I love going to conferences; I attend them whenever I get the chance, even though I don’t really need to. Even if I am not there to network, I enjoy the inspirational stories I hear at start-up conferences and get a kick out of hearing about the latest technology developments. It’s worth the time and money to attend.
NetProphet is probably my favourite conference in Cape Town; I’ve attended it every year since it started. They always have such good speakers and it is really well organised. WordCamp is always great to attend as well. It covers everything related to WordPress which is a platform I use so I do get some useful information out of that.
If I had unlimited time and money I would probably attend a ton more conferences. Right now I have a particular interest in eCommerce conferences as some of my own businesses are involved in eCommerce and some of my clients have eCommerce sites too. I’m definitely keen to learn more about the topic.
I did some research and these are the tech conferences I’d like to still attend this year if I could (and two that I have missed but might catch next year):
In South Africa:
eCommerce MoneyAfrica Confex – Cape Town (22nd – 23rd February)
This is the largest eCommerce and fintech event in Africa and it’s right on my doorstep! Unfortunately I couldn’t attend as I’m in the UK for business at the moment.
eCommerce Show Africa – Johannesburg (1st – 2nd March)
This conference includes a retail expo of eCommerce related exhibitors which I think would be very interesting. There are new products and services becoming available all the time and this would be a good opportunity to see the latest and greatest.
Global Entrepreneurship Conference – Johannesburg (13th – 16th March)
There are so many great speakers at this conference,from small entrepreneurs who have made their mark, to big businesses that have pioneered a lot of the technology we use every day.
Outside South Africa:
The Sellers Conference – Philadelphia, USA (7th – 10th March)
Featured in Forbes as one of the top conferences in 2016, The Sellers Conference is also one of the longest running eCommerce events. I like that it is focused on small business entrepreneurs and family businesses.
Shoptalk – Las Vegas, USA (19th – 22nd March)
I included this conference even though it’s in Las Vegas. It’s a huge conference which focuses on trends in shopping, not only eCommerce but retail in general.
Internet Retailing Expo – Birmingham, UK (5th – 6th April)
With 90 speakers and 300 exhibitors, this is one of the bigger conferences outside the United States. It’s also free to attend! There will be a number of hands-on workshops which is a nice addition.
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