Matt Turner, Social Media Specialist at the National Park Service, will be the morning keynote speaker of the Mid-Atlantic MarCom Summit on October 30 in Arlington, VA.

Through viral memes, tweets, and trendy pop-culture references, the National Park Service’s social media strategy has garnered much attention as it aims to connect its online audience with important messages such as trip planning, visitor safety, and that lava is, indeed, really hot.

His remarks will focus on engaging with Park Service guests at-large through a new lens using both visual and video communications to conveying important public messages.

Matt has become a social media sensation for his often hilarious, comical posts on behalf of the Park Service. His tongue-in-cheek commentaries and responses to the public are also attributable to the more than six million followers now following the NPS across Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter, and YouTube.

“I remind people not to pet wild animals,” is Matt’s line on his LinkedIn profile. He also describes himself as skilled in photography, graphic design, web content writing, information graphics, and social media.

Matt’s experience creating and managing digital content spans over a decade and includes additional work as a front-line interpretive ranger working at a variety of national park sites.

The Mid-Atlantic MarCom Summit is the region’s largest annual gathering of marketing, advertising, PR, communications, and media professionals. It brings together 500+ professionals from brands, associations, professional services firms, government, tech companies, and more to discuss industry trends, best practices, and challenges.

The program will feature panels, keynotes, and presentations — plus incredible networking. In addition, the event hosts the American Advertising Federation DC Chapter’s ADWKDC, which will feature a track of sessions for the advertising community.

The summit is co-produced by two of the most respected news organizations in the region: Potomac Tech Wire, the region’s source for technology news, and Capitol Communicator, the region’s source for marketing and communications news.

Tickets for the Summit are currently at its super early bird rate – https://marcomsummit.co/tickets/