Christopher S. Penn, Marketing and New Media Leader

A visionary in new media with an intuitive sense for how marketing and community outreach should be done, Christopher S. Penn has been called upon for expert information by researchers for the Congressional Advisory Committee on Student Financial Aid, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the US Department of Health and Human Services, as well as having been sought after for conferences and private intensive seminars.

Mr. Penn has spoken before diverse audiences ranging from executives of major venture capital firms, to multiple state and federal agencies, to aspiring college students looking to make their mark on the world.

Mr. Penn is Vice President of Strategy and Innovation at Blue Sky Factory, an email marketing company based in Baltimore, as well as  co-founder of the groundbreaking PodCamp New Media Community unConference, and co-host of the Marketing Over Coffee marketing podcast. He is an adjunct professor of Internet marketing at the University of San Francisco and the lead subject matter expert and professor of Advanced Social Media at the University of San Francisco.

Mr. Penn has also been featured in many books, newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and the New York Times, magazines such as BusinessWeek and US News & World Report, television networks such as PBS, CNN, CNBC, and ABC News, and publications for his leadership in new media and financial services.

Mr. Penn holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Franklin & Marshall College and a Master’s degree in Information Systems from Boston University School of Management.

Download a short, one-page summary in PDF format here.

Public Speaking Topics

• More Juice From Your Squeeze – understanding social media ROI. In this presentation, Mr. Penn helps you understand what social media’s return on investment is, shows you simple methods for calculating investment, profitability, and then explores how you can improve your ROI at every part of your social media strategy.
• Turning Buzz into Business – B2B New Media. In this presentation and discussion, Mr. Penn examines your social media strategy and “funnel”, and demonstrates powerful techniques using business social networks for making relationships and business happen.
• New Media Overview – The basics of podcasting, blogging, and new media. In this presentation, Mr. Penn explores the new media environment and strategic implications for your organization and brand.
• Social Networking – Understanding Your New Community. In this presentation, Mr. Penn reveals four strategies for evaluating social networks and understanding the context in which people use them.
• Powering Your Personal Network with Social Media. In this presentation, Mr. Penn demonstrates how effective use of social networks and social media can vastly increase your personal influence and reach, helping you to achieve real world results.
• Blogging – Community Communication at its best. In this presentation, Mr. Penn reveals the top 4 reasons to blog, some blogging tools, plus tips to be a productive blogger and missteps to avoid.
• Podcasting – The 21st century radio. In this presentation, Mr. Penn explores the landscape of audio and video podcasting, citing successful productions, and gives you a roadmap to implementation.
• New Media Marketing – How to use new media to spread the word. In this presentation, Mr. Penn examines the four stages of new media participation and engagement, basic metrics, and how to create value propositions using new media tools.

Presentations may be requested on the above topics by themselves or as part of half or full day intensives.

Presentation Excerpt

Taken from the Podcasting/New Media 101 Presentation

Television Excerpts

Taken from WCVB Boston Channel 5 Six O’Clock news

Taken from WCVB Boston Channel 5 Six O’Clock news

Past Audience Feedback

“I thought your presentation was truly one of the best sessions I’ve ever attended in my 15 years as an educator. I thought that every moment of your session was well planned out, fun and impactful and you motivated us to feel empowered to implement solutions for our programs and students.” – Robert Dais, Massachusetts Department of Higher Education

“Chris will melt your brain. It’s just that simple. He understands how online marketing works but more importantly he knows how to make it work for you. Smart, clear and insightful, Chris is always willing to share and connect.” – Mitch Joel, president, Twist Image Digital Marketing

“Christopher Penn is a master of his art when it comes to all of the technical marketing tips and tricks you need to employ if you have a blog or podcast. If you ever need to know anything about simple, yet useful, ways to increase your online exposure, go NO further than contacting Christopher Penn.” – Matthew Snodgrass, VP Creative Services, Porter Novelli

“Chris is an aspiring leader and relentless organizer. He took a simple idea: let’s get people interested in podcasting and bring them into one city to share their ideas and thoughts. He made that idea into an amazing 3-day event. Even more incredible is he did it by organizing dozens of volunteers to host the 600+ attendees attending dozens of sessions. I regularly present at 30+ conferences a year, almost all with paid staff and organizers. This conference was in the top 5 best organized out of all of those. All of that was because of Chris’s inspiring leadership.” – Jared Spool, Founding Principal, User Interface Engineering

“Christopher Penn impressed everyone with his thorough knowledge of podcasting, technology, marketing and communications. He has that rare ability to be brilliant in all of these areas. Plus, Chris is a genuinely nice guy.” – Donna Papacosta, Owner, Trafalgar Communications

“Chris was an energetic and engaging speaker at Podcamp Toronto. He shared a myriad of tips from his experience in podcasting and promoting his podcasts via social media sites and regular old email. I highly recommend his sessions for learning from a pro!” – June MacDonald, Direct Marketing Manager, Research in Motion

“Christopher’s presentations had absolutely no fat. They were rigorously prepared and filled with truly useful information. He shared his best tips freely and generously, replete with easy-to-follow descriptions, examples and instructions. It was clear he valued the attendees’ time and so did not waste a minute of it. Definitely worthwhile.” – Irene Duma, President, Strange Duck Media

“Christopher has been a visionary in New Media. Chris has an intuitive sense for how marketing and community outreach should be done, always while keeping the message genuine, honest and transparent. His work producing the Financial Aid Podcast shows his outstanding abilities to provide financial education along with a business mission, in a way that feels genuine and not at all like a pitch. He is an outstanding leader and mentor, as well as a genius when it comes to new media initiatives. His clear and concise presentations are something I strive to emulate in all my speaking engagements.” – Whitney Hoffman, Chief Content Officer, Hoffman Omnimedia

“I have nothing but great things to say about Christopher! His enthusiasm and energy around the development, promotion and management of Podcamp was nothing short of impressive. The sessions that Christopher conducted were inspiring. You can clearly see that he is passionate about his knowledge and understanding of technology and the medium of podcasting.” – Greg Cangialosi, President and CEO, Blue Sky Factory

Past Speaking Engagements

• Web 2.0 East/Web 2.open
• Inbound Marketing Summit 2009
• Bentley University CIS Presents Fall 2009
• PodCamp Philly 3
• PodCamp Boston 4
• MarketingProfs B2B Forum 2009
• Podcasters Across Borders 2009
• PRSA Digital Impact
• Bentley College CIS Presents Spring 2009
• Social Media Jungle
• Citigroup Citi Forward
• NewBCamp 2009
• SREB GoAlliance
• Massachusetts Department of Higher Education GEAR UP
• Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators 2008 Annual Conference
• MarketingProfs Digital Marketing Mixer
• New Marketing Summit
• Inbound Marketing Summit
• PodCamp Philadelphia 2
• PodCamp Boston 3
• MITX Forum
• National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators 2008 Annual Conference
• Department of Health and Human Services Interagency New Media Forum
• MarketingProfs B2B Forum 2008
• Eastern Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators 2008 Annual Conference
• PodCamp NYC 2.0
• PodCamp DC
• SREB GoAlliance Private Intensive
• Bentley College CIS Presents Spring 2008
• NewBCamp @ Johnson & Wales University
• Emerson College Graduate School of Integrated Marketing & Communications
• SREB GoAlliance Keynote
• Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators 2007 Annual Conference
• National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
• PodCamp Boston 2
• PodCamp Boston
• PodCamp Toronto
• PodCamp NYC
• PESC Technology and Standards Conference
• PodCamp Europe @ VON Europe
• Podcasters Across Borders with Mitch Joel
• PodCamp Philadelphia
• Emerson College Careers
• Bentley College CIS Presents Featured Speaker Fall 2007

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