Oct. 6-8, 2025
InterContinental San Diego
2025 Educational Sessions
Presented by Bluewater
(as of Sept. 9, 2025)
Tuesday, Oct. 7
10-10:45 a.m.
Brands Eye the Future of CTV
Performance marketing brands seeking scale are finding that connected TV (CTV) has become a natural testing ground. Brand leaders having success via CTV will discuss what’s working and how they see the space, the opportunities, and their agency and outlet partnerships evolving.
Confirmed Speakers: Theresa Boras, Disney Advertising; Matt Laramee, Southern New Hampshire University; Lauren Murphy, Apartment Therapy
Moderator: Matt Wasserlauf, Blockboard
11:15 a.m.-Noon
Data Delivers Desired Performance
As performance brands were forced to dive deeper into their data collection practices by regulators and Google’s back-and-forth dance on the future of the cookie, many marketers began to realize the value of mining — and monetizing — the information available on both their prospects and customers. The Women’s Leadership Council brings a group of marketers and data experts together to discuss the latest opportunities available in safely mining data to maximize campaign success.
Confirmed Speakers: David Burns, Ideal Living; Jason Carlson, Aspire North; Claire Estes, Claritas; JR McElroy, AudienceXpress
Moderator: Fern Lee, THOR Associates
1-1:45 p.m.
Leveraging the Power of Influencers
As influencer marketing’s power has grown, it’s shown the ability to generate direct sales and lift retail — simultaneously. Hear from performance brands about how to identify influencers who will move the needle with your target audience, how to pitch — and negotiate with — influencers and their agents, and how to take raw influencer content and edit it into ads that drive both online and in-store sales. The conversation will also touch on how to ensure brand-safe content, securing lifetime usage rights, and more.
Confirmed Speakers: Ariel Brooks Benz, BB3 Advertising; Whitney Callahan, PanTheryx; Kayla Marcum, Dude Wipes
Moderator: Lindsey Carnett, Marketing Maven
2:15-3 p.m.
Media Outlet Roundtable
Performance media sales leaders from linear and streaming outlets take the stage to share what’s next on the shifting performance media landscape. How will brands and buyers be served with the best opportunities to maximize success across linear and streaming outlets? What are D2C marketers asking for from their media outlet partners? How are these outlets responding? And what can you expect heading into 2026?
Confirmed Speakers: Marty Dehler, Disney Advertising; John Rinaldo, DISH Media; Sean Robertson, NBCUniversal
Moderator: Thomas Haire, The PDMI
Wednesday, Oct. 8
10-10:45 a.m.
Mythbuster: Why CTV Is the Ultimate Performance Driver for Mobile Advertisers
CTV is often considered a passive, one-way experience that allows advertisers to build brand awareness. However, CTV has entered a new era. Consumers, now more than ever, expect to interact with their TVs in the same ways they do with other devices — they want to be able to take action, they want it immediately, and they want it customizable. CTV is now the ultimate conversion tool, especially for mobile advertisers.
Confirmed Speaker: Alex Yip, AppsFlyer
Moderator: Ryan Garcia, Samsung Ads
11:15 a.m.-Noon
Where Are My Customers?
As consumers’ media continue to shift and consumer response to performance marketing campaigns continues to splinter (fragmentation seems too kind a word), performance and e-commerce marketers are faced with a big challenge: finding and converting consumers into customers without breaking the bank. Join a group brand-side experts who will discuss the latest trends shaping campaigns as they work to avoid having the right consumer targets slip through their fingers.
Confirmed Speaker: Kyler Blackmore, Balance of Nature; Tina Watkins, Meaningful Beauty
Moderator: Sarah Andreadakis, Bluewater
1-1:45 p.m.
Built on Resilience: Hispanic Market Takes Challenges Head On
The U.S. Hispanic marketplace is used to something that performance marketing executives have been forced to deal with constantly in recent years: change and upheaval. Yet, for brands bold enough to reach out to a market of 68 million people — who control more than $2 trillion in spending power — the Hispanic market has been and promises to continue paying dividends. Hear from brand leaders about how they’ve found success and where they believe this market is heading next.
Confirmed Speakers: TBD
Moderator: Marcelino Miyares, d2H Partners
2:15-3 p.m.
Finding the Right Agency and AdTech Partners
What do brands want from their agency and vendor partners in today’s multifaceted performance marketing universe? It’s a question as old as marketing itself, but — thanks to new technology, improved data capabilities, and more — marketers’ answers continue to evolve rapidly. Hear from a group of performance brand experts about what level of partnership they’re seeking from their partners — and what best-in-class service looks like right now.
Confirmed Speakers: Mike Crawford, Northeastern University Bouve School of Health Sciences; Brendan McInerney, Grand Canyon Education
Moderator: Chris Foster, Modern Postcard
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