ad:tech New Delhi from 2011 to 2013: bigger and better YOY!

For more than ten years, ad:tech has provided media, marketing and technology professionals with the tools and techniques they need to succeed in a changing digital world. With 10 shows in 7 countries, ad:tech’s globally respected list of speakers, workshops and exhibitors continues to make it the preferred resource and destination for digital marketers everywhere.

ad:tech New Delhi that kick started in 2011 has evolved quite literally in these two years. The media fraternity received one of its kind opportunities to interact and exchange knowledge at this occasion.The largest gathering of online marketers at ad:tech did create a buzz. Brands, agencies, publishers and service providers came together to share, network, learn and do business.

The 2nd edition of ad:tech New Delhi delivered on its promise of being a bigger and a better event. The 3 day event featured Pre-Conference Master Class on Day 1, a bigger Expo floor with a dedicated Start-up Zone and 3 parallel conference tracks. ad:tech New Delhi saw participation from 2900+ attendees, 47 Solution providers who showcased their products and services on the exhibition floor, 22 Sponsors who supported the event along with15 media partners including Dept of IT, Government of India.

The conference featured over 89 speakers including 7 global keynotes, 18 panel and presentation sessions covering topics from Social, Mobile, Games, Search, Performance and more. The conference generated a stream of conversation on Social media, from coverage in blogs and updates on Facebook to ad:tech in trending at no. 2 spot in India for 2 days!

To discuss the journey of ad:tech, one of the biggest digital marketing event, Adgully caught up with Ram Mohan Sundaram , Event Chairman, ad:tech New Delhi.

The 3rd edition, ad:tech New Delhi 2013, is set to gauge the trends, emerging technologies and shifts in the marketplace and this time with all new passion and theme. This time ad:tech decided to salute the hardworking and passionate women in and around the marketing and advertising fraternity.

The ad:tech conference is all set to feature thought-leading speakers and breakout sessions covering today's pivotal topics like Integrated Video Planning, Convergence Of Search, Social And Content Marketing, Mobile, Big Data, DSPs, RTBs and more.  

Speaking about how ad:tech, New Delhi has evolved over the years, he said, “ad:tech 2011 was a break through event because of the fact that people used to travel to different parts of the world to attend this digital marketing event but then in 2011 when they got a chance to experience the same in New Delhi itself, it was a great thing. Though there were not so much expectations from that edition, given the fact that it was the first step, we saw huge participation from all over the world in the first year.”

Stalwarts like Elisa Steele, Executive VP & CMO, Yahoo Christopher Miglino, Co-Founder and CEO Social Reality, a provider of social media and cause marketing solutions to brands and many more came and spoke about the theme, “The Future of Digital marketing.” Since then more and more stalwarts of the advertising and media space joined hands to became a part of ad:tech’s journey.

Ram says, “We have had some of the best industry experts with us to share their views on the digital marketing and advertising scenario. They spoke about how marketers can indulge significantly into the world of digital marketing and advertising.”

Some of the past keynote speakers include names like Kevin Roberts, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi; Jack Ma, CEO of Alibaba; Chris Anderson, Editor-in-Chief of Wired Magazine; Deborah Wahl-Meyer, VP Marketing at Lexus; Fernando Madeira, CEO of Terra Latin America; Shawn Gold, the former CMO of MySpace and Will Whitehorn, President of Virgin Galactic.  

Sharing his view on how digital marketing and advertising has grown over the years, he said, “In India this space is at its nascent stage but has evolved quite literally and is also expected to grow rapidly. But now mobile has given an altogether new direction to digital marketing and advertising. The proliferation of data consumption is high with terms like Android, windows 8 etc.” 

How it evolved from 2011 to 2012?

Ram says, “During the first year we tried to gather the entire eco-system under one roof from professional to veterans but with many challenges. But in 2012 ad:tech became a platform for the marketers to come and share their views on  digital marketing. It became bigger in itself during the second year. Panel discussions covered topics from interactive television and social marketing, to the dynamics of the client-agency relationship and the future of marketing.”

“The Workshops delivered actionable instruction ranging from Website and search optimization to e-mail campaign and database management. The exhibit hall, a one-stop opportunity to reach out and touch every type of technology employed in digital marketing became bigger. So basically we saw more involvement in the 2nd edition but the first year seemed more productive because of the fact that the attendees that time had no clue in terms of what to expect from a marketplace and a platform like this,” he added.  

Year two that is in 2012, they saw a large proportion of participation from the host country with 7% international visitors from over 20 countries. 23% of ad:tech audience consisted of C-level, VP, MD and Founder, followed closely by 18% of Marketing/Corporate Communication/ Product and Brand Managers and Business Development/ Sales Director/Manager, Ram told us.

Now ad:tech 2013?

Ram explains that looking at the success of ad:tech this year we decided to take one-of-its kind route and theme which has never happened ever in any of the digital forums. He says, “We decided to salute and celebrate women power in marketing and advertising industry. This we have all the women speakers from all the different brands and different walks of life to come and share their views on the growth of digital marketing.”

Ram also told us that this time during the conference days, 2 hours have been specifically given to the exhibition hall, when the conference room will remain close and people would have to go to the exhibition hall and experience all the latest technology exhibited there.

So there are few add-ons as well, like Beer Garden (Sponsored by SapientNitro), Networking Pub Crawl (Sponsored by OMG), Therodinhoods Open House, Big Surprise Session, Mira! Mingle (Only for women) (Brought to you by Vuclip and BIG Networking Bash (C0-sponsored by Ozone Media & BBC.com).

The focus area:             

Though the focus area remains the same that is digital marketing and advertising, since ad:tech is meant for that space but this time it will be something more than just a conference and in a more engaging and communicating way. Ram says, “This time ad:tech is quite different and the topics of discussion itself are quite well researched and designed so as to make the schedule and the discussions more engaging and up to the current scenario.”  

Well, year on year topics change, scenarios change and ad:tech also grows bigger and better and this year too it promises to deliver the best as always. Rabab Rupawala [rabab(at)adgully.com]