Initial speakers announced! Early-Bird discount ends Nov. 30

We're excited to announce over 25 speakers, advanced sessions and a variety of breakout lengths in the initial lineup for the 2024 Government Social Media Conference!

GSMCON2024 is the premier, and largest, social media conference for government agencies happening April 16-18, 2024 in Palm Springs, California. Early-Bird registration ends after 11:59pm PT on Thursday, November 30, 2023.

Below you’ll find the initial speaker and session lineup, featuring industry leaders and professionals from a wide-variety of backgrounds and jurisdictions, representing the growing community of government social media. Our speakers are committed to sharing in-depth advice and top-tier strategies with the sole aim to offer the finest training for government professionals to achieve mastery in social media.

What’s different this year? Besides different session topics and speakers, we’re introducing labeling for session levels (Advanced, Intermediate, Beginner) to ensure there’s something for everyone at the event, especially focusing on introducing more Advanced-level sessions for our veteran socialgovs. We’re adding an entire extra track (now 4) so we can offer attendees even more options, and can delve into more niche topics. We’ll be labeling tracks (including a Public Safety, Crisis & Trust specific track) - more details will be announced on tracks soon!

More speakers, sessions, special activities and keynotes will be announced as we continue to develop our GSMCON2024 program happening in Palm Springs, California in person and online, April 16-18, 2024. Stay in-the-know by subscribing to our newsletter.

General Sessions

General sessions are keynote-level conversations and panels that all participants will attend at the same time. Exciting General Session updates will be announced next week!

Extended Breakout Sessions (1-hour)

This year, up to four concurrent breakout sessions will happen simultaneously, and we’re offering two different lengths for breakout sessions. In these Extended Breakout Sessions, attendees can expect extra time for a deeper dive into topics and ample time for live Q&A. All attendees receive available recordings to watch on-demand for 3 months after the event.

AI: Your Ultimate Productivity Partner (Advanced)
Zack Seipert, Central Utah Water Conservancy District

Balance & Wellness Strategies for Busy Communication Professionals (Beginner)
April Leonard, Kansas City Missouri Health Department
Andrea Watts, City of Kansas City, Missouri

Bringing the Pop into Government Culture (Intermediate)
Meredith Haynes, City of McKinney
Abby Aldrich, City of Bedford

Framework for Building a Strong & Consistent Brand Policy (Intermediate)
Ashtyn Reaugh, City of Tulsa
Michelle Brooks, City of Tulsa

How to Best Handle a Visit by a ‘First Amendment Auditor’ (Intermediate)
Dylan Luciano, Concord Police Department

Include Your Whole Audience: Inclusive and Accessible Communications (Beginner)
Jeff Selby, City of Portland Office of Equity

Reel Success: Instagram’s Creative Magic for Public Agency Outreach (Intermediate)
Wendy Aguilar, Sacramento Fire Department

Set up a DEI Framework that Prioritizes Accessibility & Inclusive Content (Intermediate)
Kaitlin Keeler, Oakland County
Harry Weaver III, Oakland County

Social Science Meets Social Media — Get the Most Out of Your Analytics (Advanced)
Bronlea Mishler, Bronlea M Consulting, LLC
Kristin Williams, NineteenEleven Consulting

Supreme Court Weighs In on How the First Amendment Governs Social Media Comments (Advanced)
Mark Weaver, Communications Counsel, Inc.

The Governor Killed My TikTok: Pivoting Social Media Amid Adversity (Intermediate)
Leigh Gibson, Intrepid
Aimee Colton, Utah Department of Transportation

Breakout Sessions (45-minute)

These 45-minute Breakout Sessions (our regular session length since post-pandemic) will also feature up to four concurrent breakout sessions simultaneously. Speakers will present their content and leave time for live Q&A at the end of their session!

Empowering Leadership & Colleagues to Shape Policy Using Social Feedback (Advanced)
Warren Kagarise, King County, WA

How to Be Everywhere at Once: Empowering Your Peers to Create Content (Intermediate)
Matt Wettengel, South Suburban Parks and Recreation

How to Shake Things Up When You’ve Done This Awhile (Advanced)
Jessie Brown, Iowa Department of Natural Resources

OnlyFans for #SocialGov (And the Science of Capturing Audience Attention) (Intermediate)
Richard Yeakley, City of Longview

Telling Your Story to Amplify the Good (Beginner)
Roshanda Pratt, For Goodness Sakes

Utilizing Inclusive Social Media Strategies to Build Civic Trust (Intermediate)
Stathi Patseas, NYC Civic Engagement Commission

Speed Sessions

Back by popular demand, we're thrilled to reintroduce Speed Sessions for GSMCON2024, extended now to 15-minutes for each talk! Get ready for fast-paced presentations where you'll walk away with high-impact, actionable advice from two speakers in each session block.

Building a Successful Social Media Content Calendar (Beginner)
Steven Shortt, Tacoma Public Utilities

Dare to Spice Up Government Content (Intermediate)
Nikki Bowers, City of Las Vegas

Drones in Social Media (Beginner)
Josh Leith, Newport Beach Fire Department

Harnessing Staff Power on Social Media (Beginner)
Charles Newman, City of Columbus – Department of Public Service

Teaching Field Staff How to Take Exceptional iPhone Photos (Beginner)
Heidi Yocum, City of Berkeley

Using Canva’s Built-In AI Tools (Advanced)
Anndrea Harris, Whooann Creative Studio / City of Wichita Falls

Zero-Budget Strategies for Leveraging Influencers (Intermediate)
Timothy Akimoff, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Add-on, pre-conference Workshops

Workshops are 2-hour sessions that happen on Monday, April 15, the day before the conference officially begins! These are deep dives into some of socialgov’s most requested topics. More details on add-on, pre-conference Workshops.

Mastering Instagram Reels for Government Agencies
Angela Ramirez, City of Lakewood, Colorado

Government Social Media 101
Speakers will be announced soon

Legal 301: Advanced Issues on Copyright, Fair Use & AI on Social Media
Julie Tappendorf, Ancel Glink, PC

Early-Bird Registration ends Nov. 30

Early-Bird discount ends Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023! In-person tickets for the 2024 Government Social Media Conference are expected to sell out, so if you’re planning to join hundreds of other government professionals for the spectacular in-person event in Palm Springs, California, we encourage you to register to reserve your spot sooner rather than later.

We can’t wait to meet with government social media professionals at the premier social media conference for government agencies – we’ll see you in Palm Springs, CA for GSMCON2024!

Best communicate with the public you serve and get connected with fellow socialgovs by registering for the 2024 Government Social Media Conference happening in Palm Springs, California or virtually from wherever you are! Join our free network for bi-weekly Government Social Media Chats or professional association for member-only webinars. Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest updates on training, events and more.

We support the largest network of government social media professionals by guiding government agencies through complex social media issues. Government Social Media helps you successfully communicate with the public you serve, protect your agency and keep public trust while finding your support community.