It was February 2020 the first time I attended Social Media Marketing World.

I flew out with my boss, both of us wanting to do something revolutionary in—wait for it—plumbing.

Me and my manager, Shera, in our first Social Media Marketing World 2020.

We were there to hustle—taking notes, answering emails between sessions, meeting with the California office, and absorbing as much as we possibly could.

By the time I flew home, I was exhausted—then COVID hit.

I’ve now attended SMMW four times (three in person), and my relationship with it has shifted each year.

Last year was my first year in business, and attending the conference felt like a milestone.

Like proof that I was actually my own boss, I kept thinking: “I don’t have to ask permission to invest in myself anymore.”

This year? It felt different again.

I wasn’t chasing every note, every slide, every tactic. I knew I’d have access to the recordings.

This time, I went in open.

Open to mentorship, open to connection, open to letting the right conversations find me.

Ask and you shall receive.

What I found in San Diego this year wasn’t just a list of strategies. It was clarity and connection.

There was a lot of mentorship from other agency owners saying “we've been there, and that's normal”. Those were moments I didn’t know I needed.

I still took notes (you know I did), but what stood out wasn’t just what was said on the stage. What stuck with me most is how I’m rethinking my approach: It's not just what I’m creating, but how it fits into everything else I'm creating.

Here's my takeaways from speakers you can actually use, depending on what you’re working through right now:

Speakers on repeat in my head

Michelle J Raymond on using LinkedIn Company pages.

I loved each session I sat in because I took a little something away from each. After 2 days at home, these are the talks that I keep replaying in my mind.

🎙 Jerry Potter — Creating Modular Podcasts
Jerry gave the talk I’m still thinking about. He brought a radio-broadcast mindset to podcasting, showing how a modular format keeps your audience engaged and makes content easier to create.

↠ The Sign of a Good Podcast Opener: In the first 1-30 seconds of a good podcast you should know 1) who is speaking on the podcast 2) why it is relevant to the audience 3) open a curiosity loop to get the audience to listen to the entire show.

💬 Nikki Rausch — Mastering the Art of Sales Conversations
This was one of the most grounded sales talks I’ve ever heard. Nikki reframed sales as a balanced dynamic where you need permission and genuine respect for the other person (including their time and money). She also preached the "bless and release" method where if they aren't a right fit, you bless them and let them go.

↠ Try this: “Would it be okay if I shared [how I might be able to help] or [what I'd recommend in your situation]?”
Never be afraid of making a professional recommendation. Your job isn’t to make the decision if they can/will pay for it, but make the right recommendation each time.

🤖 Nicole Leffer — Foundational AI Skills for Marketers
Practical, sharp, and not fluffy. Nicole walked through specific prompts, explained why you should structure them a certain way, and made the whole process feel grounded and strategic.

↠ Try this: Double check your website's accessibility for a certain demographic (color blindness). Get a screenshot of your website or give ChatGPT the URL and tell it you're asking it to QA the site for color blind accessibility — watch the magic happen and give you recommendations.

👥 Michelle J Raymond — LinkedIn Company Pages
I’ve followed Michelle for years and met her last year—so this was a full-circle moment. Her message: Be human on LinkedIn. A thoughtful comment, a real voice, and a little less polish can go a long way.

↠ Her best advice:

1) You don't have to build a personal brand or a company page on LinkedIn — The power of both working together can be so much more powerful than a decent one on it's own.

2) The job of your LinkedIn Company page isn't to talk about yourself, it's to give value to your followers. Engage 3x as much as you post and you'll see an impact.

Honorable mentions:

Tara Zirker on Facebook Ads: Facebook rolled out Advantage+ across the platform and it's finally starting to perform better than building campaigns manually like we used to (the AI is getting better than us...).
Amber Figelow on Instagram: Gave permission to break content rules in favor of recognizability over replicability. Her advice was to stand out in every way possible, like talking about the thing no one else in your industry will.

Tools worth talking about

🔍 Microsoft Clarity for website insights
Free heatmaps and session recordings that show how users actually move through your site. Like my favorite tool Hotjar, but it's free. DISCLAIMER: As always with free AI tools—if you’re not paying for the product, you are the product. Don't use this on a sensitive webpage.

♿️ AI for Accessibility Checks
Try this prompt I got from Nicole. Genuinely one of my favorite ways to use AI:

“You are an accessibility expert. Using ADA.gov and accessiBe guidelines, review this URL for colorblind compliance and share what needs improvement.”

Fast way to spot issues and improve inclusivity—great for audits, a second-set of eyes, or testing a suspicion about your website.

📚 Perplexity AI for Research
For FAST research that actually cites its sources, I’m loving Perplexity. ChatGPT just launched Deep Research which is a new competitor - so try one out and see which is your favorite.

How I tested Perplexity: I asked about private equity’s role in retail closures and got solid responses, backed by Business Insider, Fast Company, and CFO Dive. It's faster than Googling, way smarter than guessing.

It's not what you know, it's what you do with it.

Implementing one of these takeaways can level up any aspect of your business. So putting many of them into practice can make a world of difference.

If something in here sparked something for you—try it.

Test the tool. Rethink the format. Send the message.

I’m cheering for you.

Raven
Founder, Hot Olive Agency

Hot Olive Agency