Schedule

• Day 1
• Day 2
• October 11, 2023
• 1:30P REGISTRATION1:30P- 2:30P

  Registration:

  The Country Music Hall of Fame 

  BMI Hall- 4th Floor 

  222 Rep. John Lewis Way

  Downtown Nashville

• 2:30P The B2SMBI Partnerships Circle: PARTNERSHIP ACTIVATION WORKSHOP TRACKS - 3 Full Hours Focused on B2SMB Partnership Success2:30P- 5:30P

  NETWORKING WORKSHOPS:
  Kelly Benish (Uberall) and Kate Daniels (Netsuite) with Members of the B2SMBI Partnerships Circle Board direct 3 different tracks focused on 3 differing forms of Partnerships, all with a single purpose: to sell more to more Small Business. Partnership Circle Member attendees will use a "SMART" goals framework to brainstorm co-development, co-marketing and co-delivery Playbooks for 2024.  
  
  SIGN-UP IN OUR FREE B2SMBI PARTNERSHIPS CIRCLE IS REQUIRED TO ATTEND!
  

  
  Partnership Leaders from...
  

  B2SMBI MEMBERS: Verizon Business, Wells Fargo, Alignable, Netsuite, Honeybook, Ruby, Wave 

   SPECIAL GUESTS: Salesforce, Visa, Wix, Ruby
  

• 2:30P INTRO: Partnerships in 12 Forms - A Primer: Kelly Benish, Uberall2:30P- 2:45P

  Partnerships in 12 Forms - A Primer
  As a kickoff to our afternoon focused on collaboration between our B2SMB enterprises, we'll define and describe 12 different forms that partnerships can take. Using illustrations and demonstrations, we'll talk form, function and features for each as we elevate our collective knowledge of the possible and proven.

  Kelly Benish, VP Strategic Partnerships, Uberall
  

• 2:45P Partner Playbook #1: Chris Shank & David Brozo, Verizon Business2:45P- 3:00P

  Partner Playbook #1

  Chris Shank, Verizon Business

  David Brozo, Verizon Business

• 3:00P Partner Playbook #2: Ryan Nunez & Tarang Luthra, Salesforce3:00P- 3:15P

  Partner Playbook #2: 

  Ryan Nunez, Salesforce

  Tarang Luthra, Salesforce
  

• 3:15P Partner Playbook #3: Jovanna Riddle, Visa3:15P- 3:30P

  Partner Playbook #3

  Jovanna Riddle, Visa

• 3:30P Break3:30P- 3:50P

  Break
• 3:50P PARTNERSHIP BREAKOUT PODS INTRODUCTION3:50P- 4:00P

  Introduction:
  Past attendees agree: very small groups afford the best chance to network, to collaborate, and to maximize partnership opportunities. So we'll divide into 12-15 small groups, or "pods," of 6-8 attendees each as we rotate three different 20-minute workshops. Our objective is to give every attendee the chance to explore different forms of partnership and how we might apply them to our own enterprise objectives. Each small group will be facilitiated by a Member of the Partnerships Circle Advisory Board.

  
  

  Kate Daniels, Partnerships Lead, Netsuite
  

• 4:00P Partnership Breakout Pod #1: Marketing Partnerships4:00P- 5:00P

  Marketing Partnerships:
  We'll get into to how partnerships can deliver greater reach and engagement with SMB customers and prospects. We'll include different forms of marketing partnership, from direct lead referrals, to joint content creation and delivery, to collaborative events.

• 4:00P Partnership Breakout Pod #2: Selling Partnerships4:00P- 5:00P

  Selling Partnerships:
  There's nothing easy about qualifying and closing an SMB customer, so we'll examine how partnerships can "open the door," fast-track trust, and multiply the value proposition. We'll include different forms of cooperative selling, from affiliate or agent to bundling or straight referral.

• 4:00P Partnership Breakout Pod #3: Distribution Partnerships4:00P- 5:00P

  Distribution Partnerships:
  Our Members are selling at scale to thousands of SMBs every day, but how do we develop coverage across the millions of potential SMB customers out there? The answer might lie within the distribution footprint of a partner, and that's what we'll explore. We'll exchange what's possible in leveraging each other's distribution networks, channels, or retail outlets.
  

• 5:00P RECAP OF PARTNERSHIPS CIRCLE MEET-UP5:00P- 5:15P

  We'll end Day 1 with summary take-aways and a commitment to meet within 14-days with prospective partners we've identified during the time together.

  Kelly Benish, VP Strategic Partnerships, Uberall
  

• 5:15P RECEPTION5:15P- 7:00P

  Day 1 ends with Tastes of Tennessee. Yet one more chance to meet and mingle, we'll enjoy a beautiful Nashville evening as the sun sets on a highly productive first day.

• 7:00P 'MEET & GREET' NETWORKING DINNERS7:00P- 9:00P

  One of our most popular event activities! Meet fellow B2SMB Partnership leaders while dining at some of Nashville’s top-rated restaurants. We’ve already made reservations for groups of 6-8, and will have a signup-sheets at registration, so bon appetit!

• October 12, 2023
• 8:00A REGISTRATION8:00A- 8:45A

  Ole Red
  The Hall & The Lookout Rooftop
  300 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37201

• 8:45A The B2SMBI Advocacy Council: PARTNERSHIP ACTIVATION KEYNOTES & BREAKOUTS - 3 Full Hours Focused on Serving Today's Small Business Interests8:45A- 11:45A

  The evolution of the B2SMB Institute's partnership with key Small Business Advocacy Organizations continues to grow, and we're taking a next critical step: ACTIVATION. Led by Members of our Small Business Advocacy Council, our meeting segment is built on the simple keynote/breakout/report-out format of our Napa Leaders' Forum, as we hear from key leaders impacting SMB policies and initiatives across the country and down Main street. Attendees will use a "SMART" goals framework to brainstorm cooperative SMB Advocacy Playbooks for 2024.

  Advocacy Leaders from...

  B2SMB ENTERPRISES: Silver Lining, Wells Fargo, Wave, Meta, Bluebird Benefits  

  SMB ADVOCATES: US Chamber of Commerce, ASBN 

• 8:45A INTRO OF B2SMBI ADVOCACY COUNCIL MEET-UP8:45A- 9:05A

  The Opportunity of Advocacy
  It was a story frequently shared in early 2019: faced with the crisis of Covid, the world of B2SMB enterprise Leadership was shocked to learn how little they knew of the organizations and mechanisms of aiding their Small Business customers. Decades of big checks from big business to worthy causes did not create strategic relationships between those who sell and those who serve SMBs, and that gap needed to be filled. Delivering part-history lesson, part ecosystem diagram and part strategic manifesto, SMB-Advocacy icon Connie Evans sets our stage.

  Connie Evans, Co-Chair, B2SMBI Advocacy Council

• 9:05A Best2SMB Advocacy Playbook #19:05A- 9:25A
• 9:25A Best2SMB Advocacy Playbook #29:25A- 9:45A
• 9:45A Best2SMB Advocacy Playbook #39:45A- 10:05A
• 10:05A Break10:05A- 10:20A

  Break
• 10:20A 2023 Best2SMB Small Business Advocacy Award Finalists & Winner Announced10:20A- 10:25A

  The Leaders' League of the B2SMB Institute announces the 3 finalists and winner of the 2023 Best2SMB Small Business Adocacy Award, citing "the B2SMB brand recognized for providing the most impactful SMB assistance program to support widespread SMB recovery."

• 10:25A ADVOCACY BREAKOUT PODS10:25A- 10:35A

  Introduction:
  Past attendees agree: very small groups afford the best chance to network, to collaborate, and to maximize partnership opportunities. So we'll divide into 12-15 small groups, or "pods," of 6-8 attendees each as we rotate three different 20-minute workshops. Our objective is to give every attendee the chance to explore different forms of SMB Advocacy partnerhips and how we might apply them to our own enterprise objectives. Each small group will be facilitated by a Member of the SMB Advocacy Advisory Board.

  Carissa Reiniger, Co-Chair, B2SMBI Advocacy Council
  

• 10:35A Advocacy Breakout Pod #110:35A- 11:35A

  Advocating Financial Health:
  We'll get into to how partnerships can deliver greater reach and engagement with SMB customers and prospects. We'll include different forms of marketing partnership, from direct lead referrals, to joint content creation and delivery, to collaborative events.

• 10:35A Advocacy Breakout Pod #210:35A- 11:35A

  Selling Partnerships:
  There's nothing easy about qualifying and closing an SMB customer, so we'll examine how partnerships can "open the door," fast-track trust, and multiply the value proposition. We'll include different forms of cooperative selling, from affiliate or agent to bundling or straight referral.

• 10:35A Advocacy Breakout Pod #310:35A- 11:35A

  Distribution Partnerships:
  Our Members are selling at scale to thousands of SMBs every day, but how do we develop coverage across the millions of potential SMB customers out there? The answer might lie within the distribution footprint of a partner, and that's what we'll explore. We'll exchange what's possible in leveraging each other's distribution networks, channels, or retail outlets.
  

• 11:35A RECAP OF B2SMBI ADVOCACY COUNCIL MEET-UP11:35A- 11:45P

  We'll end our morning with summary take-aways and a commitment to meet within 14-days with prospective partners we've identified during the time together.

  Connie Evans, Co-Chair, B2SMBI Advocacy Council

• 11:45A 2023 Best2SMB Innovation of the Year Award Finalists & Winner Announced11:45A- 12:00P

  The Leaders' League of the B2SMB Institute announces the 3 finalists and winner of the 2023 Best2SMB Innovation Award, citing "the B2SMB brand recognized for the most innovative new product or service to SMBs."

• 12:00P Verizon Business and The B2SMBI Leaders' League Present 2023 BEST2SMB AWARDS & HALL OF FAME LUNCHEON12:00P- 1:00P

  We'll celebrate of the very best in Business-to-Small-Business for 2023 in each of our four categories: 2023 Brand of the Year, 2023 Offering of the Year, 2023 Innovation of the Year, and 2023 SMB Advocacy of the Year, as well as our 3 new Member-Inductees to the Best2SMB Hall of Fame.
  

  Mark Tina, VP Sales Operations, Verizon Business

  Dave Walker, CEO/Co-Founder, B2SMB Institute

• 1:00P 2023 Best2SMB Offering of the Year Award Finalists & Winner Announced1:00P- 1:05P

  The Leaders' League of the B2SMB Institute announces the 3 finalists and winner of the 2023 Best2SMB Offering Award, citing "the B2SMB brand recognized for the most valuable & well-regarded product or service to SMBs."

• 1:05P ACTIVATION PLAYBOOK #1: Reach -- Eric Groves, Co-Founder, Alignable1:05P- 1:25P

  KEYNOTE: Where Oh Where Do Those Small Business Go? 

  It used to be we could at least count on an SMB ensconced in their place of business for a window of time during their workday. Not anymore. Reaching millions of Small Business to fill the top-of-funnel grows more inefficient and ineffective every day. How do we make reach work again? Our keynote, Eric Groves, has thoughts. As the co-Founder of Alignable, one of the largest networks of SMBs, Eric's team has built a highly engaged, inter-connected community of 8Mil+ Small Businesses. He describes what they've learned on the road to build a Best2SMB Hall of Fame nominee.

• 1:25P ACTIVATION #1 : BREAKOUTS1:25P- 1:45P

  WORKSHOP:
  Objective: to collaboratively build a Playbook on successfully reaching SMB customers at scale

  FACILITATED BY LEADERS' LEAGUE MEMBERS
  

• 1:45P ACTIVATION #1 REPORT OUTS1:45P- 1:55P

  We'll ask each breakout group to highlight features of their collaborative Playbook on reaching SMBs

• 1:55P 2023 Best2SMB Brand of the Year Award Finalists & Winner Announced1:55P- 2:00P

  The Leaders' League of the B2SMB Institute announces the 3 finalists and winner of the 2023 Best2SMB Brand Award, citing "the B2SMB brand recognized as a champion in our industry based on current year market standing, overall leadership and Small Business Buyer preference.

• 2:00P ACTIVATION PLAYBOOK #2 : Zahir Khoja, CEO & Kerry Reynolds, VP Marketing, Wave2:00P- 2:20P

  KEYNOTE: Nominated for a 2023 Best2SMB Award, Wave has risen dramatically in the SMB Fintech space, driven to "create a future where current and aspiring small business owners feel empowered to manage their finances fearlessly, so more of them can start, survive, and thrive as self-employed pros." Their mission has naturally focused them on VSBs, start-ups, and lately, under-served Entrepreneurs. Recently-appointed CEO Zahir Khoja is especially passionate about the latter. The sum of "underserved" SMBs, he believes, represent a far bigger opportunity than most realize. Joined on stage by his CMO, Kerry Reynolds, we'll hear about the strategic and tactical approach of free entry-level product, of targeting the untargeted, and of winning on what's right.

  
  Zahir Khoja, CEO, Wave

  Kerry Reynolds, VP Marketing, Wave
• 2:20P ACTIVATION #2 : BREAKOUTS2:20P- 2:40P

  WORKSHOP:
  Objective: to collaboratively build a Playbook on successfully engaging SMB customers at scale

• 2:40P ACTIVATION #2 : REPORT OUTS2:40P- 2:50P

  We'll ask each breakout group to highlight features of their collaborative Playbook on engaging SMBs

• 2:50P BREAK2:50P- 3:10P

  Here's your chance to meet and mingle with even more Best2SMB event attendees.

• 3:10P 2023 Best2SMB Hall of Fame Inductions Winners Announced3:10P- 3:20P

  The Leaders' League of the B2SMB Institute announces the 3 Member-Inductees to the 2023 Best2SMB Hall of Fame, citing "the B2SMB brand(s) recognized as a distinguished, highly-valued and long-term champion in our industry."

• 3:20P ACTIVATION PLAYBOOK#3: Keynote TBA3:20P- 3:40P
• 3:40P ACTIVATION #3 BREAKOUTS3:40P- 4:00P

  WORKSHOP:
  
  Objective: to collaboratively build a Playbook on successfully closing SMB customers at scale.

• 4:00P FIX IT #3 REPORT OUTS4:00P- 4:10P

  We'll ask each breakout group to highlight a single participant's action plan to improve closing an SMB sale - the group's "Most Likely to Succeed."

• 4:10P 2023 BEST2SMB LEADERS SUPERJAM4:10P- 5:00P

  PANEL:
  We'll invite our Best2SMB Winners, Keynotes and more to the stage as we conduct a "Super Jam" panel on what could, should and will be done to grow Small Business success in 2024 and beyond. Equal parts insights, instruction and illumination, we'll end our day with something that easily fits in your take-home bag: inspiration! 
  

• 5:00P RECEPTION5:00P- 7:00P

  Our Event ends with the Best of Nashville - from Barbecue to Bourbon, from Honky Tonk to Boot Scootin' Boogie, here's yet one more chance to meet and mingle.