Currently Open for Registration
The Art of the Rabbit Hole
Speaker: Ginny Mohler; Creative Director, Vox Media Explainer Studio
What makes a research detour worth following—and how do you find your way back? In this editorially-driven session, creative director and filmmaker Ginny Mohler explores research as both a journalistic practice and a creative act. Drawing on her time as an archival researcher, where one rabbit hole led to a nine year endeavor culminating in a Netflix film release, this talk will help attendees identify the story within the story. Plus, how to get out of a rabbit hole when fact-checking on a deadline, her short list of outstanding historical mysteries, and strategies for bringing play into the research process as a surprisingly effective way “in” to almost any topic.
A Better Best Of: Optimizing Your Ballot, Issue, and Event for Maximum Impact and Revenue
Speaker: Lauren Hurlock; Director of Customer Success, City Spark
Are you doing everything you can to maximize revenue and first party data collection in your Best Of/Readers’ Choice polls? Take a deep dive into the best practices of the full “Best Of” ecosystem—from category selection and sponsorship packages to promotional efforts and event attendance. Learn practical strategies for revenue optimization, reader data collection, and marketing outreach. Plus, a look at unknown or underutilized tools that can unlock new, year-round advertising sales potential.
Leading High-Performance Sales Teams
Speaker: Eric Mayberry; President, SmartTech Digital Agency
In this session, attendees will take away practical leadership strategies for building and sustaining high-performing sales teams—including insights that you can apply right away to improve performance, strengthen communication and accountability, and change the culture within a sales organization.
Monday, October 5
(Editorial, Audience Development)
2-3 p.m.EST
Leveraging Creator Relationships To Extend The Impact of Your Newsroom
Panel: Lenfest curated panel moderated by Cheryl Thompson-Morton; Head of Advisory Programs, The Lenfest Institute
Content creators are not the competition, they are our collaborators. As audience behavior shifts toward personality-driven platforms and influencer-led discovery, city and regional publications have an opportunity to extend their editorial reach and brand relevance through strategic creator partnerships. This Lenfest-curated panel brings together leaders working at the intersection of journalism, creators, and community-driven distribution. Panelists will share practical frameworks for identifying the right creators, structuring collaborations that protect your brand without diluting editorial standards, and connecting creator-led experiments to measurable audience and revenue growth.
Events Workshop: How to Build Packages Sponsors Actually Want to Buy
Speaker: Diana Vdovets; Founder, DRV Collective
What’s actually working across publisher events—and how are they driving revenue growth? In this session, attendees will take away practical strategies for ideating, creating, and executing events that attendees truly want to attend—and sponsors want to be part of. Plus, a workshop on developing packages sponsors want to buy, best practices for negotiating trade, and tips for leveraging your brand to command premium pricing.
Building Agency Offerings Clients Can’t Easily Replace
Speaker: Dan Rubin; Founder, Dan Rubin Consulting
In this talk, Dan Rubin will share the SPARK framework for turning publisher strengths into agency-style offerings that drive growth. Attendees will learn how to define the right niche, position the offer clearly, activate it commercially, resource it effectively, and measure success without losing what makes publisher brands valuable in the first place.
Somehow I Manage: How to Give Powerful Feedback
Speaker: Don Harkey; CEO, People Centric
One of the most common challenges managers face is giving feedback to their team. How do you tell someone that their work isn’t good or that they made a mistake? A quiet, but hugely impactful, problem is that many managers also aren’t good at giving positive feedback. In this session, Don Harkey, CEO of People Centric, will discuss the importance of giving feedback, how to deliver positive and negative feedback, and offer some tips for creating better feedback habits as performance review season approaches.
This is the third installment of the Somehow I Manage series.
If you would like to review:
The Fail Proof Sales Equation
Speaker: Eric Mayberry; President, SmartTech Digital Agency
Every sale is the same. So how do you give your reps the best chance to win every one of them? This seminar shows you a sales method that helps your team: 1) uncover critical information in the “needs” conversation; 2) build credibility in the sales process; and 3) guarantee they get the sale 80% of the time—or identify specifically why they didn’t.
Monday, November 16
(Audience Development, Editorial, Events, Marketing)
2-3 p.m.EST
The Future of Podcasting: Video, Social Media, and Live Events
Speaker: Kelly Travis; VP of Strategy & Operations, St. Louis Magazine
Is the podcast dying, or is the format maturing? While simple audio-only formats fizzle, city and regional publications are finding success taking their pods from airwaves to IRL. In this session, St. Louis Magazine VP of Strategy and Operations Kelly Travis will share a high-level overview of the audience-development strategies that led to their first ever sold-out live recording event. Plus, a look at how video, newsletter, social media, and personality-driven content has contributed to a loyal listening audience.
More sessions will be posted soon. Stay tuned!
February 2026
Beyond the Blank Page: How AI Makes Media Companies More Valuable, Not Less
Speaker: Scott McIntosh of Treehouse Digital
Beyond the Blank Page: How AI Makes Media Companies More Valuable, Not Less: As low-quality AI content overwhelms the web, audiences are looking harder than ever for sources they trust. This hands-on session shows how publishers can use AI to streamline workflows, speed up production and preserve institutional knowledge, while strengthening the very qualities that make credible media outlets indispensable.
Leading the Unleadable
Speaker: Ryan Dohrn of Brain Swell Media
Explore strategies for managing challenging team members and navigating difficult situations as a leader. This session covers practical tools to shift mindset, build influence, and get buy-in from even the most resistant people.
Newsletters on Steroids
Speaker: Bruce Pinchbeck of Letterhead
Newsletters can operate as first-class products that power multiple revenue streams rather than functioning solely as distribution or promotion. Learn how modern newsletter strategy can support subscriptions, ecommerce, sponsorships, lead generation, and broader audience development when approached with product thinking. Re-evaluate newsletter portfolios in light of new tooling, automation, and monetization models.
Conducting Research, Prospecting, and Mastering Insights with AI
Speaker: Shannon Kinney, Dream Local Digital
In this session, we’ll focus on early-stage sales steps: prospecting, pre-meeting research and mastering insights to get in the door and build prospect trust and rapport. We’ll go deep into best practices for each, identify smart prompts that get you outstanding results, and best practices.
March 2026
From One Story to Many Assets: Practical AI Workflows for City & Regional Publishers
Speaker: Vatrice Chestnut of 10X Consulting LLC
City and regional teams are being asked to do more with the same (or smaller) staff. In this session, we’ll start with one real story and walk through how to turn it into multiple assets across web, email, and social using AI—while still protecting your voice, standards, and relationship with your readers. I’ll use a simple AI Strategist–Manager–Teacher–Technician framework to keep things grounded in practical, repeatable workflows that small teams can actually use. As a value add, Vatrice will provide a custom CRMA-branded AI agent trained on example member content. Attendees will be able to try it live and see how it can help them take one story and quickly spin out multiple assets that still feel like “them”.
Habits of Superstar Sales Managers
Speaker: Ryan Dohrn of Brain Swell Media
Deep dive into the day-to-day behaviors and routines that set top-performing sales managers apart. From effective 1:1s and coaching techniques to time management and goal setting, learn the habits that drive team success.
Somehow I Manage
Speaker: Don Harkey of People Centric Consulting Group
You were just doing your job well when someone came along and made you a manager. Now you are a manager of people and, well, it’s weird. How do you manage people who you also want to have a good working (and maybe personal) relationship with? How do you give someone hard feedback? How do you handle a toxic employee who also happens to be great at their job? How do you support your publisher as they make hard decisions that impact your team? In this webinar series, bring your questions and we’ll talk about the answers. Being a manager can be lonely. You are not alone!
Showing Up With Strategy — How to Build a Strong, Sustainable Social Presence
Speaker: Meg Asby of PDX Parent
This session introduces the foundations of effective social media. We’ll cover the three reasons why people come to social platforms in the first place, how to understand the culture of the app, and how to define a niche that feels authentic and achievable. We’ll also dig into the essentials of short-form video — including hooks, pacing, captions/SEO, and authenticity — with examples that illustrate the difference between ineffective and compelling content. Attendees will leave with a clear sense of how to show up consistently and create content that resonates.
The Future of Audience Development: Trends Shaping 2026 and Beyond
Speaker: Natalie Sorge of NPS
A forward-looking discussion on emerging technologies, consumer behaviors, and what publishers must do to stay ahead.
Smaller Lists, Bigger Wins
Speaker: Patricia McGuinness of SBM Audience Development
In an environment where platform reach is shrinking and inbox filtering is increasingly unforgiving, many publishers are finding that adding more names no longer improves performance and can quietly make it worse. Rather than focusing on email mechanics, the session translates inbox behavior into executive-level consequences, giving publishers clearer language for discussing audience strategy internally and a practical shift in thinking from acquiring more names to strengthening the audience they already have.
April 2026
The Authentic 10X AI Playbook for 2026
Speaker: Kenny Katzgrau of BroadStreet
This is not a typical AI toolset mashup. It’s a clear set of high-impact, cross-departmental use cases for AI that allow you to build stronger, higher-quality, authentic products for your readers and advertisers in a tenth of the time. The session begins with a rare, plain-English explanation of how AI actually works, then moves into maximizing team adoption. From there, it covers high-leverage use cases across leadership, sales, operations, and editorial. You’ll leave thoughtful, empowered, and with a clear roadmap to implement AI in 2026.
Growing With Agility — Content That Evolves, Performs, and Drives Revenue
Speaker: Meg Ashby of PDX Parent
In this session, we’ll focus on growth, efficiency, and monetization. We’ll talk about how to stay nimble as platforms evolve, how to read analytics in a useful way, and how to build workflows that save time while increasing output. We’ll also cover practical strategies for repurposing content, finding footage, and adapting ideas across platforms. Finally, we’ll walk through how influence translates into revenue, how to approach early partnerships (including trades), and how to package your reach effectively for advertisers.
Membership Models in Action
Speaker: David Arkin of David Arkin Consulting
Learn real-world approaches to launching or refining membership programs, including what motivates people to join, how to structure value and common mistakes to avoid when building membership as a revenue stream.
May 2026
Somehow I Manage: Accountability / Watershed
Speaker: Don Harkey of People Centric Consulting Group
Somehow I Manage is a customized interactive webinar for CRMA managers, directors, and publishers highlighting key management concepts. We will discuss what to do if your employee isn’t taking ownership of their work or attitude. We will also introduce a powerful management tool called the Watershed Conversation that can align toxic employees or help them move on to their next job.
Motivating Your Sales Team Without Stress: What Your Sales Team Really Wants from You as a Leader
Speaker: Ryan Dohrn of Brain Swell Media
Understand what motivates your strongest reps beyond just the numbers. We’ll discuss how to create a motivating environment, tailor your approach, and avoid burnout – keeping your top talent engaged and performing at their best.
How to Talk about AI When You Can’t Agree On Use
Speaker: Alex Mahdaven, Poynter Institute
This session will offer guidance on the fundamentals of building an artificial intelligence policy, and provide tips on how to move from conflict to collaboration as your organization explores whether and how to use generative AI in your work.
June 2026
What You Need to Know About Meta Content to Stay Competitive (and Compliant)
Speaker: Sabrina Sucato, Today Media
It’s no secret that Meta changes its setup seemingly every other day. In this session, we’ll go over the latest status of Facebook and Instagram, what’s working on both platforms, and what sponsored posts on both platforms look like, including how to stay compliant with Meta’s branded content guidelines.
Training Your Team to be a Social Voice for Your Media Brand
Speaker: Zach O’Brien, Active NorCal
Successful social media campaigns are hard. If you rely on a singular brand to drive social growth and engagement, you’re in for a long and arduous journey. This session shows how to build a team-based approach that helps editors, reporters, marketers, and salespeople consistently represent your brand online. Learn how to engage your team to assist your social growth and engagement, and create “micro-influencers” within your media business through education and incentives. You’ll leave with practical tools to train your staff and create a repeatable social system that scales.
The Power of Devote Audiences
Speaker: Megan Schertler, In Real Life Media
Magazines don’t just build audiences; they build believers. This talk explores how emotional and intellectual connection turns readers into advocates, and how that devotion translates into organic amplification, pricing power, and stronger brand relationships. It’s especially relevant for sales, audience, and studio teams looking to better explain the value of their readership beyond impressions and clicks.
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