Have you ever had to justify to your company why you had to go to that expensive conference and give away all that swag — or why you came back with so much of it? Tired of explaining who “HardOn Soft” is when clients see their coffee mug on your desk? Who needs that many XXXXL T-shirts, anyway?!
Guess what — that’s all money that’s flying out of those companies’ hands with almost no return on investment (ROI)! Even worse, with so many ways to repurpose and repackage 90% of the swag out there, they can’t even claim they’re generating brand awareness!
Learn from a self-diagnosed Swag Hoarder on how to avoid your company wasting its hard-earned money on swag no self-respecting person would use (without a few “alterations”) — or if you’re just another face in the crowd, how to exploit what other companies are up to both by figuring out how to make sure of all the crap- er, ‘promotional material’ they give you, as well as how to win an iPad or other great prizes! (No, I won’t be GIVING one out at this talk, but there are tricks that will make it a lot easier for you to get one at your next big trade show!)
Usability Specialist, Dynamic Marketing Systems A force from the Southeast Hacker Convention scene, Rachel has picked up plenty of unusual knowledge both from her formal education as well as what she’s picked up on her own from working on her creator-owned graphic novel series, Last Res0rt.Rachel has two degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology, most recently a Master’s Degree in Human-Computer Interaction. While earning those degrees, she’s also made a name for herself as a Comic Book Artist, with appearances in Dragon Con’s Comic and Pop Artist’s Alley, among others (if you were paying attention, she also did the artwork for the DEF CON 21 Scavenger Hunt!), and has held a successful fundraiser on Kickstarter to print the second volume of Last Res0rt, available for sale at http://www.lastres0rt.com . Her combination of artistic talent and technical knowledge has given her a unique insight and voice in the hacker community, focusing on DIY, Hacker Media, and embracing cha0s. Rachel is currently working as a Usability Specialist for hire.