MarketBeat hosts financial media industry event in Sioux Falls

July 22, 2025

This piece is sponsored by MarketBeat.

Markets move fast and so does the world of financial publishing. For MarketBeat, serving more than 5 million email subscribers means constantly staying ahead of new trends, technologies and marketing tactics.

That drive to lead in a rapidly changing industry is what brought the company to host a two-day event in Sioux Falls, gathering some of the top professionals in financial publishing to discuss what’s working, what’s not and what’s next.

The event was part of FMS Pro, a private mastermind group created by John Newtson, founder of the Financial Marketing Summit — the premier conference for the financial publishing and trader education industries.

While FMS Pro members stay connected throughout the year via Discord and monthly Zoom calls, in-person gatherings like this one offer a deeper level of collaboration. About 30 professionals, from affiliate managers to executives and business owners, gathered for the invite-only event hosted by MarketBeat at its headquarters in The Bancorp Building at Cherapa Place.

“This event is a place where people can share solutions to the problems we’re all facing,” said Will Bushee, MarketBeat vice president of operations, who helped lead the event’s planning and content development. “Everyone’s looking for the edge — the channels, offers and messages that still perform.”

Over the course of two days, conversations ranged from regulatory changes and email deliverability to audience segmentation, performance-driven offer structures and more.

“The best ideas in this space don’t happen in silos,” said Matt Paulson, MarketBeat founder and CEO. “They happen when people who are building, testing and scaling get in a room and speak candidly. That’s what made this event so valuable.”

MarketBeat’s team also shared insights from its own internal playbook.

The editorial team presented how artificial intelligence is being used to streamline content creation and improve efficiency.

A slide from the editorial team’s presentation

The YouTube team shared lessons learned from expanding the company’s video presence, which is now a central channel for audience engagement and brand growth.

The MarketBeat YouTube channel

Guest sessions brought in additional expertise. Chris Rowe of True Market Insiders shared strategies for crafting offers that connect with financial audiences, while REACH Literacy executive director Molly O’Connor offered a compelling session on making digital content more accessible — a growing priority for every marketer in the room.

Molly O’Connor presents on how to make content more accessible.

For many attendees, it was their first visit to Sioux Falls, and the city made a strong impression. Between sessions, participants explored local restaurants, caught a Thursday night Levitt concert and even checked out the Lallycooler Music Festival.

“It was a great success,” Paulson said. “Everyone had a good experience in Sioux Falls. Several people told me how impressed they were with the city, both with how vibrant downtown felt and how welcoming the whole experience was.”

With overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees, the company already is looking ahead to future opportunities to bring the industry together in Sioux Falls again.