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6 Talks from SMWONE to Inspire & Educate: An Eclectic Mix

The inaugural SMWONE - a social media conference spread over the whole month of May. All remotely run providing what seemed like endless value.


Here’s a run through of the 6 talks I attended, supplemented of course with a graphic recording, condensing each talk into a visual 1 pager!


Gary Vaynerchuk - Empathy is the #1 most important value in business

Value just rolls off the tongue of this fella! Gary started off talking about his new normal, being asked whether he’s got zoom fatigue….fatigue you say?? No no, it’s zoom momentum! Reacting to new trends and ways of working is what he builds his success on.


“Way to see the future is to be the best at the present”


Gary is committed to value, he shouts about it. Being aggressive with innovation is who he is, and always will be.


A term we latch everything too these days is economics, and it’s no different with empathy. A successful business needs a workforce who feel valued, listened too & supported. As a leader, Gary knows this and puts his employees at the top of his pyramid. You’ve got to talk to them, involve them. The worst thing you can do is to not utilise the people who work for you, their brain power, their differing thoughts and ideas.


“Don’t have a focus group of one”


Second in the pyramid was an eye opener for me. When was the last time you had a pitch meeting with a new client and you focused entirely on your new clients customers? If the buck stops with your client’s happiness, you're approaching it all wrong.


Gary Coichy - The power of podcast in the digital world

The attention economy of podcasts amazes me. Gary gave us some stats to support this. Firstly, when people start listening to a podcast, 80% of those people will finish it! We’re not talking about a 10 second promo video here, we’re talking 30, 40 sometimes 120 minute podcasts that grasp people’s attention for the duration. Secondly, 55% of people who listen to podcasts have purchased from a podcast ad!


“Podcasts are game changers”


It’s not a new concept, but it’s still a GROWING trend. Gary encourages podcast makers to do more with this powerful tool.


Create social snippets and increase your content production.


Utilise ads, get your host to read them...the stats say you’ve got people’s attention, so missing out on advertising opportunities would be a big mistake.


Gary is the founder of the first multi cultural podcast agency, POD Digital Media. Go check it out!


Chris Breen - The lost art of anticipation

What if Christmas Day was a click away? Where would the feeling of anticipation come from? Kids would be click happy!! But Chris started his talk by stating that we now live in a ‘click now world’ and it makes it difficult for advertising, promotion and to build a conversation or a following about something which is accessible anytime, anywhere.


Chris provided two different case studies. Firstly, how he and his team created a fanfare about the new breaking bad movie by getting Huell to wait in a room for 62 hours, film it, and build a common following all geared up for a specified release date. Secondly, building a new American Soccer (Football) Team from nothing, to one of the most well supported teams in Major League Soccer.


“Be a story doer”


That's the trick. You need a mapped out story which involves the fans and ensures they share the feeling of anticipation collectively. All waiting for one common ‘thing’.


These ‘things’ don’t become successes by themselves though. What impressed me was the meticulous planning at inception of each project. Social listening and researching to the absolute maximum to find a number of golden instruments they could start to play with to get the ball rolling and the people dancing in anticipation!


Nadia Masri - Building Your Gen-Z Tribe

Coronavirus is not an elephant in a room to ignore. It’s had too much impact and Perksy’s job is to survey, product test and research changes in trends.


The findings lead to an attention economy shift of the Gen-Zers. 64% are exploring new brands helped by the ease of doing so via social shopping. Something which makes total sense with many retail stores shut. Think about your local high street, dominated by the biggest brands with the money to invest in the bricks and mortar. It makes it difficult for the smaller brands to compete and be seen. The social media high street is a totally different ball game, not so dominated and cluttered by the big players and with more time on their hands Gen-Zers are finding new brands and even brand switching.


Even interests have changed. More online gaming, classes and cooking tips. How long will these new interests last? Well Gen-Zers are missing offline communication, they still want to go to the cinema with their mates, still want to congregate at their favourite restaurant. Sounds like this generation will be crucial in restarting the offline economy!


Simon Graff - The future of sex, intimacy & love

Humans have an interest in nudity, there’s absolutely no denying that. Just look at the history of art. So it’s no surprise porn became the huge industry it is today. Porn dominated the early world wide web and some of the first online card payments were made on porn websites.


Every industry has to keep up with the times and the technology, and it’s no different here. Virtual Reality has given porn a totally new dimension. An increased mind and body connection, immersion, presence and embodiment. You’re no longer a watcher, you’re a participator.


But there’s a conflict - how close to the real thing is it getting. Does it mean you’re cheating? The ability to tailor your choice of VR partner, the ability to choose your own character. Is it becoming too real? It’s also very male dominated, 2.67% of the audience are women, making it very one way.


On the other hand it could be a useful training tool to make our love lives better. Exploring new fantasies, new techniques which could lead to an enhanced real life experience.


Teodora Pavkovic - Marketing with emotional and digital intelligence

Brands have our attention, which is a massive understatement. Research suggests we have on average 4,000 brand notifications a day! That’s a lot of brain space and energy!


“Where attention flows energy goes”


With that brain space comes responsibility. This responsibility lands on brands shoulders to ensure they are taking into account emotional wellness and states. Authenticity isn’t something social media is great at, everything is pristine, people only showing their good sides with a fear to show the bad. But forcing the good can be bad, and bad can be good. Bad or negative feelings provide us with our survival mechanics, it helps us overcome the most difficult parts of our lives. Without these experiences we are left to fend with little ammunition alone.


"Don’t force the good"


Our emotional states can be helped too. Bad news stories get more engagement, but it sends us into a negative state. Teodora mentions how those things that we awe can have a positive effect on us, such as nature and art. It triggers our brains emotions in a positive way, similar to acts of kindness. It’s important we don’t let these positive moments get drowned out by the negative and marketers have the power to ensure this.


Lastly she mentioned the importance of digital consciousness and that sometimes it's ok to be quiet on social. Just to observe. The pressure to post your next photo or bit of engaging content can get you down. Sometimes, just shhhhhhhh…..


Teodora is organising the first ever digital wellness festival of it's kind, Humanitech. Check it out!


With thanks to:


Ambitious PR for the opportunity to attend


The SMWONE team for sharing and promoting the graphic recordings to enhance the attendee experience….even in the closing newsletter!


All the speakers above who kindly shared the visuals on their platforms, enhancing the visual learning experience for their audience


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