When the mail dropped on the mat this morning I was pleased so see my train tickets had arrived for my trip to London the for a4uexpo (why in this crazy mixed up county are 2 first class singles cheaper than a standard return).

I’m not yet caught up with work after last weeks Affiliate Summit and it has dawned on me that a4uexpo affiliate marketing conference at Excel London is just 3 weeks away.

Unless you have been living a a box for most of the year you will have seen the advertising:

40 presentations, 40 exhibitors, 1 awards ceremony, 3 networking parties and SES @ a4uexpo.

It is going to be massive, the biggest event in the history of UK affiliate marketing. So what am I looking forward to on Day one?

Can’t leave out Wednesday night even though it is really day -1 so here goes.

Wednesday 24th October

Firstly my Hotel, when I knew for certain I would be attending in the middle of last month I checked out all the hotels on the Excel complex which include the likes of Novotel and Ibis, however the one that caught my attention was Sunborn Yacht - The world’s first custom-built Yacht Hotel, set within a stunning waterfront environment in the historic Royal Docks.

Moving on the highlight of Wednesday 24th October will be the pre-event networking party, hosted by A4u/buy.at, this is sure to be very popular amongst delegates so if you haven’t registered yet do it now before its too late.

Thursday 25th October

First day of the a4uexpo, there are sure to be a lot of thick heads and zombie like creatures shuffling around following the Wednesday night party.

Day 1 Agenda here.

What I’m looking forward to on day 1 of the conference is:

• The keynote speech - Our Digital Landscape - speaker Guy Phillipson CEO of Internet Advertising Bureau.
• Lets Get Social - speakers Ciaran Norris of Altogether Digital and Lee McCoy. This is a subject close to my heart, how to make money from Blogging and Social Media.
• Lunch - I haven’t yet picked out anything from the Lunchtime sessions, I may just have a leisurely meal, do a bit of networking and check out the Exhibition.
• Introducing New Technologies To Affiliate Marketing - speaker Dr Steven Brown founder and Chief Operating Officer of buy.at. New technology always fascinates me, and we have had a good year so far for innovation in affiliate marketing, hopefully Steven will give a tantalizing glimpse of the future.
• For the 3:30 session I’m going to have to make a choice I’d like to attend both - Conversion Rate Optimisation and Five Digital Strategies for Increasing Revenue & Decreasing Cost - difficult choice, I’ll either have to get cloned or compare notes with someone who attends the other one.
• How To Avoid Conflict With Your Affiliates - speaker Jessica Luthi of Affiliate Program Advice - looking forward to Jess getting the message over to both affiliates and merchants that we are all on the same side, and should work together towards the common goal.

Wow 6pm already and a very packed first day is still not complete, the Exhibition will be open for another hour, and at 8pm the venue is the The Fox for the a4uAwards Ceremony & Networking Party, another great chance to meet friends forge relationships over a beer or three with an award ceremony thrown in, I’m not going to share my nominations with you, however if you are a member of the a4u forum and haven’t voted yet get over there and do it.

Must pause for breath now will blog about what I’m looking forward to on Day 2 within the next couple of days, watch this space.

Click here to register for a4uexpo

Popularity: 22% [?]

This is an open thank you to everyone involved with running, sponsoring and organising the a4uevents affiliate marketing event hosted by DFDS Seaways on board the m.s. Queen Of Scandinavia.The event was a well balanced mix of guest speakers, general networking and all round good fun.

Day 1

The day kicked off at the DFDS Seaways ferry terminal at North Shields near Newcastle Upon Tyne, after registration and embarkation the delegates were served coffee and pastries and DFDS UK Managing Director made a welcome speech, which included a draw for one delegate to win a weekend driving an Aston Martin DB9, winner was Chris Frost of Coldsnail, affiliate, blogger and charity runner (more about that another day).

The day continued with the first of the guest speakers Martin Murray Chief Executive of Interactive Return who spoke about SEO, I will not go into details because hey you should have been there.

Lunch was a sumptuous buffet in the ships Seven Seas restaurant.

After lunch the speakers resumed with a talk by Neil Halpin of Yahoo Search Marketing which focused on Search Submit Pro.

Next up we had Heather Hopkins of Hitwise who gave a very illuminating talk about web trends and statistics.

Last but not least was Elena Koudreiko who gave a presentation “Travel Sector for Affiliates - Today and Tomorrow” unfortunately before the end of Elena’s talk, due to earlier proceedings being delayed, the Ships tannoy was screaming for all delegates not travelling to disembark and as one of the expert panel was not sailing things became hurried.

The evening kicked off with a few drinks before and after an excellent dinner, entertainment was provided by Shirley Bassey impersonator and 1990 Stars In Their Eyes winner Maxine Barrie and the Ships resident entertainment show group.

Other evening highlights were the fantastic networking (despite a lack of merchants) a4u casino, James Avery and his team who entered into the spirit of things by attempting world dominance Moonraker style.

Day 2 Amsterdam

Appreciated the ships announcement at 7.30am at least I’d managed about 5 hours sleep which is 3 more than some :o)

Everyman for himself day, however a good few of us opted for the Heineken Brewery trip, thanks to Ray (Befuddle) for an excellent rendition of “Tulips from Amsterdam” on the Karaoke, then back into Amsterdam centre, lucky we had Jasper from Jackpot Joy (who speaks the local lingo) to ensure we caught the correct tram (eventually), for some food and a beer, then the obligatory sightseeing tour around the red-light district, and there was a few sites, unfortunately it was “BIG MOMMA” hour.

Couple more beers then it was time to return to the ship, for another evening of good food networking and fun. Kudos to the county music singer who was not afraid to try something different even honouring a request by Helen Latto for a U2 song in the style of Johnny Cash, afraid it was my turn to be one of the dirty little stop outs who only managed the 2 hours sleep before the wakeup call.

Special thanks have to go to Claire Hoyland of A4uEvents, Matt Wood of A4uForum and the rest of the a4u team, DFDS Seaways especially Lynda Stenton and Tom Fotheringham for sponsoring the event and being excellent hosts above and beyond the call of duty, thanks also Equator for sponsoring to Tradedoubler for sponsoring as well and sending along Elena who herself needs congratulating along with the other speakers on day one who all did an excellent job and helped make it an event to remember.

Popularity: 23% [?]

The forthcoming UK affiliate marketing event in Newcastle followed by optional cruise to Amsterdam is one of the biggest ever to be organised in the UK, however just announced today is news that will blow that out of the water (excuse the pun) affiliates4u of a4uforum fame are organising the inaugural a4uexpo a 2 day extravaganza set to take place in London in October.

Full press release below.

The UK Affiliate Marketing sector is set to get its very own industry specific Conference, Exhibition and Awards with the launch of a4uexpo in October.

The two day event, which will take place at ExCeL London from October 25 – 26, is being co-ordinated by affiliates4u, founders of the widely-respected a4uForum, the UK’s No.1 portal for Affiliate Marketing.

Building on a4uForum’s successful series of Networking events, a4uexpo will provide a more structured and formal educational Conference programme as well as a carefully-selected Exhibition and dedicated Awards Ceremony.

Matthew Wood, founder of affiliates4u, says: “a4uForum has been part of the Affiliate Marketing scene for the past seven years and has been a pivotal part of the sector, providing a focal point for affiliates to meet, share experience and do business together.”

“During this time, the industry has also seen significant development & growth and now worth over £2bn, it is absolutely the right time for this channel to have its very own professional, educational event.”

a4uexpo will represent the only UK-based affiliate specific event and aims to bring together all those working in or around the sector in a professional environment to hear about & debate the key issues currently facing the channel. A full Conference programme will run over both days, with a collection of top speakers working across the sector, as well as specific Workshop sessions.

The a4uexpo Exhibition will run alongside the Conference programme with 50 relevant businesses having the opportunity to showcase their services, and on the evening of October 25, a4uexpo will also hold its own inaugural Affiliate Awards which will spotlight the very best Affiliates, Agencies, Networks, Suppliers and most importantly, the innovation currently found in the sector at present.

Matthew adds: “The a4uexpo Awards won’t be token gestures.  These Awards will be driven by nominations from those working in the industry and therefore will be a true reflection of the best in the business, the visionary thinking and the expertise & knowledge found out there.”

Attendance at a4uexpo will include access to all of the Conference and Workshop sessions, the Exhibition and Awards Ceremony, as well as complimentary refreshments and lunches on both days. Those interesting in attending should register via www.a4uexpo.com.

Matthew concludes: “a4uexpo will be a platform to inform, educate and inspire.  Our aim is provide the industry with its very own event, hence the tagline ‘It’s your industry, get involved!’. We want to achieve a visionary and inspirational ambience with structured and informal networking, business dealing and fun. But most importantly, we also hope that this event will act to raise the profile of Affiliate Marketing in general.”

Popularity: 17% [?]

March already and I’ve not been to an affiliate marketing event since the Buy.at party back in November well that is going to be put to rights big style on 28th March when the one of the biggest ever UK affiliate networking events is held at Newcastle Upon Tyne on board the DFDS Seaways m.s Queen Of Scandinavia. Followed by an optional Cruise to Amsterdam a City that I’ve never visited so I’m well up for that.

This event will be huge organised by DFDS Seaways and A4uEvents, the agenda is as follows:

28th March
• 10.30am Board the DFDS Seaways cruise ship. Delegates will be greeted onboard by DFDS Seaways staff.
• 10.30 - 11.30 Registration & general networking
• 12.00 - 13.00 Guest Speaker Martin Murray CEO of Interactive
• 13.15 - 14.00 Buffet lunch
• 14.00 - 16.00 Workshops
• 16.00 - 17.00 General networking

Disembark or stay onboard for complimentary cruise to Amsterdam with entertainment & activities.

29th March
• 9.30am Arrive in Amsterdam
• 16.30 Board the boat to return to Newcastle to arrive at 9.30am 30th March.

To find out more and register go to a4uevents.com

Popularity: 15% [?]