The future of marketing happens here

Twice a year, I host a marketing retreat called The Uprising. It’s not unusual for people to call this “magical” or “transformational” as it blends actionable marketing ideas, meaningful new relationships, and a connection with food, fun, and nature. I created this event out of my own frustration that marketing conferences were overwhelming, impersonal, and focused on iterative, small thinking. This retreat is limited to 30 people and focused on the future and our relevance as marketers.

I’ve captured a few highlights from this intimate gathering. The major themes were:

• Artificial intelligence
• Personal branding
• Future of the brand
• Word-of-mouth marketing
• Megatrends

These priorities were pre-determined by the participants. Here are some highlights:

Artificial Intelligence

Of course, this theme was woven throughout the retreat. I kicked off the discussion with high-level observations about the near future, including:

• Navigating the rapid pace of change
• AI Agents and their impact on work
• Implications of relying on AI as an “external brain”
• How generative AI will…