As an active Google Engage agent, Ellis Jones were extended an invitation to attend the Google Engage MasterClass. Known around the office as Ellis Jones’ “digital native” and an avid social media user both professionally and personally, I eagerly accepted the invitation from Google and fronted to the conference held at Docklands on 16th November.
Google launched the Engage program last year to provide educational resources and assistance to help agencies better serve their clients using Google products. The last two weeks has seen the Engage event reach more than 300 advertising, web design, and creative agencies in Australia. Held around the country in all the major capitals, the sessions covered the latest updates on Google services like AdWords. Considering Google are constantly reviewing, changing and improving their products, these sessions are important to attend in order to take full advantage of the ever expanding offerings from the Googlords.
My first impression was, “Whoa – Google knows how to throw a party”. Upon arrival, all attendees were suitably caffeinated, and armed with a goodie bag chock-full of Google-themed note taking equipment. The first speaker of the day was from Google Australia. Dazzling us with some insightful statistics on how Australians use their smartphones, the conference began with a bang, reinforcing that Australia has shown massive growth in mobile devices usage as more and more of us access the internet whilst on the move. Even more astonishing than the fact that there are more smartphones in use in Australian homes than toilets(!), was the notion that four out of five small business have websites that are not easily viewed on a smartphone.
The main speaker of the day was David Booth, co-founder of Certified Google Partner, Cardinal Path. David’s time on the podium was spent discussing Google AdWords; sharing practical information and tips for how to better a client’s ROI from their advertising spend, bestowing upon us some of his of experience in the field. A lot of people have a lot of trouble wrapping their minds around AdWords principles and David did a wonderful job of keeping the audience interested and informed.
After a well-timed (and delicious) lunch, a spot of networking, and a cold drink, my esteemed and astute Googlers and I re-entered the conference refreshed and eager to absorb more. We were officially introduced to the newly implemented ‘Google+ Pages for Business’ and given the low down on its most effective functionalities and online networking tools.
Having to race back to the office for a meeting, I unfortunately did not have the opportunity to stay back and enjoy a flute of champagne and the chance to “speed date” with the presenters. However I will most certainly be in attendance at the next Melbourne Google Engage MasterClass.
