This year's central theme was harnessing the automation transformation, and the speakers delivered. Catch the highlights by watching a quick video about the event below.

The Morning

We’ve consistently heard from post-conference surveys that we need more hands-on learning opportunities for tactical or advanced topics, and new this year were Trendigital workshops. We offered two workshops: Connecting GA4 and Google Ads and The Importance of Web Accessibility. A Click Rain senior team member led each workshop, sharing best practices and industry insights and facilitating Q&A. Workshops were a great time to bring together marketing experts across various industries focused on a specific craft, and we loved having the camaraderie to kick off the day.

We also learned what works and where we can keep elevating Trendigital workshops. There is more to come!

The Afternoon

There were plenty of industry-shifting topics to cover this year. While change can be overwhelming, we wanted to ensure each speaker shared content that could leave everyone feeling inspired and confident in their marketing strategies.

The conference opened with Samantha Allen giving her Digital Debrief. Her talk focused on the evolving landscape, new technologies, and content best practices. Pay attention to GEO (generative engine optimization) and wearable technology strategies, but don’t forget that good content focused on your target audience will always shine. Sign up for her monthly newsletter, the Digital Debrief, for more digital marketing updates.

Chelsea Redinger navigated us through the history of third-party cookies and how the media and marketing world will look without them. She explained that the absence of third-party cookies means the loss of metrics like view-through conversions and the end of placement strategies like behavioral or retargeting. On the positive side, media channels like paid social ads, paid search, connected TV, online radio, and native are set up to succeed in a cookieless world.

This year, we had a strong focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) but did not want to talk about it in a theoretical way. AI is here, platforms are easily accessible, and we wanted to provide some clear stepping stones and share our learnings to make AI more digestible to attendees.

Dale Bertrand’s talk “SEO & Content Marketing with AI Tools” focused on leveraging the AI landscape for your website. The changes from predictive AI to generative AI and how implementing the right tools into your process can increase productivity and lead to a higher quality of work. ChatGPT, or any AI tool, has a role to play and can help you stand out in your SEO and content strategies.

The afternoon closed with AI Lightning talks where each presenter had 10-15 minutes to share how they use AI within their specific discipline. With a mix of inspiration, best practices, and a consistent view that AI is only as good as the humans behind it, we focused on four main topics.

  • AI & Ethics

  • AI in Design

  • AI in Marketing

  • AI in Brand Writing

Thank You

As a company, this is truly one of our favorite days of the year, and thank you never seems to be a strong enough sentiment to those who help make it such an impactful event.

To our sponsors, Book Your Billboard, Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, Better Business Bureau, and AlphaGraphics, thank you for helping make this event what it is every year and investing your resources.

To our partners, Jane Rae Events, The District, and Molten Audio, your talents and skills elevate the event experience yearly!

And to the attendees, thank you for giving us your time and community! We are so grateful to live and do business in the Sioux Falls area. Spending time together continually reinforces that.

That's a wrap on 2024. We’ll see you next year!

Maddie Mack Speaking at Trendigital 2024

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About the Author Kate Kotzea // VP of Products & Services

Kate (M.B.A., University of Sioux Falls) helps lead our teams to develop comprehensive digital strategies for Click Rain's clients. She also brings new initiatives, strategies, and procedures to our internal team.

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