Starting soon: LIP x WOC Podcasters Meetup in Chicago , Illinois us (free) https://podnews.net/event/-selling-physical-products-without-the-merch-headache-high-profit-low-hassle-strategies #podevents
@Podnews Would love to know your opinion on this, after all is said and done. Do you feel PM still has the gravitas it once did?
@davidhooper This isn't Podcast Movement; this is Evolutions. I think Evolutions struggles with an identity crisis: it is a business conference, yet it has a creator track. It's primarily a business networking event, but also has booths with people selling consumer podcast hosting products. It's focused on the podcast business (overwhelmingly located in New York and LA) but it's in Chicago. I don't understand the strategy.
PM is a great event, though suffers from odd choices of venues, especially weird resort hotels like Denver (which wasn't in Denver), Washington DC (which wasn't there either), or the upcoming Dallas one. I would rather be in a city centre hotel.
@davidhooper ...also worthwhile remembering that the industry has changed. You used to be able to get the big superstar podcasters coming to these events. Now, by and large, they're all represented by agents and they command tens of thousands to appear - so oddly the success of the industry has made the industry conferences worse. Most of the keynotes at Evolutions were business folks, or people tangentially involved in the industry (like me).
@james re: creators - We really need a pro creator-focused event. But having had to make the numbers work on a similarly-sized event, I understand why there isn't one. And I think that's going to be even tougher over the next few years.
@davidhooper Agree. (I think Podcast Movement in August should be Thu-Sun, with Thu and Fri am for business, Sat and Sun for creators. Not least, many creators can’t take time off the day job.)
@james Agree on the hotel choices.
I remember the one in Dallas (er ... Fort Worth) was almost an hour from the airport. But I'm sure Gaylord cut them a deal and the could knock out 12 contracts in a single sitting.
Good for them, not for attendees.