Web Business Woman

You would think the AMA (American Marketing Association) would know better. They are a marketing organization, after all. I’m even a member.

But, this recent invitation to attend a Social Media Marketing workshop, in Boston, misses the mark, big time. I’m a busy gal, as many of you know. I bet you’re all pretty busy, too. Yes? Well, when I receive an invitation to attend a business workshop (or any other kind of seminar/workshop), I want my information up front. I don’t want the sponsor or presenter or the group to waste my time by burying the relevant information somewhere at the bottom of the announcement.

This event sounded worthwhile to me. I’m a social media marketer – but I don’t know everything. So, I decided to check the invitation out by clicking the link. It took me to a page on Marketing Power, the AMA’s website, and gave me the location of the seminar, the time, and a note saying early registration ends at 12:00 a.m. on September 30th.

Ok, so far, yes? Well, no, not really. What do I get if I register early? A discount? A free white paper? Cheesecake? I don’t know. They don’t say. Oh, wait, it does say “register by…for early registration fee” – which is how much? It doesn’t say.

And…WHO, or is it WHOM?… is presenting this seminar? Instead of wowing me with the presenter’s bio and background up front, they made me dig through the brochure content – four dense paragraphs describing the workshop (cookie-cutter content, it could be cut and pasted from any and all social media events) and more information on who should attend (everyone), what I’ll learn (everything), and what I’ll leave with (the same information I will learn, I believe), to finally discover that Dave is giving this presentation. Now, isn’t that nice? I know Dave! He’s Tom’s brother. He doesn’t know anything about social media.

Oh, but this isn’t the Dave I know, although the AMA must think I know him because they do not reveal Dave’s surname. They do say he’s the author of a book – how nice! He’s worked with lots of brands. He “combines strategy and tactics with quantitative measurement” and he’s “been a featured speaker in the AMA ‘Hot Topics’ series on Social Media.”

I don’t know about other people, but the presenter of a workshop is important to me. Content is important, also, but in order to accept that the presenter can produce the right content, and that he or she is capable of teaching me – I need to know upfront who they are. Their credentials are all very nice, but I want to see their name at the top of the invitation. I want to nod my head and say, “I need to attend this because Toby Bloomberg is presenting. I’ve heard great things about her.” I’d like a quote from the presenter. I’d like a testimonial to see if anyone else I know has taken this workshop. I’d like something more personal – HINT: THAT’S WHAT SOCIAL MEANS!!!

When all I get is, “Dave this and Dave that and Dave will…” I’m left wondering – Dave who? And so, I click the link to the downloadable brochure – which takes forever to open – and I discover, on page 2, that my presenter is Dave Evans. And, I also learn that I can save $200 by registering early.

At this point, I still don’t know Dave Evans. Maybe I should. His book looks pretty solid. They say it was “a number one ranked title across multiple marketing and business categories in Amazon.” His blog is worth a visit – this post is a good one. 

So, that’s it. In two days, Dave (Evans) is going to teach me everything I need to know about social media, according to the 12 bulleted points in the invitation. I mean, if I don’t know everything after learning those 12 points, it could only mean I slept through the workshop.

As you can guess, I’m not attending. The AMA convinced me that they’re after my money – they’re trying to wow me with broadcast content, not an invitation to participate in something worthwile. The content drones on and on. It’s overdone and mostly unnecessary. The page is ugly and uninviting. There is no courtship here. I’d really like to be courted. And, I’d like to SEE the presenter – I assume he does have a pic somewhere online. I accept that Dave’s a social media professional, but…I don’t want to attend his workshop because…it’s pitched to grab my wallet, not to build a relationship with me.

So 20th century.

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