of concern:
- What is a measure of success in social media? What should and shouldn’t be measured?

- The client education cycle: monitoring, measuring and managing campaigns

- Tools and standards

- How does the Australia market compare to what’s happening worldwide?

- Future direction: what do we need to do to succeed?

Find out details on the critical issues that matter for social media and your business this year.

Most marketers are inundated with data wondering what to do with it all. And that’s half the problem. Collecting the wrong data, too much data, or the right data but not using it effectively can prove to be detrimental to the execution and effectiveness of your digital strategy. This session is all about addressing those issues, providing a smarter way to deliver results back into the business. Join our panel of data experts as they:

- Define data led marketing and the different data available from market to consumer

- Discuss what marketers should be tracking and why

- Outline a plan to ensure data is simple and comprehensive

- Examine how to use collected data to evolve your strategy

Ultimately, data is the backbone to digital marketing, so join this lively panel debate as they show you how to turn your marketing spend into a marketing investment.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM TOOHEYS EXTRA DRY
Online word of mouth is often seen as a magic bullet to being able to amplify word of mouth to spread faster and more efficiently across the vast social networks that exist online. The problem is that brands are very much outside the conversation and operating superficially within that context. How do brands become part of the conversation in a credible and relevant way?

Sharyn will present an insightful overview of the latest thinking around engaging people online to foster positive word of mouth for a brand. As part of this, she will present a recent case study of a highly successful online word of mouth campaign for Tooheys Extra Dry with the brand manager Piers Halleen. The case study will demonstrate how a brand can build brand equity and revenue utilising key influencers, facebook, events and existing community tools.

Coming to the session you will walk away with the basic frameworks of online community building, learning what it takes to really engage people to become part of the conversation and harness the power of online word of mouth.

BRAND CASE STUDY FROM FUJI XEROX
Businesses are significantly changing how they work. Not only is the economy a tough environment in which to operate but the methods and mediums for doing business with customers are constantly evolving. There are numerous opportunities but there are also numerous challenges. Fuji Xerox have embraced both the new economic and digital landscapes. In the last 12 months they have launched an entirely new arm to their Australian operation, structured around a totally fresh business model. Angelo De Silva, Customer Engagement Manager with Fuji Xerox will talk about the planning and the implementation experiences that his team encountered in launching this new initiative. Hear about:

- Internal management: how the team achieved buy in from senior management

- Change management challenges: how the team integrated the new business model with existing operations to optimise the company exposure to all sales channels

- Digital strategy planning: which techniques and technologies have proved most successful in driving revenue through the new business model

Ever wanted expert, hands on advice on what to do with your digital marketing? Here’s your opportunity to have 3 top executives help you! This session is a hands on, no holds barred solution tank. Put your problem to the panel and watch them try to solve it.
You’ll gain real insight into how leading digital decision makers tackle and solve digital marketing issues. If you don’t have a manual for how to get it right in digital marketing, you’ll want to be at this session!

We’re taking your questions now. Submit your questions on the ad:tech brain (under 200 words.)

Tell us if you want to be anonymous or a participant on the day so you get the most out of it.

Pre-submitted questions will be tackled in the first half of the session; questions from the floor will be tackled in the second half.

Mobile marketing has long been looked at as just another channel but with the advancement of mobile technologies and devices, it can no longer be ignored. So, what is on the horizon and what does it mean for marketers and advertisers alike? Join Jennifer as she provides an in depth session on the mobile landscape, what’s next in mobile and where the business opportunities lie. She’ll discuss:
- The concept of Mobile Augmented Reality and how advertisers can get a piece of this futuristic technology

- What’s next for the iPhone and other next generation handsets

- How Google’s open source platform Android will affect the masses

- And what all this means for the advertising and marketing industry

Jennifer will also explain some next steps to prepare for the new generation of mobile, starting with the ability to see mobile not as another marketing channel, but as a real way to engage with customers.