While Raleigh may the Southern Mecca for technology, business and education, the 2019 High Five Conference is putting our town on the national map for marketing. You won’t want to miss a minute of this 2 day festival where Marketing Meets Creative. On March 4-5, a full range of globally- renowned presenters will arrive in Raleigh to bring you the best new ideas. While all the traditional points of analytics, graphic design and digital marketing will be covered, this is the year we’ll branch into serious AI and technology, clean living with a life balance of work and good health, and business and community outreach. It’s also a time for high-impact networking with hundreds of global creative designers and marketers. So. . . Let’s Dance!

ALL THE RIGHT KEYS

The Seventh Level of Engagement
What sparks joy for you when you like an effective ad? That’s the question keynote speaker Amanda Slavin asks every day. As the Founder and CEO of Catalyst Creativ, she’s developed a genuine outreach approach with her Seventh Level of Engagement. It all starts with powerful emotional connections. Not only has Slavin used this with business, but she’s also led successful campaigns with a number of non-profit and grassroots organizations.

The Beauty of Promise and the Power
Growing up as the only black child in a rural Japanese town,Tim Allen knows what it means to stand out. Now, he’s making an impact as Partner and Director of Design at Microsoft. As Technology and AI trigger higher customer expectations, Allen knows marketers need to boost their game. As a keynote speaker, Allen will unpack his Inclusive Design philosophy. Today, a brand has to be more than useful and reliable, it must hit the right cultural notes and be authentic.

The Evolution of a Graphic Designer’s Language
Remember, the 2019 High Five Conference is a gentle rhythm of marketing and creative design, so it’s appropriate that Eddie Opara is part of our kick-off. It’s hard to pinpoint Opara’s field of design because he tends to do everything brilliantly. His title is Partner-in-Charge and Creative Director at Pentagram, the world’s largest design consultancy. Opara never strays far from his strong artistic background, but he doesn’t shy away from technological projects like his multi-touch interactive table. He designed this table so people could communally share screened work. Opara works in design strategy and websites, but he’s also at home with hands-on functional skills, like carpentry or architecture.

Talk Triggers
While he’s currently co-founder and CMO at Selectivor, a digital company that helps people stay healthy through food, Daniel Lemin has got his fingers in lots of pies. In his first book, Manipurated, Lemin questions the authenticity of unregulated on-line reviews, such as Yelp, TripAdvisor and Amazon. Then, he worked with Jay Baer to write the book Talk Triggers, which soon became the bible of word-of-mouth marketing. With us, he will share his secrets about the “why” and “how” customers talk about a brand.

Tackle Imposter Syndrome: Show up Whole at Work and Online
By focusing on the basics of digital strategy, field marketing and analytics, Amber Naslund delivers effective content marketing strategy to corporations and fundraising campaigns. As a 20-year veteran of digital marketing, Nasland currently works as senior content marketing evangelist at LinkedIn. Nasland is known for her book, The NOW Revolution: 7 Shifts to Make Your Business Faster, Smarter and More Social, the guidebook to digital efficiency and strategy.

TIME FOR THE SLOW DANCE
These jam-packed days will be filled with the swag of vendors and the glitz of the Oak City Ballroom. When they’re done thanking the little people during stage presentations, it’ll be time to get down to the nitty-gritty work as we flit from one breakout to another.

Head and Heart of Marketing: Your Emails Need to Have These 10Things
Hank Hoffmeier’s approach to email marketing campaign requires a balance of logic and creativity. First, you need to find your recipient’s tickle spot so they’ll open your email. But as your campaign continues, you’ll need to make cool-headed decisions about your mailing list.

Stress Addiction: from Morning Coffee to the Cardiac Wing
Is all work and no play the best way to live? Taylor Cashdan of Global Lead Design at Fidelity Investments learned the price of pushing himself to the max. His high-power, high-demand job coupled with his “never-say-no” philosophy landed him in intensive care.

Putting the Marketing in Cause Marketing
Caitlin Clinard, President of Angel Oak Creative, knows that issue-related brands have a huge appeal to younger gen’s. Cause marketing can pay off for Non-Profits to position their brand in front of these ideological clients.

Why you’re Being Scammed out of 96%… 25% of the Time
Influencer guru Steven Bartlett doesn’t believe in phonies. Following the size of an influencer’s audience is not as effective as the authentic strength of a relationship with clients. His Social Chain’s has a growing global presence in Manchester, London, Berlin and New York.

Don’t Bury the Lead: Proof Storytelling is the Key to Almost Everything, and How to Get Instantly Better at it
Creative Strategist Kate Conner believes that you can rope customers in with strong storytelling basics. Once you determine what a consumer wants, it’s time to pull at their heart strings and direct them down the next stage of the marketing funnel. Other presenters include:

• Amiee Rodriguez ( How to Repurpose Your Content Without Killing Your Creative Team)
• Mihali Stvles and Aaron Templer (Leading the Creative Mind)
• Jason Hibbets (A Community-Generated Content Strategy That Works)
• Amanda Enayati (A Creative Life Is A Healthy Life)
• Daniel Russell (Google’s AI is smarter than you: What that means for your Google ads and SEO)
• Tyrona Heath (LinkedIn on LinkedIn: How to Combine Account Based Marketing and Social Selling on LinkedIn)
• Alex Withers( Key Learnings on Strengthening the creative & marketing relationship from the 2019 Creative Management Report)
• Airk Abel (Crush CX with Human-Centered Design)
• Elise Russell (Your Brand is Your Currency)
• Jeremy Bailey (The Good, The Bad, and The Obvious: How Bad Design is Impacting UX0)
• Julienne Alexander and Margaret McNap (HUNGRY | Real Talk between Freelancers)
• Shannon Delaney McCloud (3, 2, 1…Action! How to Livestream to Connect to Your Customers)
• Danielle Boone (Tangential Content: Creating Content For Your Brand That Isn’t About Your Brand At All)
• Mike Franke (Farewell Photoshop, Hello XD)
• Jeffery Cohen (Use Both Sides of Your Brain to Create Your Next Great Marketing Idea)
• Von Glitschka (Copyright for Creatives – Responding to Rip-Offs)
• Brian McDonald (Make Your Team Data Driven with Google Data Studio)
• Christina Noel(Scrappy Marketing: One Entrepreneurial Marketing & Sales Strategist’s Guide to Cutting Through the Clutter)

Raleigh isn’t the dusty Southern town it was 30 years ago, when the railroad, tobacco and state government ran the city. The 2019 High Five Conference will usher in a national marketing presence in our thriving metropolis. It’s time to be a part of the vibrant mojo of this colossal collision of imagination and creativity, where all new ideas are welcome. This is where you can keep thinking outside the box. They may even make an app for it.

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Sue Anger is a digital marketing writer who lives in North Raleigh.