Affiliate Summit 2005 Recap

[Linda Buquet]

For those of you that missed the Summit and those of you that were there and want to share your insights - this thread is the place to be. I did a big long blog about the Summit today and have 2 more coming, but wanted to post the info here for those that dont have my feed yet. (Shortened a little for this post.)

=============================================

Just got back from Vegas after an overwhelmingly positive experience at the Affiliate Summit. What I plan to do is a three part series covering the 3 elements of the conference that I feel had the most impact for me. The 3 P’s – PEOPLE, PRESENTATIONS & PARTIES. I know “what happens in Vegas – stays in Vegas” but I will still spill! ;-)

Part One - The PEOPLE! For me this was absolutely the most valuable part of the Summit on numerous levels. Meeting people face to face and actually talking instead of typing was so incredible I can’t even tell you. We are in a virtual biz, but nothing can replace up close and personal contact with people you work with.

Shawn, Missy and Team - 1st I want to thank Missy, Shawn all the speakers and people behind the scenes that made this event such a huge WIN for everyone involved. It was great meeting you all in person. You are both as genuine and real in person as you are online and it was a pleasure being around you. Thanks for all you did to make this the best Summit ever and a huge success.

The PartnerCentric Team – WOW what a team! We work together closely online and have weekly conference calls but for 9 of us to get together for 4 days to network and brainstorm in person was so valuable I can’t even express it. It was enriching to re-unite with the team members I have already met, and great to meet all the new managers I had not met in person before. We also had numerous clients at the show who helped at the booth, so I believe PartnerCentric had more people there than any other exhibitor. Everyone kept saying, wow you guys keep hiring all the best managers – you guys got Jamie from Coldwater Creek and all the good ones – if a good manager ever is MIA from a program I work with, I’ll know where to look – they probably hooked up with PartnerCentric.

The Affiliates – On Sunday I treated the whole PartnerCentric team, Connie Berg, her programmer Nate and Anne Fognano to a Champagne Buffet, then PC had a big meeting. It was so great to get to have some one-on-one time with Connie and Anne before the busy conference started. It was great spending some quality time once again with James Martell, Arlene his wife and some of his team. We were at James’ Cobra party up in Vancouver and were SO pleased he returned the favor and graced us with his company at our VIP party Monday nite. (Hope you guys enjoy all the PC Schwag you won!) Got to meet Billy Kay, Kelly (Ms.B), Loxly and a bunch of other affiliates I know from the boards. In fact we were all amazed at how many affiliates showed up. Looked to me like at least 1/3 were affiliates which is great cuz this conference usually attracts mainly merchants.

The AM’s, Merchants and ServiceProviders – Again it was amazing to be able to network, share industry ideas and insights with so many talented people I have worked with but never met. It was great to meet Todd Farmer and the rest of the Kowabunga team in person as well as Mark & Jason and the Direct Response Team. I had so many great conversions with so many people. One of the highlights for me was meeting Andy Rodriguez – what a cool guy! We had so much fun and Loxly took pictures of us hugging and kissing and will be posting them on ABW, so stay tuned. Actually she also took a pic of me with one arm around Todd Crawford and the other around Andy. Hey Lox, send me a copy. :-)

Special Note to Wayne Porter – The only negative part of the conference for me was watching you lay on the floor seizing. We were all so scared and felt so helpless. Felt like it took forever for the paramedics to get there, then they carted you away. I have been praying and worrying about your condition ever since. Well it looks like you are OK, thank God. If you can blog and make light of it, I guess you survived. Sure looked like more than a run of the mill seizure to me. Glad you are OK. Love the blog title that talks about your ordeal. Adware Behavior Causes Researchers Seizures

I am posting all the pics I can find from everyone on my blog, too many links to post here. Stay tuned for Part 2 (the Presentation highlights) and Part 3 (The dirt! errrr, uhhhh, I mean Party highlights) coming soon.
==============================================

Anyone else have comments or any questions about the Summit?

[webhost1]

What was the summit called and when is it next year and where?