How to Ask Your Boss for Budget to Attend SEO Week 2026 (With Email Templates You Can Use Right Now)
Francine Monahan
November 20, 2025
Your year-end budget isn’t going to roll over into 2026. You know this. Your finance team knows this. And yet here we are, watching that money gather dust while early-bird tickets to SEO Week 2026 are on sale right now at a reduced price.
The inaugural SEO Week saw some of the industry’s biggest and brightest minds sharing new insights, hot takes, and solid advice in all things SEO. We watched eye-catching presentations projected around the entire room, networked at fun events around NYC, and partied with Busta Rhymes.
We’re on track to make this year even better with a bigger venue, more speakers, and crazier evening activities. Attendees have said it’s the best SEO conference they’ve ever been to.
The FOMO is going to be nuts this year, so we’re leaving early bird pricing up until the end of the year. Ticket prices will jump once this window closes in January, meaning you’ll either pay more out of next year’s budget, or you’ll skip it entirely while your competitors are there learning about the latest shifts in search.
Here’s why signing up for SEO Week now makes sense and how you can convince your boss to let you join the experience.
JUMP TO THE TEMPLATES
Why Use Your Remaining 2025 Budget Now
Budget resets are coming. That training budget you’ve been sitting on? It’ll be gone January 1st. Those travel funds earmarked for professional development? They disappear if you don’t use them.
Here are some reasons why you should use up that budget now:
- Judging by the current economic environment, your budget next year will be tighter. Buying now means you’re using money that’s already allocated and approved. No need to fight for approval in Q1 when everyone else is competing for the same shrinking pot of funds.
- Rate jumps are guaranteed. The math is straightforward. Lock in the discount now or pay premium prices later for the exact same conference. That price difference could go towards your hotel or flights.
- SEO Week 2026 will bring together the people actually building strategies for this new reality. The industry is in the middle of the biggest transformation in years. AI is reshaping how search works. Query fan-out has made traditional rank tracking almost meaningless. Your team needs to learn from the people who understand these systems.
7 Reasons Why SEO Week Is the Smartest Use of Leftover Budget
Not all conferences are created equal, and not all of them deserve your December budget. SEO Week does. Here’s why:
- You’ll learn tactics you can use immediately. The sessions are built around practical applications you can implement the week you get back to the office. Think content chunking strategies, citation optimization techniques, and ways to measure relevance that will actually matter in 2026.
- The speakers are the ones shaping the industry. They’re the experts building the tools and frameworks, running the experiments, and publishing the research. If you’ve ever nodded along to a conference presentation thinking “finally, someone who actually knows what they’re talking about,” you know how rare that is.
- The presentations will span SEO, content, AI, and analytics. Search doesn’t exist in a vacuum and neither should your team’s knowledge. SEO Week covers the full range because that’s how modern marketing actually works.
- Last year’s attendees saw real impact. Here is what some of the guests had to say about the conference:
- “The energy and atmosphere has been incredible. We do a lot of events, and I’d say by far this has been the most enjoyable one we’ve been to.” – Ray Grieselhuber, CEO of DemandSphere
- “Great energy, speaker line up is just amazing, everyone is interested. People are engaged, it makes it a no-brainer to attend.” – Elias Dabbas, Creator of Advertools and speaker at SEO Week 2025
- “SEO Week is completely different than other industry events because – one, I think it’s the line up. To me, this is like the ‘92 Olympic team. You can’t get any stronger than the players that are here right now. I’ve been to all of them – this is the best one I’ve ever been to.” – Darren Champen, COE Generative AI & SEO Support For ClearChoice Dental Implant Centers
- “One thing that surprised me about SEO Week was how many industries are here. I thought it would be mainly SEOs, but I’ve met people in Law, people in Real Estate; just so many people who want to know more. It’s a wider breadth of experience, which is helpful.” – Claire Routh, SEO Strategist at Outerbox
- The networking is unmatched. You won’t just exchange business cards with someone who’s going to pitch you their link-building service. You’ll be connecting with practitioners wrestling with the same challenges you are, testing strategies in real environments, and willing to share what’s actually working.
- There’s vertical-specific value no matter your industry. Whether you’re in local SEO trying to show up in AI-generated location results, e-commerce fighting to maintain visibility in a shopping landscape dominated by Amazon, finance navigating YMYL content in an era of AI-generated answers, enterprise content dealing with massive site architectures and semantic chunking, or international SEO managing multilingual relevance across markets, there are sessions built specifically for your challenges.
- Your leftover budget is going to be spent on something. It might as well be the one conference that’s actually preparing your team for how search works now and years in the future.
How to Position the ROI to Your Boss
Your boss cares about results, so here’s how SEO Week translates into outcomes they’ll understand and actually approve:
- Improved search visibility across LLMs. Traffic is declining across the board because zero-click search is the new normal. SEO Week teaches you how to engineer content that shows up in AI-generated answers, not just traditional SERPs. That’s the difference between being cited and being invisible.
- Better cross-channel content strategy. Your team will learn how to create content that performs across search, social, email, and AI platforms simultaneously. One piece of content, multiple channels, compounding returns.
- Frameworks for AI-era reporting. Traditional rank tracking is nearly meaningless now. SEO Week provides the frameworks and tools your team needs to measure what actually matters in 2026: semantic relevance, citation rates, query fan-out coverage, and brand visibility in AI systems. You’ll finally have metrics that make sense to present in Q1 strategy meetings.
- Exposure to top SEOs. Your team gets direct access to the people making real change in the industry and releasing data and research to back it up. That head start is probably worth more than the ticket price alone.
- Risk reduction in an uncertain AI environment. Teams that don’t understand how AI retrieval works are flying blind. SEO Week reduces that risk by giving your team the knowledge to adapt as things change instead of scrambling.
- The ROI isn’t theoretical. It’s measurable, immediate, and directly tied to the biggest challenge your boss is facing right now: maintaining visibility in a search environment that’s fundamentally different than it was a year ago.
I’m sure you’re convinced, but now it’s time to convince your boss. We’ve created a bunch of email templates ready for you to copy and paste and send to your manager. Check them out and find the one that will work best for you, and we hope to see you there.
Email Templates You Can Copy and Paste
Template 1: Manager or Director Requesting Approval
Subject: Professional Development Request: SEO Week 2026 (Early-Bird Pricing Ends Soon)
Hi [Manager’s Name],
I’d like to request approval to attend SEO Week 2026, taking place April 27 – 30, 2026, in NYC. Early-bird tickets are currently available at a reduced rate, but pricing increases in January.
SEO Week is the only conference fully focused on AI search and SEO, which directly impacts our ability to maintain visibility as Google continues rolling out AI Overviews and AI Mode and users search more on ChatGPT and Gemini. Our current strategies were built for traditional search, and this conference will give me the frameworks and tactics needed to adapt our approach for 2026.
Here’s what I’ll bring back to the team:
- Practical strategies for improving visibility in AI-generated search results across Google, ChatGPT, and Gemini
- Updated measurement frameworks since traditional rank tracking no longer reflects actual performance
- Cross-channel content strategies that work across search, social, and AI platforms
- Direct insights from the practitioners shaping industry best practices
I’ll share a full debrief with the team when I return, including actionable recommendations we can implement immediately.
The investment is $1,199 for the entire week (but you can also buy tickets for individual days), plus [estimated travel costs if applicable]. Given that our professional development budget resets in January, this would come from our existing 2025 allocation.
Happy to discuss further if you have questions. Can I move forward with registration?
Thanks,
[Your Name]
Template 2: Senior Leadership to CFO/CEO
Subject: Q4 Investment Recommendation: SEO Week 2026 for Marketing Team
Hi [CFO/CEO Name],
I’m recommending we send [number] members of our marketing team to SEO Week 2026 in April 2026. Early-bird pricing is available now, with rates increasing significantly in January.
This isn’t a typical conference investment.
Here’s why it matters:
Our organic traffic has declined this year, largely due to AI Overviews and zero-click search results. Traditional SEO strategies aren’t working anymore because the fundamental mechanics of search have changed. Our team needs frameworks for this new environment.
Why SEO Week:
It’s the only conference focused exclusively on AI search and SEO. The speakers are the biggest names in SEO whose research and frameworks drive industry strategy. Our team will learn how to maintain visibility across Google AI Mode, ChatGPT, Gemini, and other AI systems that are replacing traditional search.
The ROI:
- Improved visibility in AI-generated search results
- Risk reduction as search continues evolving toward AI-first experiences
- Team-level readiness for 2026 algorithm changes and platform updates
- Updated measurement frameworks that actually reflect performance in AI search
The Investment:
The cost is currently $1,199 per person for the entire week, with single-day tickets available as well. This comes from our existing 2025 professional development budget, which doesn’t roll over. If we wait until January, we’ll pay premium pricing from our 2026 budget.
Our competitors are either already registered or scrambling to figure out why their traffic is declining. I’d rather we be ahead of this than reactive.
Let me know if you need additional details.
[Your Name]
Template 3A: Local SEO/Multi-Location Businesses
Subject: Training Request: SEO Week 2026 for Local Search Strategy
Hi [Manager’s Name],
I’m requesting approval to attend SEO Week 2026, which has a dedicated local SEO track addressing the challenges we’re facing.
Our Current Challenge:
Local search is changing rapidly. AI Overviews now appear in local queries, Google’s local pack is shrinking, and customers are using ChatGPT and Gemini to find service providers instead of traditional Google searches. Our current local strategy was built for the old environment, and we need updated tactics for 2026.
What SEO Week Solves:
- How to appear in AI-generated local recommendations across multiple platforms
- Strategies for multi-location businesses to maintain visibility when traditional map packs are losing clicks
- Content approaches that work for service-area businesses in an AI search environment
- Measurement frameworks that reflect actual local performance, not just rankings
Why This Matters:
We’ve invested heavily in our Google Business Profiles, local listings, and location pages, but if customers aren’t clicking through because AI is answering their questions directly, that investment isn’t delivering ROI. I need to understand how to adapt our strategy so we’re not just optimizing for a system that’s disappearing.
The early-bird rate is $1,199 for the full week (single-day tickets are available too) and expires in January. After that, pricing increases significantly. This would come from our existing Q4 training budget.
I’ll bring back a full strategy document with recommendations for all locations, plus insights I can share with the broader marketing team.
Can I move forward with registration?
Thanks,
[Your Name]
Template 3B: Ecommerce Version
Subject: Professional Development Request: SEO Week 2026 (Ecommerce Focus)
Hi [Manager’s Name],
I’d like to attend SEO Week 2026 in April, which includes dedicated sessions on ecommerce, product discovery, and AI-driven merchandising. Early-bird pricing ends January, after which rates increase.
Our Current Challenge:
Product discovery is shifting away from traditional search. Customers are using ChatGPT for product recommendations, Google’s AI Overviews are answering shopping queries without clicks, and our product feeds aren’t optimized for how AI systems retrieve information. We don’t want to see traffic or visibility problems because our strategy hasn’t adapted.
What SEO Week Addresses:
- How to optimize product feeds and structured data for AI-powered shopping experiences
- Strategies for appearing in AI-generated product recommendations across Google, ChatGPT, and other platforms
- Content approaches that drive visibility when traditional product pages aren’t getting clicked
- Measurement frameworks for tracking performance beyond traditional conversion funnels
Why This Investment Makes Sense:
We’re competing against retailers who dominate AI recommendations because they understand how these systems work. Amazon shows up in nearly every shopping-related AI Overview. We need strategies that help us compete for visibility.
The investment is $1,199 for the full week (single-day tickets are available as well) plus [estimated travel]. This comes from our existing 2025 professional development budget. If we wait until January, we’ll pay more from next year’s allocation.
I’ll return with actionable recommendations for our product catalog, content strategy, and feed optimization that we can implement in Q1.
Let me know if you have questions,
[Your Name]
Template 3C: International/Enterprise Version
Subject: Team Development Request: SEO Week 2026 for Enterprise Search Strategy
Hi [Manager’s Name],
I’m recommending that [number] members of our team attend SEO Week 2026. The conference has dedicated enterprise and international SEO tracks that address the complexity of our organization. Early-bird pricing is available through December.
Our Current Challenge:
Managing search visibility across markets, multiple brands, and a massive site architecture requires coordination across content, technical, and regional teams. AI search has added another layer of complexity. Our current frameworks don’t account for how AI systems retrieve and cite content from large, complex sites, or how they handle multilingual semantic search.
What SEO Week Solves:
- Semantic chunking and information architecture strategies for large-scale sites
- How to maintain visibility across markets when AI systems interpret intent differently by region
- Cross-functional frameworks for teams managing enterprise content operations
- Strategies for appearing in AI-generated results when you have thousands of pages competing for relevance
Why Multiple Attendees:
Our challenges span technical SEO, content strategy, international operations, and analytics. Sending [number] people means we return with comprehensive knowledge across all functions, not just one perspective. The cross-pollination of insights will be more valuable than any single attendee could deliver.
The Investment:
The cost is $1,199 per person for the entire week (single-day tickets are also available) plus [additional cost for travel]. This comes from our existing Q4 professional development budget. The alternative is paying premium pricing from our Q1 budget.
Each attendee will deliver a function-specific debrief with recommendations we can implement in early 2026. Can we move forward with registration this week to lock in early-bird pricing?
Thanks,
[Your Name]
Template 4: Leftover Budget/Urgent Timeline
Subject: Time-Sensitive: SEO Week 2026 Registration (Early-Bird Pricing Ends January)
Hi [Manager’s Name],
Quick question: Do we have remaining budget in professional development that needs to be allocated before year-end? If so, I’d like to secure early-bird tickets to SEO Week 2026 in April before pricing increases in January.
The Opportunity:
Early-bird tickets are $1,199 for the entire week, but they jump to $1,999 in the new year. If we register this week, we save $900 per ticket while using budget that won’t roll over into 2026 anyway.
Why SEO Week:
It’s the only conference focused on AI search and SEO, which directly addresses the traffic challenges we’ve been discussing. I’ll bring back practical strategies for improving visibility in AI Overviews, AI Mode, ChatGPT, and Gemini, plus updated measurement frameworks since rank tracking doesn’t reflect actual performance anymore.
What I Need:
Approval to register at the early-bird rate, plus approximately [amount] for travel. Total investment: [total amount] from our 2025 budget.
If we wait until January, we’ll pay more from next year’s budget for the same conference. I can lock this in today if you approve.
Let me know if you need any additional details.
Thanks,
[Your Name]
SECURE
YOUR PLACE
at SEO Week 2026
Tickets are limited. Prices increase as tiers sell out.
This is where real progress happens. The people building the next phase of AI Search will be in the room. Be one of them.
SECURE YOUR PLACE at SEO Week 2026
Tickets are limited. Prices increase as tiers sell out.
This is where real progress happens. The people building the next phase of AI Search will be in the room. Be one of them.