Inaugural madconNYC Digital Marketing Event Goes Virtual, Postpones To December

madconNYC — a novel, Brooklyn-based gathering that will seek to help digital marketing professionals discover the industry’s latest tools, technology, and trends — is going virtual in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

The inaugural 2020 iteration, which madconNYC says is dedicated to all things modern marketing, was initially slated to take place at the Brooklyn Expo Center in mid-May, but will now be held entirely virtually from Dec. 1 to 3.

Targeting digital advertising professionals, madconNYC marks a collaboration between Reed Exhibitions and the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). Reed is a U.K.-based event organizer behind 500 global gatherings including golf industry event the PGA Merchandise Show and BCB (Bar Convent Brooklyn), which is focused on premium and craft spirits. For its part, the IAB hosts the long-running Digital NewFronts as well as other ad-focused programming.

The first virtual madconNYC will be free to attend, and will cover the most pertinent digital ad topics of the day, including augmented reality, chat bots, influencer marketing, native advertising, and more. Featured speakers are slated to include: Zynga’s head of global sales, Gabrielle Heyman; Brett Robinson, VP of ad operations at NPR; and Christy Tanner, the EVP and general manager of CBS News Digital.

“Even after postponing, we received feedback that many participating companies will not attend face-to-face events for the remainder of the year,” madconNYC event director Carlos Rodriguez

said in a statement. “Because everything we do is driven by our customers’ needs, the decision to go virtual was a no-brainer. The remote format enables martech vendors to continue to conduct business, while marketers gain the knowledge and tools they need to thrive during these uncertain times and beyond.”

Rather than the standard conference-and-breakout format, the virtual event will enable each attendee to build their own experience, including: dropping in on sessions curated by the IAB and others; exploring pertinent technology and service solutions; networking; and participating in one-on-one, ask-the-expert sessions.

In the lead-up to the event in December, madconNYC has also created a library of virtual resources — including virtual panels, interactive presentations, advice clips, and live Q&As — on its website. Webinars that are currently available, for instance, include How To Make Your Brand Stand Out In The Current Gaming Boom, and Give Your Brand a Boost in the Streaming Marketplace — the latter of which features Hulu‘s VP and head of ad sales research Asaf Davidov, Turner Sports SVP Seth Ladetsky, and Roku‘s head of ad marketing Jordan Rost.

Pre-registration for madconNYC is available at madconnyc.com.