2024 YMCA CMO Marketing Leaders Conference - Reflections and More

Last month, Five Jars was proud to continue our sponsorship of the YMCA CMO Marketing Leaders Conference event. Our relationship with YMCAs across the country is one of our longest-running partnerships, and we’re excited to be supporting our vibrant community once again. This year’s event in the beautiful San Diego, CA, provided robust conversations and enlightening sessions, only helping to reinforce our commitment to the digital needs of YMCAs. We were delighted to sponsor not only the event itself but also the snack break - because, let’s face it, nothing fosters great conversations like good snacks!

This year’s event highlighted some of the key challenges we anticipated that YMCAs face today, whether it’s smaller branches in need of turnkey digital solutions or larger ones looking for customized support. Through our attendance at the sessions and our more personal interactions at our booth, discussions around AI and audience engagement stood out. Certainly, AI holds a throne in the minds of many industries, and thinking of the pros and cons of adopting AI-driven strategies toward shaping future member experiences, the Y is no exception.

Booth Discussion Highlight: ScreenPulse

From Pickleball popularity to custom web apps, we engaged in some fantastic discourse around the new trends and challenges of YMCAs across the country. A highlight of the event for us was introducing ScreenPulse, our newly launched digital signage solution designed specifically for YMCAs. There is a library of ready-made templates with granular access management, so ScreenPulse makes it easy for YMCAs to transition from physical flyers and banners to digital screens. We were thrilled by the enthusiastic response, especially learning how this tool can help streamline communication across Y branches.

To use it, just create a signage with the templates, pair your device using a Google Chromecast, assign displays to playlists, and manage everything from there. As we iterated this at our booth, it was rewarding to hear that this tool resonated with so many as a turnkey solution.

Summary

We’re proud to be sponsoring this event again, having partnered with YMCAs across the country for more than eight years. Each time we participate, we gain valuable insights into the challenges and trends affecting the community, which helps us better serve our partners. As a long-standing collaborator and founding development partner of the Open Y platform, we’ve contributed to key features like Schedules, Activity Finder, and Virtual YMCA. It’s rewarding to know that our work supports organizations focused on building stronger communities. 

We share the passion around our client’s missions, knowing that our support uplifts community-building organizations. And, we look forward to next year’s event to continue our deeply embedded relationship with the Y.