Web Directions North » Why Web Directions?

Why should you or your team members attend Web Directions North? Read on, or see the executive summary about the conference (or download the one page PDF), the content, the speakers, and the great value.

Since we organized our first web conference in 2004, the number of conferences associated with the web has exploded. So what makes Web Directions different, and worth your attention with so many other conferences and events going on?

Unlike most web conferences, Web Directions is organized by industry practitioners and leaders with collectively decades of experience in web design and development. We are passionate and knowledgeable about the web, we keep abreast of trends and developments, and like our attendees we work with the web every day so understand the need for practical content that attendees can use right now, as well as inspiration for the future. Our conferences aim to bring all this to you.

Web 2.What?

Right now “Web 2.0″ is all the rage, but just as the term itself is rather nebulous, many conferences in this area lack focus and cohesion, featuring everything from famous bloggers making predictions on just about anything, to 57 different business model ideas. All very interesting of course, but is it all that useful?

Web Directions focusses on the challenges of building the web — practical and inspiring concepts, technologies and techniques for web designers, developers, product managers, and others whose day to day responsibility is making and managing web sites and applications. The presenters we choose “walk the walk” — they have years of experience innovating and implementing, not just talking and writing, as well as the ability to communicate brilliantly. They present case studies of projects they’ve done, and bring real world experience and insights. That’s why we ask them, and that’s why our attendees say things like:

• “I will be strongly urging my upper management to send more people again next year. Great work and thankyou to everyone involved in organising such a wonderful event. Very instructive and informative.”
• “I need a Web Directions every six months to keep me inspired.”
• “The conference reminded me of all the things I love about working in web. The choice of speakers was excellent, and it was so good to be amongst people who truly care about what they do.”
• “Having been disappointed by conferences in the passed I was pleasantly surprised to find that this event meet my expectations on what a conference should be about. Congratulations to the organisers and speakers on putting together such a fantastic couple of days!”
• “the highlight of my year. I absolutely love it and now make it a stipulation of any job I get that they must fund my attendance at it (and SXSW if possible!). As a way to get the juices flowing it is unparalleled.”

The Content

At Web Directions North, you and your team will get indepth, practical, inspiring presentations on

• Web Site Design
• Web application and user interface Design
• Ajax frameworks
• Javascript and CSS
• User testing
• Rich Internet Application technologies, tools, platforms and techniques
• Accessibility
• Online communities, social media and social applications
• Innovative data visualizations
• Designing for the mobile web, and other new web enabled devices
• Wikis, blogs and social software in the Enterprise and Government
• Marketing in the age of social media

As well as keynotes from industry legends, “The Godfather of Web Standards” (Business Week) Jeffrey Zeldman, and MindHacks author and Web Development guru Matt Webb.

The connections

Conferences aren’t just about the content, they are also about building new relationships with your peers, people facing the same challenges as you. Unlike many stadium sized conferences with thousands of attendees, Web Directions maintains a personal size, to ensure attendees have the opportunity to meet and network with one another, and importantly, the speakers too.

The promise

You and your team will leave

• Equipped with techniques and concepts ready to be put to use in your work
• Inspired by the projects people are doing right now across a broad range of commercial, government and not for profit areas
• Connected with more of your peers.

We promise you.

Dave Shea, Maxine Sherrin, Derek Featherstone, John Allsopp