Top 10 Reasons to Attend the Sales 2.0 Conference, San Francisco

Thinking of attending a Sales 2.0 Conference? Here are 10 reasons – based on the author’s personal experience – why that’s a good idea:

1. The conferences are about more than CRM. CRM was mostly about tracking a sale through the sales process while storing contact information to be used later. As such, it was often more useful for creating management reports than driving sales. The Sales 2.0 Conferences show companies how to use technology to market and sell more effectively.
2. They leverage your technology investment. Sales 2.0 uses data available on the Web and in your corporate database to better target customers and accelerate the sales cycle. If you’re like most sales groups, you’ve spent plenty on infrastructure and office automation. The Sales 2.0 Conferences show you how to use that investment to increase revenue and profit.
3. They’re about real companies. Other sales technology conferences are vendor-focused events, where vendors talk about their products and network with other vendors. The Sales 2.0 Conferences feature real sales managers who share real stories about how they use technology to increase sales. It’s a perfect chance to learn from your peers.
4. They’ve got gurus aplenty. Guest speakers at the Sales 2.0 conferences have been some of the smartest and most famous sales-technology experts in the world. Past speakers have included Barton Goldenberg, CEO of ISMGuide.com; Lee Levitt, program director of the sales advisory service at IDC; and Barry Trailer, partner at the sales-oriented research firm CSO Insights.
5. They’ve got Gerhard. The master of ceremonies at the Sales 2.0 Conferences is always Selling Power publisher Gerhard Gschwandtner. He’s the author of multiple books on selling and the nexus of an entire community of sales trainers, sales technologists, and sales journalists. And he publishes a darn good set of publications and Websites, if we do say so ourselves!
6. They feature short presentations. Most technology conferences are full of long-winded sales pitches with eye-boggling or mind-numbing PowerPoint slides. The Sales 2.0 Conferences limit most presentations to 10 minutes, and the conference team works with presenters to ensure that they spend their time on stage providing usable examples rather than tooting their own horns.
7. They’re held at top venues. Because the Sales 2.0 Conferences are intended for managers and executives, they’re generally held at one of the best hotels in the city. In every case, the service from the hotel staff has been absolutely impeccable, with refreshments and meals that are far above what’s generally found at technology-focused conferences.
8. They’re a chance to network. If you’re a sales manager, you don’t want to feel overrun by vendors. The good news is the Sales 2.0 Conferences are typically attended by far more sales managers, i.e. people who use Sales 2.0, than vendors. The demographic of the audience means that you’ll have plenty of opportunities to meet with your peers.
9. The conferences offer you a chance to brag. If you’ve been using Sales 2.0 tools to make your company more successful, a Sales 2.0 Conference is the perfect place to establish bragging rights. The conference is small enough that individuals still count, and there’s plenty of audience participation.
10. Your competitors might attend. There’s no question that Sales 2.0 provides a competitive advantage to the firms that know how to use the new technology effectively. If your competitors show up – and learn more than you – how long do you think you’ll keep your competitive advantage?

The next Sales 2.0 Conference will be held March 8-9, 2010 in San Francisco. Check out all the details at www.sales20conf.com/SF2010