It’s so important to invest in yourself, your education and your business. This is why conferences, retreats, workshops, and the like are so important for entrepreneurs. But here in Australia, there seems to be a scarcity of these things which is why I’m so excited to share an event that my guest today, Stephen Esketzis, has created which tackles all things digital marketing. And the best part is it going to be held in Australia! It’s called the Digital Marketers Australia Conference and in this episode, we’ll be exploring the benefits of attending retreats, including this one, and so much more.
Important Links Mentioned in the Show:
Digital Marketers Australia Conference
Women in Business Retreat 2020
Angela Henderson Active Business Facebook Group
Angela Henderson Facebook Business Page
Prefer to read Creating Digital Marketers Australia Conference? Here’s the transcript:
ANGELA:
You’re listening to the Business and Life Conversations Podcast with Angela Henderson, Episode 77.
Hey there, you’re listening to the Business and Life Conversations Podcast. My name is Angela Henderson and on this show, we talk about improving your business, life or both, by having amazing and rich conversations with brilliant guests who will inspire you and who will give you tips and tricks to help you grow both in life and in business.
Well hey there and welcome back to another awesome episode of the Business and Life Conversations Podcast. I am your host, Anj, from Angela Henderson Consulting where I am a Business Consultant and Coach who has helped hundreds of women business owners get all the pieces in place to have consistent 5-figure months and then on to 6-figure years without burning out in the process.
Conferences. Retreats. Workshops. These are so, so important; so vital to your business and personal growth. But we have a problem. You see, here in Australia, finding an event for businesses and entrepreneurs isn’t the easiest of things. Trust me, I know. Because for the last ten years of being in business, I’ve had to fly around the world securing, looking, connecting with other amazing businesses who have these events that are going on; different masterminds, different conferences; and it’s through this that my business has grown exponentially.
But without these other amazing conferences around the world, I feel I would be stagnant. And this is why one of the key reasons why I actually created Australia’s leading 4-Day, 3-Night Women in Business Retreat was I didn’t want other women in business to have to leave their families and dish out all that money to fly around the world when they could utilize the resources here in Australia. And thus, my 4-Day, 3-Night Women in Business Retreat was born.
And I mean, this is also one of the key reasons that we’ll be speaking with guest; my guest today is Stephen, about why he created Australia’s event that is all things digital marketing. So today’s episode, I’m going to be sharing with you the exciting events Stephen has created here in Australia called Digital Marketers Australia Conference. We’re going to explore the benefits of attending this particular business retreat or any retreat really are. We’re also going to confirm who Digital Marketers Australia Conference is for and so, so, so much more.
But before we hop straight into this amazing episode, I like to remind you that if you enjoy this episode, I’d love for you to share a picture of you driving in your car, not you driving actually and sharing it, but a picture of like on the dashboard and share that on Instagram. I’d love for you to share some wisdom that you took away from it on an Instagram story. And please make sure to tag me @angelahendersonconsulting so I can share this to my audience. I mean, I may have a slight addiction to Instagram and all.
This episode is also sponsored by my 12-month group coaching program, which is Profit Pillars, where we help women in business create consistent 5-figure months. You see, my 12-month group coaching program for women business owners who are ready to take action and grow a profitable business is going to get some pretty amazing learning’s and communities.
You’re going to get from the complete Profit Pillar training system, complete with videos, PDF guides and more. You’re going to get monthly lives, strategy sessions; you’re going to get monthly hot seats, you’re going to get monthly mastermind classes with guest experts, talking about accounting, legal stuff and so much more. You got a 24/7 access to our private Facebook community. You got world-class member support and special bonuses and secret surprises and so much more along the way.
To learn about how you can join my 12-month group coaching program, Profit Pillars, make sure you head to angelahenderson.com.au.
Alright. Now, let’s jump into this amazing episode where we’re going to be speaking about Digital Marketers Australia Conference.
Welcome to the show, Stephen.
STEPHEN:
Hey, how’s it going?
ANGELA:
I’m good. How are you?
STEPHEN:
I’m very good. Very good.
ANGELA:
You’re very good. Now, you’re down in Melbourne. Has it warmed up since when I saw you a few weeks ago?
STEPHEN:
Nice and sunny now. But who knows how long it will last?
ANGELA:
Literally, like of all the places in Australia, I do feel that Melbourne, it can have all four seasons in one day. Like, I know people kind of throw that around, but I genuinely felt every time I’ve been there, I can have everything in one day.
STEPHEN:
Well, yeah. Yesterday was 36 degrees, I think it is to top off. And then, in the evening, I needed a jumper and like blankets, otherwise, it was too cold.
ANGELA:
Yes, you’re either melting or freezing; one of the two. Now listen, you and I, I was trying to think back when how you and I kind of started to know each other and I think I initially, like I said, saw you speak at another conference last year. And then, we were both at James Schramko’s Superfast Business speaking this year. And then, yeah, and then, you asked me to speak at your upcoming event, which is Digital Marketers Australia, which we’re obviously going to talk all about today. Yeah, and it’s weird how the world can just keep bringing people back together, which is always awesome.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. It’s a very small industry. So it’s not hard to find different people, but it’s awesome that we get connected.
ANGELA:
So yeah, and speaking. I encourage people out there that if you’re not speaking as part of your business strategy, really think about it because some of the most beautiful and fantastic relationships I’ve met is through speaking opportunities over the last few years. And it’s just a wonderful way, not only to build your business and your brand but equally just to position yourself as one of those thought leaders. I know that kind of words is a bit cheesy, but you know what I mean in that realm that you’re in.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. For sure. Absolutely.
ANGELA:
Now, listen. Before we get started, I always like to ask my guest a fun little question so that the listeners can get to know you a little bit better. So my question for you is I know you do, do a lot of speaking, Stephen, so I’d like to know what has been your favourite stage that you’ve ever spoken on and why?
STEPHEN:
Okay, so the really strange one, a friend of mine that I met in the US, he is a huge influencer in Ukraine, out of all places. So obviously, I went over there about six months ago to his event. He goes, “Come speak to my conference.” Everyone there is either Ukrainian or Russian or can speak Russian or Ukrainian. There were 7,000 attendees; I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I obviously committed speaking.
I went over there and I walked in the room; it felt like I was on like a rockstar stage, as in crazy. I’ve got a video on my Instagram if you want to have a look at it. Like, I had to take a video of it with a video in front of me because it was insane.
ANGELA:
Yeah. Because I remember seeing you post it I think also on your personal Facebook page and you’re getting like, I think it was like you’re getting escorted up and I think the translator may have been there with you to try and like help you out? And it genuinely looked like just nuts, like absolutely epic.
STEPHEN:
Oh, it was crazy. And then, yeah, I had a translator as well so every single thing I said, I had to get used to saying a sentence and then stopping, and then a sentence, and then stopping, and then a sentence and stopping. And like, that was the entire thing and I was up there; usually, you speak for maybe 30 or 40 minutes, that was an hour and 20 minutes.
ANGELA:
Wow.
STEPHEN:
So like, no cue cards, nothing, just presentation. I had no idea if they were understanding what I was talking about. But it seemed like they’ve got a good response, I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was just really cool and then afterwards, I guess it’s so rare for them to see an Australian speaker over there because it’s so far away. So it was a really amazing experience.
That was probably my most interesting speaking experience, which happened this year. But there’s a lot of great events out there. James Schramko’s event was awesome. I had a chance to be on a panel and speak a bit at T&C as well this year. That was for last year this year if I remember. So I think, each event is like totally different and they’ve all got different audiences.
ANGELA:
But I definitely think that the vibe you would have had in the Ukraine just would have been exhilarating. Like, you would have sort of been like, “That was epic.”
STEPHEN:
Oh, it was. I woke up like literally feeling like a rockstar. Because then, everyone comes up to you and they’re like, just want photos. And even more so, like, they couldn’t even say, “Can we get a photo?” They just walk up next to you and stand there and then you just have to do it. I’m like, “Alright.” So I’m just standing there and then this line form, wanting a photo. It must feel like; that’s what it’s like to be famous overseas or whatever. Like people just wanting to get photos of you because of the fact that you’re unique and exotic.
It was so cool. So it was a really cool experience. Even some of the other sessions there, I think I was the only one with a translator. It was just a great experience, so I’m definitely going to go back in there even if I’m not speaking, just purely to enjoy the event and meet some cool people back. And also, if you ever get a chance, head to Kyiv in Ukraine. Like one of the best cities I’ve ever been to.
ANGELA:
Yup.
STEPHEN:
A ton of fun. Again, barely any tourists and I think that’s one of the reasons why it was so good. People think it’s like, “Oh, Eastern Europe, like a bit dirty, cheap.” It was so much fun.
ANGELA:
Fun and beautiful. And you use the keyword there, experiences. I think in entrepreneurship, we’re forgetting sometimes to have fun, be playful and have experiences because we’re just like head down, bottom-up. And it’s really important that in order for you to have that personal growth and that growth for your business that you are looking for those experiences.
And I spoke with you before, you’ve reached out to me talking to you about your event, which is Digitals Marketers Australia and it’s one of those things that I was like, I knew it was going to be epic, and I knew that there’s going to be experiences, which will get into. I will hold off on talking too deep about it. But it is really important that you’re getting surrounded by those magical experiences because it just; I mean, being an entrepreneur is lonely. It is lonely as hell. And as you get more and more successful and you start to grow more, I also find that being at that top part of it can be a different type of lonely, right? You’re doing things that not everyone understands, the communities are slightly different.
So yes, so we’ll talk about experiences in a minute. But before we jump into the amazing conference that you’ve created here in Australia, can you tell us just a little bit about where you’ve come from, what you’re working on now so the listeners can get to know you a little bit more, Stephen?
STEPHEN:
Yeah, absolutely. So my background, I started pretty much straight out of high school into business. Started with a mobile app when I was 18; kind of grew that a little bit. And then, I was trying to figure out how to market it, and then going into digital marketing and how Facebook ads work. From there, everything has been self-taught.
I started working with ClickFunnels just when they launched. I was head of their content marketing for about a year; a year and a half. So yes, sales funnels, paid media; that’s kind of been how I started. And then after that, I got into, probably two or three years ago, building media sites or big content websites, publishing a lot of content, learning in SEO inside out; that was our main traffic source. So we have a team of like 25 people between writers, developers, designers. Probably most of the team is in The Philippines and then a couple overseas as well.
But, yeah. That’s kind of, I learned SEO a whole bunch. And I’ve just been travelling to conferences and I was going away so frequently; probably six or seven times a year just for events because there’s not much here; there wasn’t much an offer in Australia. And that’s kind of how Digital Marketers Australia was born out of a necessity for me just to want to put a good event here that I didn’t have to travel across the world for. So that’s how that came about. But yeah, my background is digital marketing, sales funnels, paid media, customer position; all that kind of fun stuff. And then, yeah, that’s kind of how it started.
ANGELA:
That’s a little bit of you and where you’re going. And like you said, I would totally, totally agree with you about the lack of amazing conferences here in Australia. Obviously, again, a bit biased, I do run again Australia’s 4-Day, 3-Night Women in Business Retreat. Not digital, but it is like that’s exactly why I started mine also, Stephen, was that I kept having to go to, again, and nothing wrong; I love going to The Maldives to be with James Schramko’s or Chris Ducker’s or fly into The US for Social Media Marketing World and my other mastermind with Caitlin Bacher.
But sometimes, you just want to be home. You just want to be in your own country, being able to take a short flight, not having to worry about the jetlag. But again, so many of us that are really looking for those growth in our businesses and scaling is we’re looking at having to go overseas to get that education and that connectedness, that experiences because we haven’t. So it is lovely to hear that you have also created an amazing conference. You had your first year last year. Tell me a little bit about what that look like for you last year.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. And just to touch on that just before I say it out, like, I was doing a lot of travelling in terms of like, I’ll be going all the way; I went to and it was like Fort Lauderdale, so it was like East Coast USA. I was there for three days just for the event. So I’d be flying like 16 hours to L.A. from Melbourne, another five across The US; so 21 hours. By the time you get all your stops in between, it’s like 25 hours; door-to-door, and you stay there for three days, and then fly all the way back and do another 25 hours. So it just took a toll.
But yeah, a little bit about the event; three-day event, we’ve basically put together in Melbourne. So we ran the first one this year back in March and it was a two-day conference. We had 500 people. We sold out about two months before the conference even took place; our very first event. Before that, we’ve done monthly meet-ups in Melbourne for about a year and a half just because I wanted to see if there was a demand for it.
Funnily enough, maybe 5% from the monthly meet-ups; maybe even 10 pushing it, made it to the paid conference. So it just shows you that we had great monthly meet-ups and I thought that was going to be a proof of content but barely any people come from those events to a paid conference. So for instance, [Inaudible 00:12:55] but it went insanely well. I’m really happy with it. We had some amazing speakers over two days. We had networking; we had topics from Facebook advertising, to SEO, to Google, to Instagram, to building a brand, to hiring and building an agency. So we’ve covered a whole bunch of different topics and that was at Melbourne at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre. And yeah, next year, we plan on doubling and growing and getting bigger and better.
ANGELA:
And tell me, with all of those things that you’ve just talked about, what are some of the core benefits of businesses attending your event or really any event, if we’re honest about it? Like, what have you walked away when you attend events and then how are you duplicating that for your own event?
STEPHEN:
So I think it really depends on what state of business you’re in. So when I was at the beginning of my business journey and started building the business, the content to me was massive. So learning a lot of the content and getting really up close and familiar with the experts and saying, “Alright. Well, show me the tools that you’re using. Show me the campaign. Show me the breakdowns.” And I’m extremely, like I’ve got a really high bullshit rate. I don’t want people talking fluff. I don’t want people just making things up. I want to see campaigns. I want to see the numbers. I want to see the nitty-gritty of everything and how it worked.
So I think if you’re on early on, you really want to be at events just purely to see the right content and you’re going to feel from all these experts and see. I think as you progress over time, the bigger thing for me now is like networking; really finding the right partners, meeting people who can be strategic partners. It might not be right now, but it might be in 6 or 12 months top. Whether that means meeting the right person that can do an email out for me, an agency or a media buy that can really help propel the brand or who would do that for you. The SEO person that can jump on your team; whatever it might be. It could just be a joint venture partnership who might want to promote your product across or something. Maybe someone else has clients that you’re looking for that they can add on your service.
Whatever it is; that networking aspect is just paid off in spades. That’s the reason why I’ve been going to events so often is because the networking world, it’s so powerful just to increase your audience with people that you know in the industry that if something, push comes to shove, you need a hand or something, there’s someone there that can help you. And I just think that’s so powerful.
ANGELA:
I couldn’t agree more. And again, I used a kind of a saying I say about paying to play, right? Is that, not only when you’re paying the play are you paying, you’re getting better quality relationships with people because you’re surrounding yourself with these amazing people who also want to be in the same environment with amazingness, but then you also become on the radar of other people, right?
So it’s like, there’ll be people who are paying to play to go to Digital Marketers Australia this year, in 2020 and they’re gonna be going, yup, and they’ll get to know you or they’ll offer help for you. And then that relationship, and then, you might be able to help them. Like, it’s this kind of you’re building this ecosystem, not only to help others but also strategically to help yourself. And the more you pay to play, the more you get that exposure, the more your business will grow.
STEPHEN:
100%. And it’s the same with masterminds and things like that as well. Like, most people genuinely join to meet either the person running the event or to meet a speaker or to learn a content, but they’ll stick around and they’ll come back again because of the community.
ANGELA:
Yes.
STEPHEN:
The community is what brings people back and keeps the community alive and keeps the event going and keeps the mastermind going; whatever it might be. But at the end of the day, you just have to put on a good event. And my number one goal for this year was to put on a good event with people that tend to come back again.
But I think we did that really successfully, so again, you’re absolutely right. Pay to play is a huge one. It also wades out people that really aren’t into sitting just tie picking around. You don’t want to be sitting next to someone that has no interest. You want to sit next to someone that’s hungry and driven to learn and looking forward to chatting with you. So, I couldn’t agree more.
ANGELA:
And with your event, in particular, Digital Marketers Australia, for those listeners out there going, “And this sounds really great. I need to probably up my game in regards to getting to conferences, etc.” Who is the Digital Marketers Australia Conference for?
STEPHEN:
So we got a real mix of people. It comes from; we get some people who are in the agency space, small business owners. So usually, if it’s a small business attending, it will usually be the founder of that small business, whether it’s consulting and e-commerce brand. It could be someone who’s in the service-based business; it will usually be the founder of that. Or if it’s a really bigger business, then it’ll usually be like a CMO or the person implementing all the digital strategies.
So really, it’s a mix of people, but everyone that touches digital. Everyone that’s involved with rolling out digital strategies for their business, depending on the size; that’s either yourself, as the founder or it’s someone in your team.
ANGELA:
But also like, influencers can come; you’ve got advertisers and different networks. You’ve also got like in-house marketing teams. Like, the beauty about running such an amazing event like this is that genuinely, there’s so much going on and so many amazing speakers that everyone can get take away something.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. 100%. So you know, like that’s the beauty of it. Like you said, it’s just across so many different types of digital marketers and marketers in general. Whether you’re an SEO, whether you’re Facebook, whether you’re full-on general advertiser, whether you’re the person just running the business and you’re looking to find out how do you get more leads in, “Which platform is right for us?” Is it Facebook that we want to go? Is it Google? Is it YouTube? Is it Instagram? Is it LinkedIn? We cover both B2B and B2C as well, so there’s going to be content on both sides of that. So it’s a really good way to find out what type of digital marketing you want to be doing and then you can find the expert in the track that you want to go into.
ANGELA:
Yup. And like you just touched upon there, as you know, for those out there that’s going, so many of this could like infancy stage, you may never have doubled down and done something like this. Or you have and you’re just like, you’ve gone to an event and it totally sucks, right? Like for you though is you’re really, really big about people feeling and experiencing a very great event, not only through that; the learning of lead generation, e-commerce, digital strategies, the Facebook ads, but you’re also really big about throwing epic after-parties at the night time. You’re also equally wanting to make sure that you’ve got experienced and qualified speakers. Like, there’s so much thought that has gone into this, that again, that’s why it is Australia’s leading Digital Marketers Conference to go to. So tell me a little bit more, too, about who do you have speaking at this 2020 event?
STEPHEN:
Yeah. We’ve got some amazing speakers lined up. Everyone, so our keynote speaker for this year is Naomi Simson who some of you guys might be familiar with who started Red Balloon. She’s got the Red Balloon in terms of the gift-giving service online. It’s been around for a while; they’re a multi, multi-million dollar business. So she’s our keynote.
The other speakers who some of you guys might be familiar with; Mike Rhodes, who’s a Google advertising genius in his own right. Ilana Wechsler who’s again, Facebook/Google person. Alexi Neocleous who’s a content marketing expert. We got yourself joining us, obviously. You’re going to be on stage. A friend of mine, Dimitri Nikolakakis, who’s a big Facebook e-commerce expert. Kate Toon, who’s a SEO queen.
We’ve got a whole bunch of people. Like, there’s another probably 20 people there and then, they’re not even the ones I’ve announced. I think we’ve only put up on the website 15 or 20 people. But there’s going to be at least 35 speakers for us. And we’re going to be covering everything from, like I said, SEO, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, cold email outreaching.
And we’re even going to have business growth overall strategies, too, because I think it’s really important that the tactics are amazing and it’s a tactical style of conference. It’s not something that’s going to be up high and fluffy. But it’s also important I think to lay the foundational strategy, too, and knowing how do you grow your business, how do you take that business from one level to the next?
ANGELA:
You’re speaking my language because all these tactics are great, but I’m all about building the foundational elements you need in order to grow a sustainable and profitable business. So if you’re just like throwing random tactics and you’re not stringing those together, and that’s again why I like it is because you’re taking a holistic approach to this while still meeting the needs of all of those people who will be there.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. I think that’s really important because some events you’ll go, just all strategy and mission statements and, “This is how to build a brand,” and blah, blah, blah and I’m like, “Okay, that’s great. But I haven’t really walked away with any skills that I can just go and roll out.” And then vice versa, you find places that are like that, “If you want to double your open rate, just put the word, put an emoji in your headline before you send an email.” And I’m like, “Well, that’s great.” But at the end of the day, that’s just a little tweak hack. Like, that’s not enough.
So I think you want to have a mix of some hacks are great, but overall, if you can show a campaign that’s really killed it and why did that work; what was the reason for it, what was the actual psychology behind that? And then, find out which platform is helping right now, which is the platform that is working, that’s I think the real valued; kind of that stuff in the middle, which isn’t just a quick hack that’s just going to work for a little while.
But it’s not super fluffy that it’s just saying, “Hey, you should really just get on Facebook.” Well, great. Facebook is a great opportunity right now, but like, we need more than that. I want to see actual campaigns and brands you’re using, the numbers; what is the average order value, what is the average client value, how do they scale their CPA? Like, that’s all the kind of stuff that’s really interesting. And most people are afraid of showing that, we pull back the curtain on these campaigns. That’s why I’m strict with speakers so that they can actually show you what’s working.
ANGELA:
And what I equally love about all of this, just even the holistic approach is that when you approached me, you said something that really kind of stuck with me and I’m not going to say it exactly how you said it, but you’re like, “It’s really important that we have inclusiveness with female speakers and it’s not just males,” something along those lines. I know it’s not exactly the same as you said.
And that to me was profound for me, Stephen, because not a lot of males, no again, I’m not here to beg at males, okay? But not everyone takes it into consideration. Now, I also would like to say I’m a firm believer; you need the right person for the right job. So that happens to be all males; that’s okay. Happens to be all females; that’s okay. But when it comes to conferences, there are definitely some conferences collectively around the world that you literally show up and it is 95% white male speaking, right? And there’s a little cohort; it’s like a couple of females and that’s it.
But when you said that to me, I was like, “Man, Stephen.” My respect for you. I always have respected you, but it quadrupled, alright? If not like infinite. Because I just like, you’re really trying to take into consideration meeting the needs for everyone but still putting on just such an epic, epic event. So I just wanted to acknowledge you for that and thank you for that because I feel like you are a leader in that field to showcase to other people that women also have just as much good quality and topics to speak about than just those white male. So I just want to say I appreciate that.
STEPHEN:
Yeah, look. It’s something that we struggle with. I’m going to say like it’s not something that is easy and I can understand other events struggle with that, too. But like, even this year, when we run our first event, we didn’t get as many female speakers as we would have liked, some of the team even mentioned that to us of wanting more female speakers. And I said, “Look, honestly, we tried to reach out to a lot and it’s difficult to find some of them and have them willing to speak and we just had a lot more males come up to us and say they wanted to speak, honestly.” So, it’s a hard space to be, but I think this year we’ve done a really good job. Like, we got some really talented people. So we’re going to keep trying.
ANGELA:
No, no, you done; but the fact that you even said that in our initial conversation had taught me like how important it was for you to do that, right? And that’s like my hat went off to you. And listen, I agree. I also want to say that women who are listening, and if you want to be speakers, I’m going to be a bit blunt here. Get off your ass and apply. Don’t expect people to come to approach you. I’ve worked hard to get on James Schramko’s stage. I’m speaking with Traffic and Conversion to speak at their stage in March next year.
There’s a variety of things, but I have to work hard to build those relationships. I have put the yards in, I have followed up. So if you’re wanting to speak on stages, like Stephen’s stage, start building relationships, start reaching out. Again, it’s just as much your responsibility, if not more, than the person who’s running the event.
Because last year, I know we’re going off, but there is this group of people who are complaining about this other event in the United States, women, in this women’s group. And I said to them, I called them out on it and I said, “How many of you that are complaining right now applied to this event?” Do you know how many applied? Zero, Stephen. So I was like, I said, “Actually, you’re the cause of this problem right now, then, because you are actually in a group, you’re defaming that particular business in the United States that was putting on this event. But yet, none of you actually applied. Now, if all of you had applied and no one got it, you could probably argue, well, that’s a little bit dodgy, maybe, maybe not, if you’re not qualified.”
And that’s the second thing, just because you applied doesn’t mean you get the spot. If you’re not qualified and you don’t have the skill set to show up on someone’s stage, don’t start, like there’s so many variables that go into it. So again, I know a little, mini-rant there, but women, step up. Apply. Build those relationships.
But again, equally Stephen, my hat goes off to you because I can’t emphasize enough how much I really appreciate that you have taken into all those things to consider. So thank you for that.
STEPHEN:
Yeah. And like I said, we want to keep growing that size also, so if you are a female speaker and like I said, you’re in digital marketing, you’ve got a great track record, you’ve got something to share, you’ve got something that would be great for the audience, just apply. We’ve got that on the website if you’re interested in applying. We’ve got a link on there in the FAQ page. And put it out there. Like I said, we’re going to try and put as many great speakers, whether they’re female or male.
ANGELA:
Exactly right.
STEPHEN:
I think it’s just going to be great speakers. And we’re always going to look for, as much as we can with our speakers, but, yeah, that’s kind of what we want. We just want to put on a great event that everyone can really learn from. And at the end of the day, we’re all there to learn, we’re all there to network, we’re all going to meet people. Myself included; I learn a lot from the right people on stage just as much as anyone else.
And I just think, there’s so many, without naming names, a lot of terrible events out there, not just in Australia but overseas, too.
ANGELA:
Totally.
STEPHEN:
It’s just one of those things; like it’s an event where you’re going to get pitched up every speaker. That‘s just not the type of event and conference I’m running. The type of conference we’re running here is like, the ticket price is going to start from anywhere $497. So actually if you’re listening, I’m going to take this opportunity to…
ANGELA:
Yes, do, because I want to make sure that people know where can the listeners secure their ticket to the conference?
STEPHEN:
Yeah. So it’s $497 for a ticket or 2 for $897. So if you come with a friend, you’ll save $97 off your second ticket. But, yeah, when this goes live, I believe, you’ll have 48 hours ‘til that price actually goes up by $200. So if you’re listening and you’re interested, definitely take action. That’s the lowest price at the entire conference, so definitely take advantage of that super early bird pricing. And then it’ll go up to the early bird, which will be $200 more. So take advantage of that. You can just head to digitalmarketersaustralia.com.
But I was going to say is like it’s not a type of conference where you’re going to be getting pitched off at every session. We’ve got the ticket price at that level because we want to be able to bring good speakers over that you’re not going to feel slimy and dirty walking away from it. It’s not like a $50 event where you buy the ticket and then every single speaker is going to be asking to buy their program at the end of each session. That’s just not how we work.
So you can be confident that the content is going to be, they’re going to be giving everything away. It’s not just something they held back and then, “Hey, buy my course if you want to learn more.”
ANGELA:
But it’s also not just the course I think like, And that’s why you’ve chosen, from what I understand, to make it a three-day event versus a one-day event is that people actually have time for the information that their learning to sit and marinate. But equally again, like some of the best things that have come from conferences is what happens at the networking events, post the actual day. Like, you take what you’ve learned at the day and then you start to kind of brainstorm with these amazing people with a mojito or a cocktail in hand. And there’s so much like, “Aha moments” that happen.
And again, so the fact that you’ve taken on board also that really three days, you need that. That’s how I also feel at my 4-Day, 3-Night Women in Business Retreat is one day, you kind of get it, two days, no; three days, yeah, you’re prime; and then four days, you like sit there more relaxed. So three-day event is a beautiful way, but it’s also the networking that happens post those, that night time. And I can’t wait because it’s going to be an epic, epic, party with you, Stephen.
STEPHEN:
Yeah, so the first night, we’ve got like networking drinks, so it’s going to be at the hotel. So it’s at the Pullman Hotel in Albert Park here in Melbourne. And on the second night, we’ve actually going to be booking at a nightclub where we’re going to have a DJ and you can come out for dance and a drink. I think we’re going to have a big party that second night. So we’ll start a little bit later on that Friday morning on the last day so everyone can have a little bit of a sleep in. But it’s going to be a good event.
Yeah, I guess it’s just the fact that you’ll be able to meet so many people in your space, highly recommended. We have people coming from, I’d say 50 to 60% come from interstate as well. It’s not just from Melbourne. So if you’re from interstate, we’ve got a booking link with the room block; it’s really discounted on the room, so you can book that in and stay at the event hotel. I think the rooms are like $150-$160 to $200 a night, so they’re pretty reasonably priced; it’s nothing crazy. And we just want to make it a good event for everyone and really accessible.
It’s a one-time event in the whole year as well. We don’t run this every other month, we don’t run this twice or three times a year, it’s a one-time thing. So take advantage of it, we’re going to be putting a lot of efforts into making it a really great experience for you.
ANGELA:
And again, your website again, can you just let everyone know where they can go and get those early bird tickets in the next 48 hours?
STEPHEN:
Yeah. So it’s digitalmarketersaustralia.com. Or you just put it into to Google, I’m sure it’ll come up.
ANGELA:
Yup. And we’ll also have everything in the show notes, too, so we’ll make sure of that. And also, I know for a fact, we’ve got; there’ll be myself. Obviously, I’ll be there speaking, and then, there are some of my own one-to-one clients, like I just said to you, there is about 10 of them that are booking, so there’s going to be so many cool people there. It’s going to be awesome.
So one final question now before we wrap up, Stephen is, what do you know now that you wish you knew when you first started in business?
STEPHEN:
That’s a really good question. I like that one. What do I wish I know, what I wished I knew then; look, I honestly think that there’s two things, actually. And I think that these two things are pretty important. Number one is; like it sounds corny but your network is your net worth.
ANGELA:
100%
STEPHEN:
I think that’s how I got drawn into these events business because it’s not; honestly, if you’re running events, you’ll know this already, it’s not like you want to be a multi, multi-millionaire.
ANGELA:
No.
STEPHEN:
But ultimately, the people that you meet, going to events or running events, it’s just; the ROI you met is incomprehensible. And I think Gary Vaynerchuk said this a year or two ago is that, “What’s the ROI in your mom? There is no ROI in your mom.” Like, obviously the benefits of having a good household, and your mom, you love her so much. It’s like, you know that there’s value there. You know that you have that amazing feeling and connection, responsible for so much goodness and it’s not a direct ROI all the time. And I think it’s the same with your network. Like, the amount of people in my network now that I’ve been able to lean against and speak to and meet has just been phenomenal.
Whether I need, like I said, [Inaudible 00:32:15] look and say, “Hey, I want to sell you this right now, but there’s some traction.” But who might be, six months down the road, and I say, “Oh crap, like my Facebook account got closed.” Now, who do I know that runs an agency that has a Facebook rep and that I’ve built a relationship with? And maybe I can help them out or I’ve helped them at the past or introduced them to someone else and they’ve done a deal.
It’s just, there’s always something somewhere in your network that can help you. And I really like that. It’s kind of building like your personal support group. And always offering value first before asking for value. So that’s the first thing. It’s really just investing in your network. I’ve never turned around and said, “Oh, damn. That wasn’t a good investment. Like I wish I didn’t go there. I wished I never met that person.” I’ve never ever said that.
ANGELA:
Yup.
STEPHEN:
So I think that’s the first thing. And then the second thing is leverage as well. Now I know how to leverage business opportunities and also knowing how to leverage with your skills into other bigger opportunities. So what I mean by that is like when I started out obviously learning funnels and marketing and things like that, I was able to leverage that into now building media sites. And for me, if I didn’t have that product experience, I couldn’t get to that next level, which is like a bigger business.
And now, next year 2020, we’re moving into e-commerce a lot more. And again, I’ve leveraged kind of the relationships in the event space and the relationships I’ve built going to masterminds, meeting all these different marketers. And I feel like now, you know what, we’re ready to build a brand and we’ve got the right people in the network to be able to support that and grow it very quickly.
So leveraging what you’ve already learned and what you’ve already got in your wheelhouse to take your business to the next level is super important.
ANGELA:
Yup.
STEPHEN:
So I’d say those two things, if I went that early on, I’d be able to move way quicker than what I have. And yeah, no regrets though. Like, I’m super happy with where I am. But if that was, if you’re talking to an 18-year old Stephen, that’s what I’d be telling you.
ANGELA:
Fantastic. Well, thank you for sharing that. And before we sign off, my team and I will also be putting together the whole transcription for this episode at angelahenderson.com.au. And as I mentioned earlier, if you enjoyed this episode, I would love for you to share it, especially over on your Instagram stories and tag me with hashtag #angelahendersonconsulting or really, you can just share it wherever because that would be awesome.
And also I would love for you to subscribe and/or leave a review because this really helps me to make the bigger impact on other business owners. That is all for now. Have a fabulous day no matter where you are in the world and I look forward to you joining me next week for another amazing episode of the Business and Life Conversations Podcast.
And don’t forget, run not walk, to get one of the tickets to next year’s Digital Marketers Australia Conference. Thanks so much, Stephen.
STEPHEN:
Thank you very much, guys. We’ll see you there.
ANGELA:
Thanks for listening to the Business and Life Conversations Podcast with Angela Henderson, Digital Marketers Australia Conference. www.angelahenderson.com.au
