The TRAFFIC domain conferences have been operated by the team of Rick Schwartz and Howard Neu. Rick Schwartz recently announced his retirement, but the legacy of the TRAFFIC conferences will live on under a new moniker.
Howard Neu announced the creation of a conference called “THE Domain Conference,” which is the successor to the TRAFFIC conferences. The conference is scheduled to be held at the Hyatt Regency Pier 66 Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from September 27 – 29, 2015. There will also be pre-conference networking opportunities.
I plan to attend THE Domain Conference in September, and I hope you’ll be there as well. There are several reasons why I believe THE Domain Conference will be successful, and I want to share those reasons with you:
History – I have always enjoyed attending TRAFFIC conferences, and THE Domain Conference organizers have learned what works and what doesn’t. They will be able to draw on prior conference experiences and be able to offer a conference with good networking opportunities and interesting panels and speakers.
Price point – Instead of starting at a $995 rate, the price of admission has essentially been cut in half. In addition, the hotel rate is under $150/night for standard rooms (other hotels are in the area for those who want more luxury). There are several airports in South Florida that service the major airlines, which should also keep costs low.
Location – South Florida in the fall is great. In the north, we are just beginning to feel the crisp fall air, and it’s always a welcome break to travel to Florida for some warmth. In addition to this, there is a very large contingent of domain investors and domain industry companies that are based in Florida and on the east coast.
Timing – The show is in September, so it’s 9 months removed from the well-attended NamesCon event, it’s still several months prior to the next NamesCon, and it is being well in advance of the holiday season.
The elephant in the room is: will people attend without Rick? Rick was the first vocal domain name investor with his erealestate.com site. Almost like a snowball effect, Rick attracted the right people which then snowballed into more people wanting to attend to see those people.
The other draw was the domain auctions. Neu will have to be as vocal as Rick in promoting it and making people want to attend. Rick was a great promoter and leveraged his credibility as a successful domain name investor.
Right away, we see a break with Rick’s outlook on domain names: I can’t imagine Rick using a a gTLD, especially a .club, for the conference’s web site. While he wasn’t completely closed off to gTLD’s, I can’t imagine him running the industry’s premiere conference on a gTLD domain.
It will be interesting to see.
I wish Howard and his team great success with THE Domain Conference. I agree with your comment’s Elliot. The timing of the show looks good, and the lower ticket price should make this show a consideration for a lot of people. I know that I will be there and I look forward to seeing lots of familiar faces.
Any one that has attended a Traffic conference knows that Barbara is outstanding in making people welcomed. And, Howard is outstanding as MC (master of ceremonies). He keeps everything moving.
As Elliot has pointed out, Howard and Barbara (and Ray) have been running many parts of Traffic for the many years. They are very warm and down to earth people. They are the type of people you want to be around.
I really like Rick and I consider him a friend. But, he really doesn’t need the hassle that is involved putting on a domain meeting. I am sure Rick will be in attendance. And, I look forward to seeing him at the conference.
This conference will be a huge success and domain investors will want to attend. It is a beginning of a new era.
Good to hear. Great timing, convenient location, good weather, right price. I plan to be there.
I disagree 100%. People showed up to the Traffic Conferences because Rick was putting on the show. I believe this conference will be a huge flop.
Think about it, the last Traffic conference wasn’t attended very well and it was Rick’s farewell tour. Do you really think people will show up to this one. I doubt it. It takes a real domain guy to get people to show up and speak for free at these conferences and I don’t think he is that guy.
This industry isn’t big enough for multiple conferences and Namescon will be the one and only that people will attend from now on. At least in the states.
TRAFFIC was always “all about Rick” so unless he is very prominent at these shows it will struggle in my view.
Howard, Barbara and Ray have been running the TRAFFIC conference for years. There is no doubt THE Domain Conference will be top notch.
Rick’s absence opens the door for others. I believe there will be plenty of newly successful domainers there and plenty of talk about the new tld’s.
I hope Rick is there. His participation would be good. He has a lot to share.
His absence from the production of the conference will not change things. It is in the same capable hands as always. They are lowering the financial threshold to get more people to participate.
I have been to TRAFFIC many years. This is the beginning of a new era for it just like NamesCon has become the next evolution of Domain Fest. I went to the first NamesCon to experience the change. I plan on being at THE Domain Conference’s first roll out, meet new domainers and see what is coming.