Nine years ago I attended TRAFFIC 2008 in Orlando; the event was great, and I was able to finally meet people I only knew online until then.
As a web and graphics developer, I felt that there was one thing missing, and that was the ability to see how my services intersected the needs of other domain investors, of which I was one.
The primary focus of domain conferences is domain names, and that event was no exception; domains constituted the core and the periphery of all that was discussed.
Whether it was about auctioning big ticket domains for thousands of dollars, or sucking the living daylights out of PPC conversion (and arbitrage) the event had no spot for creative development, branding, marketing or turning domains into destinations for products and services.
Still, in the middle of my excitement at this virginal immersion in the domainer world, I paid little attention to the missing blocks. I attended two more TRAFFIC shows, in 2010 and 2012, and SedoPro in 2010, consciously aware that I’d have enough domainer exposure by attending every other year.
Things changed in 2014, with NamesCon shifting the domain conference paradigm, and included a wide spectrum of professionals to its agenda. For the first time, web hosting and SEO companies, app developers and peripheral services providers became equal participants and exhibitors, instead of mere satellites.
That’s why I attended every NamesCon conference since, every time looking forward to the next big leap in industry expansion. I witnessed innovation, and the ability to acknowledge that domaining alone won’t get investors far.
This year, two new events are getting the memo from the NamesCon approach, engaging the tech, marketing, creative and branding industries, along with a galaxy of other services.
NameSummit is a digital branding conference in New York, that takes place on August 7 and 8; the event is the brainchild of domain investor Steve Kaziyev, and IP attorney Jason B. Schaeffer of ESQwire.com. Jodi Chamberlain’s role as the event planner will ensure that things will go as smoothly as other renowned events she was involved in.
As one can see in the NameSummit agenda, the focus isn’t straight up domaining, and that’s a great thing. New York is a hub of creative entrepreneurship, and a beacon of branding and marketing innovation. Expect great things out of this two day conference in the Big Apple.
Quite surprisingly, MERGE! decided to launch their first event in my hometown, and I’m very excited for that as well.
It’s a multi-discipline group of events, combining THE Domain Conference with other peripheral happenings, introducing branding, hosting, marketing and IP specialists along with the familiar domain-related services. It’s exactly what I was hoping for, nine years ago, and I expect it to be a great magnet for services-oriented professionals in Central Florida, and beyond.
Jothan Frakes and Ray Dillman are preparing a solid agenda of events for the October 14-18 gathering, at the Marriott World Center in Orlando; it really is a non-brainer for the price, and I’ll definitely be attending.
In a nutshell: domainers are invited – scratch that – are required to shed the small town mentality and finally break out the domainer village. Both events offer the opportunity to get involved in much bigger things, that encompass every industry that ultimately uses domain names.
Agree, well written post.
These sound like greats event but they have sandwiched the only reason I would come all the way from Greece to the US for a 2nd time in one year: the US open in September. Sorry.
These conferences are good learning places for any newbie or experienced domainer. People gets to meet other domainer’s and they can share experiences and expertise than just buying domain names. They knowledge always matters the most.