Advocate Marketing Academy

AMA Europe '24

Art met Science and it all worked out just fine

What an event!

Safe to say AMA Europe ’24 was one of the BEST Advocate Marketing Academy events we’ve ever held!

Inspirational speakers, engaging workshops, insightful industry trends, meaningful network opportunities… It. Had. It. ALL!

An enormous THANK YOU to everyone who attended and presented – Cristina Sartori Errico, Jan Stoetzel, Jeannine Boot, Michael Johnson, MBA, Ivana Gaspic, Nisha Prabhakar, Tobi Demuren.

Advocate Marketing Academy is nothing without our wonderful, talented customer advocacy community.

Not another dull hotel conference

Bad acoustics, a temporary stage, the same round tables, dodgy lighting, and a carpet that could provoke migraines. Sound familar? These have no place at Advocate Marketing Academy!

AMA Europe ’24 was back at Norden Farm Centre for the Arts, with a fully-equipped theatre, separate studio and an 18th century barn for workshops, and two other mingling spaces. Immersive and creative.

c. 100 of your peers from across the globe, wonderful presentations, hands-on workshops, good food, and even better company. Another great AMA day to remember.

Speakers

Image of a professional headshot of a smiling man with short hair, wearing a checkered shirt. To the left, his name "MICHAEL JOHNSON" is in large, bold letters over a black background. Below, a purple panel reads "SNR CUSTOMER REFERENCE MGR GLOBAL CONTENT STRATEGY" in white text.

About

The Session

As Senior Customer Reference Manager, Michael has spent five years at Red Hat helping a variety of stakeholders tell stories about open source technology.
In his current role, Michael helps define content strategy for Innovators in the
Open, Red Hat’s customer advocacy program, with a focus on how unique personas interact with customer stories as well as data and analytics for the program.

Data-driven insights drive modular customer storytelling at Red Hat.
Red Hat marketing is in the midst of a data-driven transformation, with renewed customer focus at the center of our strategy. To support this journey, the Red Hat customer reference team has been redefining what it means to be a customer advocate. From new content types, to new ways of injecting content into marketing across the business, customers are core to the Red Hat story. In this session, Michael Johnson, Senior Customer Reference Manager, Red Hat, will discuss the intersection of data and creative focus that guides our reference strategy. He will cover how the team moved from mainly creating in-depth case studies, to a wide library of content, how we enable customers to learn from each other through advocacy events, and how the entire package contributes to customer success for Red Hat. Michael will also outline how data and performance help the team learn lessons and grow as they plan and implement these strategies across a large, cross-functional marketing organization 

Image of a professional headshot of a smiling man with short hair, wearing a checkered shirt. To the left, his name "MICHAEL JOHNSON" is in large, bold letters over a black background. Below, a purple panel reads "SNR CUSTOMER REFERENCE MGR GLOBAL CONTENT STRATEGY" in white text.

About

The Session

As Senior Customer Reference Manager, Michael has spent five years at Red Hat helping a variety of stakeholders tell stories about open source technology.
In his current role, Michael helps define content strategy for Innovators in the
Open, Red Hat’s customer advocacy program, with a focus on how unique personas interact with customer stories as well as data and analytics for the program.

Data-driven insights drive modular customer storytelling at Red Hat.
Red Hat marketing is in the midst of a data-driven transformation, with renewed customer focus at the center of our strategy. To support this journey, the Red Hat customer reference team has been redefining what it means to be a customer advocate. From new content types, to new ways of injecting content into marketing across the business, customers are core to the Red Hat story. In this session, Michael Johnson, Senior Customer Reference Manager, Red Hat, will discuss the intersection of data and creative focus that guides our reference strategy. He will cover how the team moved from mainly creating in-depth case studies, to a wide library of content, how we enable customers to learn from each other through advocacy events, and how the entire package contributes to customer success for Red Hat. Michael will also outline how data and performance help the team learn lessons and grow as they plan and implement these strategies across a large, cross-functional marketing organization 

Image of a professional headshot of a smiling man with short hair, wearing a checkered shirt. To the left, his name "MICHAEL JOHNSON" is in large, bold letters over a black background. Below, a purple panel reads "SNR CUSTOMER REFERENCE MGR GLOBAL CONTENT STRATEGY" in white text.

About

The Session

As Senior Customer Reference Manager, Michael has spent five years at Red Hat helping a variety of stakeholders tell stories about open source technology.
In his current role, Michael helps define content strategy for Innovators in the
Open, Red Hat’s customer advocacy program, with a focus on how unique personas interact with customer stories as well as data and analytics for the program.

Data-driven insights drive modular customer storytelling at Red Hat.
Red Hat marketing is in the midst of a data-driven transformation, with renewed customer focus at the center of our strategy. To support this journey, the Red Hat customer reference team has been redefining what it means to be a customer advocate. From new content types, to new ways of injecting content into marketing across the business, customers are core to the Red Hat story. In this session, Michael Johnson, Senior Customer Reference Manager, Red Hat, will discuss the intersection of data and creative focus that guides our reference strategy. He will cover how the team moved from mainly creating in-depth case studies, to a wide library of content, how we enable customers to learn from each other through advocacy events, and how the entire package contributes to customer success for Red Hat. Michael will also outline how data and performance help the team learn lessons and grow as they plan and implement these strategies across a large, cross-functional marketing organization 

Black and white image of a smiling woman with long hair on the right, with the text

Cristina has more than 17yrs of B2B cybersecurity experience, building a vibrant global community of more than 1,000 engaged cybersecurity advocates over the last five years. Read about their superpowers in Cristina’s Security Heroes blogs via the LinkedIn #SecurityHeroes hashtag. She has won two awards in 2023: The Base “Top 100 Customer Marketing & Advocacy Influencers,” and “The Ones to Watch in 2023″ by the CMAA.

Art and Science Unite: Six Inspiring Tactics to Unlock the Hidden Treasures in Your Customer Case Studies

This session unveils a consolidated approach invented by Cristina to maximize the potential of customer case studies and engage with a challenging audience when you have limited resources. If you’re under the impression that promoting your case studies should only begin in post-publication, you might miss out on attracting unique visitors to your case study webpage. Discover how Cristina transformed a conventional success story into a grand opportunity to lay a robust foundation for continuous advocacy and how she measures these results in an impactful way.

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Image of a professional headshot of a smiling man with short hair, wearing a checkered shirt. To the left, his name "MICHAEL JOHNSON" is in large, bold letters over a black background. Below, a purple panel reads "SNR CUSTOMER REFERENCE MGR GLOBAL CONTENT STRATEGY" in white text.

As Senior Customer Reference Manager, Michael has spent five years at Red Hat helping a variety of stakeholders tell stories about open source technology.
In his current role, Michael helps define content strategy for Innovators in the
Open, Red Hat’s customer advocacy program, with a focus on how unique personas interact with customer stories as well as data and analytics for the program.

Data-driven insights drive modular customer storytelling at Red Hat.
Red Hat marketing is in the midst of a data-driven transformation, with renewed customer focus at the center of our strategy. To support this journey, the Red Hat customer reference team has been redefining what it means to be a customer advocate. From new content types, to new ways of injecting content into marketing across the business, customers are core to the Red Hat story. In this session, Michael Johnson, Senior Customer Reference Manager, Red Hat, will discuss the intersection of data and creative focus that guides our reference strategy. He will cover how the team moved from mainly creating in-depth case studies, to a wide library of content, how we enable customers to learn from each other through advocacy events, and how the entire package contributes to customer success for Red Hat. Michael will also outline how data and performance help the team learn lessons and grow as they plan and implement these strategies across a large, cross-functional marketing organization 

Black and white image of a woman with shoulder-length hair smiling at the camera. Her name, Jeannine Boot, and title, Global Director Customer Marketing, are written in bold white and orange text against a black and orange background.

Jeannine  is the Global Director Customer Marketing at Qlik and has been a Qlikkie for more than 13 years. Since 2015, she has been part of the Customer Marketing Team at Qlik and has built solid relationships with many customers for various customer advocacy programs, projects, campaigns, and activities. In her current role, she leads the Global Team for Customer Marketing which includes Customer Advocacy, Evidence, and References.

When partners and customers “Qlik”: working with partners and customers to achieve advocacy success.
A number of Customer Advocacy Programs have been built at Qlik over the years, including the Qlik Luminary Program, Executive Advisory Board and the Partner Ambassador Program. These programs are highly recognized internally at Qlik, and also externally by Qlik Partners and customers, with an influx of nominations every year when the programs refresh. In this session, Jeannine will share how Qlik built these programs, what the selection and adoption process is, and how both Qlik, customers, and partners benefit from these programs.

Image with a professional portrait of a woman smiling, set against a black and purple background. Text reads: "Ivana Gaspic" in large white letters, and below it, "Customer Advocacy Director" in smaller white letters.

Ivana is a marketing comms and customer advocacy leader with 15+ years of B2B technology experience. She is a champion of customers as the ultimate brand advocates and a passionate storyteller. As a Flagship Customer Program lead at SAP, Ivana works with the company’s strategic customers on multifaceted, long-term advocacy plans. Ivana spent six years at AWS where she established the EMEA CRP and held workshops on writing at Amazon

It’s live! Now what? Tips and tricks on extending case study life beyond the website

Black and white photo of a smiling man in a suit on a black background with white text: "Tobi Demuren." Below the photo, on a purple section, white text reads: "Global Head of Advocacy Marketing.

Tobi leads global strategy and activation of agency partnerships for LinkedIn Marketing Solutions (LMS). He is passionate about creating brand-engagement-enhancing experiences, increasing customer loyalty, and driving customer acquisition. With >15 years of marketing, bizdev, and technology experience, Tobi has a proven track record of building long-term relationships, understanding challenges/opportunities, and delivering solutions.

Captivate & Convert: The Art of Advocacy

Join us for an exhilarating session with Tobi Demuren, the acclaimed Global Head of Advocacy Marketing at LinkedIn, as he unveils the secrets of transforming customers into evangelists. Dive deep into Tobi’s treasure trove of real-world examples from LinkedIn, and leave inspired with groundbreaking insights. Don’t miss this transformative talk!

Black and white portrait of a man against a black background with the text, "Jan Stoetzel, Global Head of Customer Advocacy Programs," written beside him. The bottom half features a diagonal orange section.

Jan is a storyteller and change maker, with a 15-yr background in managing sales teams and another 15+ yrs in regional/global bizdev and marketing mgr roles.
Jan unites the two as Global Head of Customer Advocacy Programs at Fujitsu, creating customer stories which resonate globally.
Outside of work, he has interests in travel, technology and the arts.

The science of measurement beyond clicks and likes
In today´s competitive business environment, it´s essential to measure and analyze the results of marketing campaigns to determine what´s working (and what´s not). Marketing automation tools and google analytics tell us something about the quantitative side of metrics.
We can also measure the quality of assets through feedback from internal and external audiences. But the ultimate measurement of success is customer content being used to influence sales, and customers using our assets for their own purposes.

Black and white headshot of a smiling woman with long black hair on a black and purple background. Text reads: "Nisha Prabhakar. SNR MGR, Customer Marketing & Brand Engagement at Salesforce.

With 17 years of international sales and marketing experience in the technology sector, Nisha currently leads Customer Marketing & Brand Engagement within Salesforce EMEA for the Financial Services sector and two strategic Sports Marketing Partnerships. In this role, she designs and executes strategic marketing programs with customers to showcase top brands and visionary thought leaders.

A black and white photo of a smiling woman with long hair, wearing a patterned top. The image has a black background with a yellow diagonal strip at the bottom. The text reads "MELISSA TALBOT" in large letters and "MANAGING DIRECTOR" in smaller text below.

Melissa has been a customer advocacy specialist for 19 years. Her focus has been on working with global technology organizations to build strategic, robust, and accountable advocacy programs. For the last 3 years, Melissa has expanded that knowledge to customer loyalty, support clients in the creation of customer communities that tie directly into advocacy activities.

A banner featuring a black and white photo of a man in a suit and tie, smiling. The text reads "Robin Hamilton" in large white letters on a black and red background, and "Chief Executive Officer" in smaller white letters.

Robin (aka referencegeek) delights in helping some of the world’s biggest brands activate their happy customers; closing more business, more quickly. He has worked both client and agency-side; after seeing the business impact of advocacy Robin has spent the last 18 years helping to drive the discipline forwards. Robin’s infectious enthusiasm makes him a regular conference speaker.

Workshop & session leads

Black and white image of a woman with shoulder-length hair on the right side, positioned beside bold white text reading "Verity Shuttleworth" on a black background. Below is a green triangle with white text that reads "Creative Services Lead.

Verity has 16 years of advocacy experience, working alongside global tech brands to help bring their stories to life. She has spent 9 years working as a video producer, interviewing customers across the globe and coordinating shoots, onsite and remotely. Verity coordinates the inEvidence video, editorial and design teams, helping to transform innovative ideas into impactful stories.

A digital illustration of a man with glasses and a beard is on the right side of the image. The left side features bold white text on a black background that reads "Ben Hopkins," and below, blue text on a blue background that reads "Founding Creative Director.

A Creative Director at faith and VCCP London, Ben is also a gamer / VR nerd. His passion is to bake human perspective into tech. Projects include building The O2 in Fortnite, and 100% Army Fit, a fitness app helping future British soldiers pass physicals. Recently, Ben has been developing generative AI models for Sage and Virgin Media O2 with the aim of accelerating human creativity and imagination.

A black and white portrait of a man with short hair wearing a checked shirt is on the right side of the image. The left side features his name 'Peter Barton' in large white letters on a black background and his title 'Editor in Chief' in smaller text on a green background.

Peter is a writer, interviewer and editor with 30 years of content creation experience. In that time he has worked across newspapers, television, live radio and events. For the past 13 years, Peter has been editor -in-chief at inEvidence. He has worked with inEvidence clients all around the world, interviewing customers in person, online, on stage and in front of camera. 

A black-and-white image of a person with medium-length curly hair and glasses. Text on the image reads "Alex Fernandes" in large letters, with "Writer" in smaller letters at the bottom. A green diagonal shape cuts through the lower left corner.

Alex has been a copywriter, content creator and all-round communications professional for many years. She’s worked in newspaper publishing, academia and across the charity sector – and produced content for print, radio, short film, and animation. Alex has been a writer and interviewer at InEvidence for just over a year, capturing stories online and in-person around the world.

Agenda

Time Session Where
08:15 - 09:00Arrival, Registration & Mingle Pastries and Danish, plus yogurt parfait, fresh fruit salad, juices, coffee and tea in the dining carFoyer
09:00 - 09:30Opening: Chief Engineer: Robin Hamilton - inEvidence CEO Plans for the day, station etiquette and Advocacy Line service announcements (mind the gap) Why less is more; we don't add, we averageAuditorium
09:30 - 10:10Session One: Citrix: Melanie Gomez, Sr. Program Manager, Executive Programs Connecting with customers: The Importance of Customer Advisory Boards and building strong relationshipsAuditorium
10:10 - 10:50Session Two: Google Cloud: Cynthia Hester, Director - Global Programs Customer Advocacy – into the MetaverseAuditorium
10:50 - 11:20Networking Break: It's cookie time! Chat with friends, make new ones, stretch your legs. Mezzanine
11:20 - 12:00Session Three: Genesys: Jenna Feldman, Customer Advocacy Program Manager The Secret Sauce to Building an Engaged Advocacy CommunityAuditorium
12:00 - 12:40Session Four: 826 Valencia: Miranda Ling, Director of Advancement, and Precediha Dangerfield, Program Manager Storytelling with purpose; recapturing the creativity we've lostAuditorium
12:40 - 13:40Networking Lunch: A decent break; time to catch up with old friends, make new ones, and catch up on that email that simply won't waitMezzanine
13:40 - 14:20Session Five: Frank Williamson, Senior Service Consultant A chat with Frank; exploring customer advocacy from from an enterprise sales perspective - a rare chance to hear about the sharp end of sales advocacyAuditorium
14:20 - 15:00Session Six: ServiceNow: Michelle Knight, Vice President, Customer Engagement A customer advocacy transformationAuditorium
15:00 - 15:30Afternoon Tea: A quick cuppa and cake (in the UK it's illegal to miss afternoon tea) then finish in style!Mezzanine
15:30 - 16:10Session Seven: PeerSpot: Alison Bukowski, Director, Customer Advocacy & Engagement A Reference EvolutionAuditorium
16:10 - 16:50Session Eight: VMware: Stefania Cugini, Director, Global Customer Advocacy and Loyalty A journey towards integrated advocacy and loyaltyAuditorium
16:50 - 17:00Special Service: Emma Clarke Lessons in storytelling: from behind the microphoneAuditorium
17:00 - 17:10Station Master: Melissa Talbot, inEvidence Deputy Managing Director A quick round up of the day; the key takeways, and the only thing between you and a cocktail in the dining carAuditorium
17:10 - 18:00Decompress: Drinks Reception Relax after a fun, full day with a glass (or two) of something nice, share more stories. We'll have earned it!Auditorium

Location

We were pleased to bring the Academy back to Norden Farm Centre for the Arts. Altwood Road, Maidenhead SL6 4PF

 

Traffic:
Our venue is super, yet was also surrounded by schools and bad weather, so everyone had to allow a little additional time in order to not miss any of our feature-packed day
By car:
We had plenty of free parking, and Maidenhead is in the middle of the UK’s silicon valley, the M4 corridor.
By train:
From Paddington: Maidenhead station was only 26 minutes away on the fastest train, 38 minutes on the slowest
From Heathrow: Maidenhead station was approx 45 mins away, with one change at Hayes and Harlington
By taxi:
From Maidenhead Station: Norden Farm was too far to walk, a station taxi was around £12
From Heathrow: depending on the time of day, an Uber would take approx 40 mins and cost c. £50. A black cab will take the same time and cost more

A grayscale map layout showing various sections labeled as Barn, Food, Bar, Foyer, Theatre, Studio, and Gallery. The Barn and Food areas are on the left, the Bar is centrally located, and the Theatre, Studio, and Gallery are on the right side.

Access

All performance and workshop spaces at Norden Farm providd total accessibility for those with disabilities. There were lifts throughout the venue, as well as ramped access and adapted toilet facilities. There was also an infra red system in the Courtyard Theatre for participants with hearing difficulties.

Personal assistants accompanying disabled attendees receive a complimentary tickets; those requiring a wheelchair seat could be accommodated.

 

 

Why attend an AMA event?

Invest in yourself and your career, meet old friends, make new ones, and gain inspiration.

 

 

Global & Trusted
15 years of successful events in all regions, providing value to the community

 

Specialist
Super-relevant and useful content

 

Inspirational
Not another dull hotel-event-room conference

 

Ted Talks format
AMA’s theatre-style production is first-rate and engaging

 

Quality
Attended by, and presentations from, people that do exactly what you do – your peers

 

Networking
Plenty of opportunities to meet new contacts, and chat with old friends

 

Talk to inEvidence

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