Why VirCon?
I launched the first VirCon six years ago after I heard the same complaints from school marketers:
"Most conferences are too expensive for my budget."
"There is no specific track for marketing and communications."
"I can't attend every session and I feel like I'm missing too much."
"I can't afford professional development for my staff and for me."
"How am I supposed to improve my skills as a marketer?"
I knew there had to be a better way!
While in-person conferences are fantastic for networking, they are not a great value for learning. I love networking as much as the next person, but, in the end, networking isn't going to make you a better marketer, and it certainly isn't going to attract new students to your school.
I was once told, "Try and take one to two ideas from each conference, and that will be a successful conference."
My issue is that if you add up the cost of airfare, Uber/Lyft rides, hotel rooms, conference registrations, food, alcohol (while you're networking), and gifts for your family, it could cost your school and/or you thousands of dollars for two ideas.
That formula doesn't add up anymore!
The VirCon was created to bring you the best school marketing experts and have them teach you how to attract new students and retain current students using the internet and social media, all at the best possible value!
Now enter COVID-19, and most conferences have gone virtual. While they offer the convenience of a virtual presentation, their registration cost hasn't decreased to a point where school marketing and communications professionals can attend with their reduced budgets. In the end, even during COVID-19, I've tried to make the VirCon9 the best value in school marketing and communications professional development, period.