What is CVX Live?
CVX Live is a social media convention that started as a YouTube focused show. Past conventions featured big name YouTubers like Kid Snippets, Peter Hollens, Devin Supertramp, Brooklyn and Bailey, and more. Now the former producer of ComicCon is heading up a major expansion for CVX beyond YouTubers to include social media influencers such as bloggers, Instagrammers, and other social media celebs.
CVX has gone through some big growth from the first one I attended. That one had a few hundred in attendance. This year CVX is in the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah (the same convention halls where the Outdoor Retailer's show and ComicCon are held). From the first CVX to the last one I was impressed at how incredibly accessible the influencers are and how much they share. I learned tips that I'd never heard that helped me grow my business on YouTube, starting out from nothing.
Expected attendance is 30,000. Not only that but pre-sales already show a big lift in tickets sold outside of Utah and internationally.
WHEN: CVX Live is Thursday through Saturday, Aug 3 – 5, 2017
WHERE: the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah
I chose the Creator pass but if you're looking at it from a business perspective, choose the industry pass.
Go See Ticket PricesList of Audiences Who Attend CVX Live
Here's who CVX Live would appeal to:
- Top creators (social media influencers) who will give presentations on stage and in classes, plus hold meet and greets.
- The public (fans) who want to meet their favorite social media celebrities.
- Those interested in growing their social media channels (creators) and want to learn from and network with the experts, including a ‘YouTube Bootcamp' to help those just starting a YouTube channel and other social media brands.
- Business (entrepreneurs, realtors, brands, small business owners and advertisers) who want to work with, meet, and collaborate with social media influencers.
“For the fans, you will have incredible opportunities to get up close and personal with some of the top online content creators through free public meet & greets, stage performances, panels, or a more private ‘superfan experience.'”
Most influencers will have a ‘Meet & Greet' time at the signing tables and it's included in your ticket to attend those. Some of the influencers will have a scheduled time for a ‘Superfan Experience' (cost in addition to a ticket to get into the event). They are limited to 100 people per session and last 1 hour. Photos will be taken at that time.
Early early bird pricing for CVX Live is available now through February 22, 2017. Get tickets here.
What CVX Ticket Should I Get?
Many people are a little confused on what ticket to get. There are day passes as well as several other options available. Here is an outline of the types of classes available.
Industry or Business Owner Classes are for people who want to learn how to leverage social media to build something else (ie, building a brand, driving traffic, selling products, etc). If you aren't sponsoring but want to attend for the business angle, get the industry pass.
Creator Classes will focus on growing social media as an existing social media influencer (ie, growth hacking, getting brand deals, optimization, driving engagement, etc). There will be some crossover between this and the industry pass. Get the Creator Pass or upgrade to the Ultimate Pass if you want to get to the front of the line for public meet and greets. Comes with a CVX swag bag.
Day Pass – get the 3 day pass or single day passes if you don't care about classes and just want to attend the public events. No access to classes.
See the full ticket details and prices here. Don't forget that early bird ends February 22nd.
If you are there to meet your favorite celeb then you can get a day pass (or 3-day pass) which you can upgraded to the Superfan experience. In the past, the public meet and greet lines have been very long, especially for the more popular influencers.
The show is already selling tickets outside of the state. Even this early sales are coming in from all over the country and even outside of the US. I'm especially interested in the crossover and specifically in affiliate marketing opportunities and collaborations.
Social Media Cred Sells in Today's Marketing Mix
According to an article in the LA Times, influencer marketing can be a huge windfall for brands and influencers alike.
Often influencers drive brand recognition and over time, sales but it's not always so. Mega influencers like Arielle Charnas of Something Navy shared a Snapchat story about a mask for your skin. “Within 24 hours after her story went live, the post was responsible for the sale of 502 masks, or $17,565 worth of product.” She previously sold mascara – 422 units in 24 hours for a whopping $13,500 in sales.
Many times followers or fans trust influencers over traditional media:
“The credibility of a blogger versus a beauty journalist does not seem to be an issue to consumers seeking information wherever they can find it. In their view, their favorite bloggers and digital influencers are as credible as a magazine — maybe even more so. Bloggers’ followers trust them, said nearly every person interviewed for this story, and as long as sponsored posts are clearly labeled as such, an influencer’s individuality and authentic voice allows them to connect to readers in a way that magazines are struggling to do.”
Bloggers Crossover into Video, Instagram and SnapChat
When I polled bloggers in my network almost all want to expand into video this year by starting a YouTube channel or live video, such as Facebook live (especially food bloggers). Bloggers already have a wide digital footprint across several platforms but there are also more influencers that don't have a blog. Rather they are influencers on a given network (or a few). As the article states: “influencers aren’t just bloggers anymore; they are individuals who, depending on the channel, share and detail much (if not most) of their lives via YouTube, Instagram and increasingly Snapchat.”
New Opportunity for Influencers to Leverage Affiliate Marketing
Many YouTubers are just starting to realize the potential as affiliate marketers. It's rare to see them branch out beyond Amazon affiliates to the rich world of affiliate networks and programs which may offer longer cookie duration and payouts than Amazon. Depending on their niche, there are opportunities to develop niches with private affiliate programs. I welcome the collaboration and networking between the various social media platforms. In the future I see more of my events take on an even deeper multi-channel presence. I've already done campaigns with bloggers focused on live video and some that focus on Facebook pages.
Influencer marketing and influencers in general are growing in popularity and if you want to be connected with this fast-moving industry, be sure to attend CVX.
Are you a blogger? See my list of always up-to-date of blogging conferences here.
Please reach out if you're interested in being a sponsor, influencer or affiliate.
