One of the greatest things about Hero Conf is the opportunity to spend three days with colleagues and peers discovering what’s new and forthcoming in the world of PPC. Those peers work across industries and include men and women from agency and in-house brands alike. They are dynamic digital advertising experts with varied backgrounds and exciting stories.

Unfortunately, when it comes time to select speakers each year, we find that some very specific segments of that attendance are underrepresented. We know that there are countless knowledgeable women and in-house managers working in PPC. We’ve written previously about this underrepresentation in our PPC and CRO expert lists. And, in the same way we made a point to recognize the deserving and influential women of CRO, we’d like to create a speaking slate that more accurately represents our attendees.

So what better way to make sure each and every Hero Conf attendee walks away with tools and insights that are most useful to their precise role and industry than ask specifically for the speaking pitches we need to round out our line-up. So here’s what we’re asking: if you are a female PPC expert OR you work on an in-house PPC team or non-agency brand, we want your pitch.

(As an aside, we love first-time speakers and the opportunity to provide a stage for new voices. Moreover, we’re happy to provide a helping hand in convincing leadership that speaking at an event like Hero Conf is a worthwhile endeavor for your personal and professional brand.)

Of course, speaker selection will still be free of identifying information, with a focus on creativity and quality content. This call isn’t meant as a slight to the hundreds of excellent speaking pitches we’ve received so far. It’s simply an attempt to proactively alter an inequality that has plagued the conference industry for far too long.

So pitch away! We’ve extended the pitch deadline for another week and are excited to see the quality pitches we know will come rolling in.