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The Top 10 Takeaways from 3Q Digital’s Fifth Annual Growth Summit

Published: October 22, 2019

Author: Hillary Read

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Fast Forward, 3Q Digital’s fifth annual growth summit, brought over 200 attendees a full day of insights on leadership, digital marketing growth trends and roadmaps, the macroeconomy, and more. The event, which took place Oct. 3 at Oracle Park, featured experts from top platforms including Google, Facebook, YouTube, Microsoft, and LinkedIn and was highlighted by a fireside chat between 3Q Digital CEO David Rodnitzky and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce (and established business-builder) Penny Pritzker.
For attendees and folks who couldn’t join us at Oracle, we’ve put together the top 10 takeaways from the day, which was all about creating a fast track to growth.

Takeaway 1: “Culture eats strategy for lunch.”

Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, when asked about the most important factor in building a successful business, talked at length about how and why to build a great culture, starting with accountability and walking the walk at the executive level.

Takeaway 2: Data asymmetry matters.

In his keynote, 3Q CEO David Rodnitzky touched on the importance of data in today’s marketing landscape. Those companies with more data and more analytical power will see (and capitalize on) trends their competitors won’t. He shared examples from 3Q’s Labs team, which aggregates data and testing results across client segments to boost a wide range of client campaigns.

Takeaway 3: We can’t look away from train wrecks – but marketers shouldn’t rely on them for traffic.

In his “Wonder” presentation, futurist Nik Badminton explained that influencers are building huge followings by creating spectacles, but brands (corporate and individual) are truly built upon great storytelling and integrity. 

Takeaway 4: If you’re cutting against the grain, self-belief is your best friend.

In the event’s “Future of Leadership” segment, panelists Jessica Madrigal (Bjork Construction), Shahirah Gardner (Finch Australia), and Shanna Tellerman (Modsy) shared insights gained from disrupting their respective industries and staring down the status quo — and making sure you have mentors who believe in you as well.

Takeaway 5: Math + creativity = results

In an industry increasingly shifting toward optimization produced by machine learning, the ability to deliver quantitative, performance-driven creative across channels is fast becoming a differentiator. It’s no longer about big episodic creative, but about combining data and creative to create and deliver the right experiences in the right moments.

Takeaway 6: Test fast and often.

Testing is foundational to growth marketing. Rapid testing pays off; one win per month that lifts performance by 3% produces 36% improvement year over year.

Takeaway 7: Not all creative tests are equal.

To the last point, testing is important – but make sure you’re your testing things that will actually move the needle. In 3Q VP of Social Brad O’Brien’s workshop, co-hosted with experts from Facebook and Snapchat, one of the most prominent topics was how to get more strategic about performance creative and testing. Brad presented data from the 3Q Labs team that demonstrated the potential performance improvements to be gained from each element of creative (e.g. headline, description, image, etc.), and attendees learned where to focus tests to realize the biggest gains.

Takeaway 8: Video is critical – and more accessible than ever.

3Q Creative Director Julia Thiel and Director of Creative Strategy Becca Debono explained how to get more than 800 video assets out of one day of shooting – and how to develop a testing methodology to establish the best-performing assets.

Takeaway 9: YouTube offers a unique growth opportunity for marketers.

3Q YouTube expert Tom Leonard teamed up with experts from YouTube and Famebit to explore how YouTube’s full-funnel capabilities and the fast-growing power of creators has made YouTube one of marketing’s most powerful platforms – which represents a huge opportunity for marketers looking to engage the platform’s 1.9 billion monthly active users.

Takeaway 10: An SEO’s job is tougher than ever.

In their workshop, which examined current and future growth drivers in SEO, Searchmetrics CEO Jordan Koene and 3Q VP of SEO Leslie To explained how the industry is so complex that even SEO experts can’t agree on what matters most (hint: it’s not link-building).
 
We’re currently putting together our 2020 events calendar. Keep an eye out for invitations to get access to in-person insights that can help your company’s growth trajectory.