"[Publishers] know how to create a community and build loyalty," said Krystle Kopacz, CEO of Rev, during her stirring session, Moving from Publisher to Partner, yesterday at the SIPA Annual 2017 Conference in Washington, D.C.

"We believe in a purpose-led company," said Anne Holland, president, Anne Holland Ventures, describing her initial thought in a stirring, opening keynote address this morning at the 41st SIPA Annual 2017 Conference here in Washington, D.C. "We wanted to be in business to help people—kind of a cataclysm of the conscience. Companies that have a purpose also tend to be more profitable. People stick with them."

"When I get to lead off a conference, I always test with this: Listen carefully to everything these next couple days and when you get back to the day-to-day, really try to reimagine the future,” Jared Weiner, executive vice president and chief strategy officer for Future Hunters, told an SIIA audience in November.

Mo Willems, the award-winning children's book author—Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus—wrote and illustrated five books early in his career, none of which were published.

"Uncertainty is the theme that Martha Mathers, marketing practice leader at consulting firm CEB, said she sees most from her clients as she works with them to define their digital transformation efforts. 'Digital presents so much choice, so much opportunity and such a different way of working that it creates tremendous uncertainty. Most marketing leaders feel overwhelmed by technology ... and they're not sure where to begin.'"

Marijuana Business Daily, a division of Anne Holland Ventures Inc., debuted at #302 on Inc.'s fastest-growing private companies in America list last year. It also ranks #4 in the category of "Top Media Companies" on the list and #11 in "Top Colorado Companies." Founded in 2011, MBD has posted a 3-year growth of 1,288.2%—that's no mistake—reaching $7 million in revenue in 2015. Their fall and spring conferences appeared on Trade Show Executive's Fastest [Growing] 50 list in more than one category.

In a session titled Events and the Integrated Enterprise at BIMS last November, three industry experts recommended that publishers stay on the cutting edge for their events. This may not always be easy, but in discussions with publishers who have experienced drop-offs in attendance, it must be considered.

Lisa Harrington is the EVP & chief marketing officer of SIPA member International Risk Management Institute. At SIPA Annual 2017, June 5-7 in Washington, D.C., she will share stories about how to inspire trust in your staff and build a workplace based on this elusive trait.

Nikesh Desai is co-founder and CEO of InvestingChannel, an innovative and scalable financial marketing platform reaching more than 25 million readers each month. They are an exclusive publisher group utilizing data, technology, creative and content to connect brands and the right people in the financial ecosystem: investors, traders and financial professionals.

I just took a peek at the schedule so far for SIPA 2017, the 41 st Annual SIPA Conference: Growth Now, June 5-7, here in Washington, D.C., and I see more than one session focused on strong content. "Attracting and Incentivizing Content Creators," "Copywriting Secrets of the Pros," "Practical Tools for Writing SEO-Friendly Web Copy," Monetizing Archived Content."