Which Domain Conferences You Ought to Go To in 2010
A handy guide to choosing a domain conference.
Well, I guess the domain name conference wars are on again. We by now knew regarding two conferences in the first two months of the year — DOMAINfest and Domainer MardiGras. But then, despite having only two conferences in the U.S. this year, T.R.A.F.F.I.C. found it necessary to hold a conference in Las Vegas just ahead of DOMAINfest. And so it begins.
Since most people don’t want to attend every conference, I’ve put together this handy guide to help you choose a conference. There’s not a “best conference” for everyone; it really depends on what you’re looking for. It you don’t care regarding programming, ignore that rating. If you don’t care regarding striking deals at the conference, ignore that rating. Just find the conference that is best for what you’re looking for. These are my opinions on each conference, although I cross checked them with a couple other experts in our field to make sure I wasn’t way off on any of them. And of course, if you disagree, feel free to comment.
Explanation of ratings:
Size – based on audience. Takes into consideration most recent conference and historical trends.
Cost – conference pass cost, excluding hotel.
Programming – quality of programming, counting diverse speakers, “fresh” topics, programming scheduled well in advance.
Professionalism – sessions start on time, professional/prepared moderators.
Cohesiveness – level of attendee, ability to easily network and find people you’re looking for (adversely affected by size).
Deal Making – level of deal making at conference.
Conference Venue & Food – overall quality of venue and food
Here they are, in alphabetical order.
Domainer Mardi Gras
What’s fresh in 2010: No longer under Modern Domainer umbrella
Known for: Fun
Size: Modest
Cost: Low
Programming: Medium
Professionalism: Medium
Cohesiveness: High
Deal Making: Medium
Venue: Medium
DOMAINfest
What’s fresh in 2010: moves to the beach, possible second conference in the fall.
Known for: High quality production, huge parties, big crowd. Organized by Oversee.net.
Size: Sizable
Cost: Moderate
Programming: High
Professionalism: High
Cohesiveness: Medium
Deal Making: High
Venue: High
Domain Roundtable
What’s fresh in 2010: Nothing disclosed; annual conference takes place later in year
Known for: Drawing more than just domainers, policy angle
Size: Modest
Cost: Moderate
Programming: High
Professionalism: Medium
Cohesiveness: High
Deal Making: High
Venue: High
GeoDomain Expo
What’s fresh in 2010: Moves to Fresh Orleans, hopefully less internal drama
Known for: Bringing together the “local web” audience and geo domain owners
Size: Modest
Cost: Low
Programming: Moderate
Professionalism: High
Cohesiveness: High
Deal Making: Moderate
Venue: Moderate-High
T.R.A.F.F.I.C.
What’s fresh in 2010: Partnership with Rick Latona, 6 conferences (2 in U.S.)
Known for: First real domain conference, big live domain auctions
Size: Medium
Cost: High
Programming: Low (but improving)
Professionalism: Low
Cohesiveness: High
Deal Making: High
Venue: High
