
A WHIRLWIND REVIEW OF CASE EUROPE ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2018
Daniel Marrable, Senior Social & Digital Media Officer, University of Glasgow & CASE Social Media Conference Chair
A quick round up of what I learned at #CEAC18 in between the whirlwind of handshakes, smiles, speaker interviews, vendors, food and being in charge of the CASE Advance Instagram stories… which came in handy when getting free goodies.
First off, the venue, Edinburgh International Conference Centre was easy to access from the train station. The layout inside was slightly complicated, but there was always friendly staff on hand to give you little prompts where needed, and accidentally gate crashing the ‘leadership’ drinks because I took the wrong elevator was a highlight (sorry Alex) — got some free breadsticks out of the whole incident, so not too bad all round.
The conference app this year was a great resource to plan sessions, read speaker bios and connect with fellow delegates, as well as adapting to last minute changes that the printed programme couldn’t.
On to the sessions: here are the three that stood out to me.
1. Organic Reach is in Decline — Here’s What You Do About it
Hootsuite put on this talk, and yes, I know what you’re thinking, ‘It’s a sponsor talk, they’re just going try sell you stuff.’ Well if they’re selling I’m buying. Tesh Patel from Hootsuite gave a real life solution to the decrease in organic reach by encouraging strong employee advocacy. It’s not just a matter of putting content out on your main channel anymore but making that content available to everyone to pick and choose and stick up on their own channels. They use a tool called Amplify, which seems to do the job and us Glasgow people will be talking to Rob Armstrong-Haworth about that soon!
2. Innovation Showcase — Digital Marketing
Loved the fast-paced Pecha Kucha style. We had it in CASE SMC Brighton this year and I’m glad it’s been adapted to CEAC18. Enjoyed hearing from Andrew Twist (Aisha’s letter), Jonah Duffin (SEO), and Dave Musson (The Native) with his talk on podcasts. Dave in my mind is a pioneer in HE on podcasting and it garnered lots of questions from a packed auditorium. Looks like everyone in HE is testing the podcasting waters.

3. Building Brands and Awareness Using Digital Platforms
Olga Puzanova from Spotify showed us the importance of training students to manage a brand and campaign, and reminded us not to forget the power of off-line marketing. Her examples of Spotify’s experiential marketing (something to do with igloos and VIP trips) encouraged students to sign up to the service and turn into brand advocates.
Enough about the sessions, on to the real important stuff, the food! Food was delicious. Stand out was the cheese ravioli with olives and capers, so popular in fact that the server had to poach some from another station for me (thanks bro).
Vendors were great too. I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to say I got a drone (thanks to Graduway). Seems like quite a high bar to set. I also really enjoyed Revolution Viewing’s VR game, even though I got an email today saying I didn’t win! Everyone was welcoming and it was great to see first-hand the really innovative companies that are supporting the HE industry every day.

Well that’s all I can say really. Had a grand time at CEAC this year, big thanks to the organisers and looking forward to next year in Birmingham already. For a visual run through of CEAC18 hop onto @CASEadvance Instagram, and watch the CEAC18 highlights, and for those who love a bargain there is a £100 off CEAC19 if you book before 30 September 2018.
Finally I will be chairing the CASE Social Media conference in March. Register your interest here and CASE will contact you when the programme is available.
Until next time!
Dan - @terriblem86
Daniel Marrable is the Senior Social & Digital Media Officer, University of Glasgow & CASE Social Media Conference Chair.
