Dreamforce 2016 is coming up next week and a few members from the RFPIO team are heading out to San Francisco to soak in some knowledge and connect with the sales community.
In case you’re still planning your Dreamforce attack—or curious about what you’ll be missing—here are six sessions we are looking forward to at this year’s conference to inspire you!
Ganesh Shankar, CEO and Co-Founder
Dreamforce Focus: Sales Enablement and Technology
What are you most excited to see at Dreamforce?
I’m a big advocate for improvements in sales operations, so I am most excited to learn about the latest technologies that will help teams become more efficient. The conference is a wonderful opportunity to meet with sales teams in the field dealing with the same inefficiencies as our clients, and explain how RFPIO fits into that ecosystem to support them.
One session I’m looking forward to is:
Quote-to-Cash Kickoff: Introducing CPQ, Contracts, and Orders
I’m looking forward to this session because:
Since this is the next step for companies after they submit RFPs, this is an intriguing session for me to hear how Salesforce is enabling sales teams to work out a truly tough process. We can relate to the pain and headaches that salespeople know every day, and we hope to see some valuable tools release that will improve the overall approach and win rate.
Another session I’m looking forward to is:
Administer and Build Proposals with Lightning and Salesforce CPQ
I’m looking forward to this session because:
I am curious to see how RFPIO can complement these technologies from Salesforce. Presumably they are building the proposal from content they are already using in their RFPs. So this session will shed some light on how they are doing this manually, giving us an opportunity to see how our tool might be able to help through automation.
What do you think the big theme is this year?
Sales enablement continues to be important year after year, with teams from companies of all sizes still battling inefficiencies. Sales needs more tools to help them focus on customer relationships and revenue generation, so they can spend less time worrying about documentation and manual processes—and focus on their primary job responsibility.
Britt Skrabanek, Communications Manager
Dreamforce Focus: B2B Content Marketing and SEO
Is this your first time going to Dreamforce?
Yes! I’ve been a consistent player in the B2B content marketing game for going on three years now. I have written post-conference blogs previously for others who have attended, but I’ve never actually been. I’m pretty pumped!
What are you most excited about?
Learning! Yes, I am that nerdy. I’m a champion for sales and marketing alignment, and Dreamforce truly embodies that concept by bringing the business community together to learn from each other in the great city of San Francisco.
One session I’m looking forward to is:
3 Effective Ways to Supercharge Your B2B Social Marketing
I’m looking forward to this session because:
I am not shy to say this…B2B social marketing ain’t easy. There are days when I miss the young me that ran content for a lovable non-profit, because engagement just happened. The business audience can be a tough crowd, and this session promises “not so typical” social media use cases which I’m eager to explore.
Another session I’m looking forward to is:
SEO Wins & Content Marketing Tactics: Turn Your Search Visitors into Customers
I’m looking forward to this session because:
I love how upfront the description for this session is…everybody is creating content nowadays. It’s true, and while I think it’s wonderful to see businesses getting in touch with their creative side, the noise is unmistakable. We spend a lot of time and resources on content, and this session offers actionable SEO tips and accessible conversion tactics to help make an impact—and show it with metrics to back up this monstrosity of an effort.
What do you think the big theme is this year?
Not everyone loves this word as much as I do, but “reinvention” certainly comes to mind. I think it’s crucial for those of us who have been doing content marketing for a while to embrace new ideas and channels to stand out from the crowd.
Angela Earl, Senior Director of Marketing
Dreamforce Focus: ABM and Sales and Marketing Alignment
Is this your first time going to Dreamforce?
No, this will be my fourth year at the conference and each year it seems I learn another trick about navigating Dreamforce. I remember my first year—and honestly, even the second—as very overwhelming. One tip to anyone going for the first (or second) time: Look for sessions near each other in 2-hour blocks to keep from wasting time walking the place to place.
What are you most excited about?
All of my previous times at Dreamforce were solo ventures, so I’m excited to be going with a great team this year. Sharing the experience in real-time will be more enjoyable and rewarding for me. Oh, and the U2 concert, of course!
One session I’m looking forward to is:
Debunking the Myths of Account-Based Marketing
I’m looking forward to this session because:
Though it isn’t a new concept, Account-Based Marketing (ABM) can be a very effective strategy for tech companies I work with, but many marketers and sales folks I meet are struggling with getting their technologies to align with this way of thinking. It will be interesting to hear Salesforce’s ABM recommendations.
Another session I’m looking forward to is:
The Power of Data in Sales and Marketing Alignment
I’m looking forward to this session because:
I’m really looking forward to hearing what Akamai Technologies has to say about the power of data. Why? Because data is sexy and I never tire of hearing stories of what others have done. And as a marketing operations nerd at heart, I’m hoping for new ideas or insights to share with sales and marketing teams who continue to struggle with coming together for the greater good of the company.
What do you think the big theme is this year?
Predictive tools are continuing to be a big conversation. But, they require a solid foundation (clean data and well-defined processes) to be effective. This year I’m hoping to see less product pitching, and more shared experiences beyond implementation from those who have been on the journey, to get useful and actionable insights.
Are you going to Dreamforce?
We’d love to hear what sessions you are most excited about!
