I Spent a Week Learning New AI and Marketing Strategies. Here's What Stuck with Me.
From new AI opportunities to unexpected conversations, here are my biggest takeaways from LevelUp 2026.
By Erica Bollinger, founder of The Mustard Seed Agency9 min read
From new AI opportunities to unexpected conversations, here are my biggest takeaways from LevelUp 2026.
I recently spent a week in Dallas at LevelUp 2026, the annual conference for HighLevel, the software platform we use to create marketing and automation systems for our clients at The Mustard Seed Agency.
There aren't many events I consider worthy of spending seven days away from my family, but this is one of them.
It's a week packed with learning from some of the biggest names in marketing and business, connecting with other agency owners, and exploring technology that's changing how small businesses operate.
And while we all missed each other, absence really does make the heart grow fonder! I came home with a notebook full of ideas and some new AI and coding skills I'm especially excited to teach my teenager.
But some of my favorite takeaways from the week had surprisingly little to do with technology.
Going Into a Conference With a Plan
Over the years, I've learned that I get much more out of a conference when I go in with some specific goals.
What do I want to learn? Who do I want to meet? What problems am I hoping to solve?
This year, my biggest goal was to come home with a clearer path for expanding the AI solutions we offer at Mustard Seed.
For several months, we've been running our own AI agents to handle various tasks within our business. I wanted to use them ourselves, learn what worked, and understand the limitations before recommending similar solutions to clients.
I also had some specific questions about implementation, pricing, and how we could make these tools practical for the businesses we serve.
I'm happy to say that many of those questions were answered!
I'm especially excited about expanding our offerings around managed AI agents, conversational AI, voice AI, website chatbots, and other automations that can help small businesses respond to customers, capture opportunities, and reduce repetitive work.
HighLevel announced more than 300 features and enhancements during the conference. We certainly won't be turning all of them on at once, but we're already evaluating which will be most valuable for our existing clients and which create opportunities to do even more.
Sometimes You Need to Level Down Before You Level Up
This might be one of my favorite discoveries of the entire week!
The day before the conference, I met up with some friends at WorldSprings, a mineral springs and wellness destination in the Dallas area.
We decided to call our little preconference outing "Level Down."
Instead of jumping straight into a packed schedule, we spent the day soaking in mineral pools, trying the cold plunge, and enjoying an Aufguss sauna experience.
One of my favorite parts was soaking in the Dead Sea-inspired mineral pool while talking about which sessions we wanted to attend, people we hoped to meet, and what we wanted to get out of the week.
It was such a fun way to connect, compare plans, and mentally prepare for everything ahead.
I don't always do a great job of slowing down, especially when I'm excited about something. But taking that time to relax and fill my cup before a busy week made such a difference.
Don't Skip the Opportunities to Connect
I'm naturally pretty social, but even I reached a point during the conference when my brain felt completely full.
After spending the day learning about new tools, marketing strategies, and business ideas, there were a couple of evenings when all I wanted to do was head back to my hotel room, stare into space, or start experimenting with everything I'd just learned.
But I made myself go to the evening events anyway.
(Okay, except for one night when I skipped the party to hang out with friends, do face masks, and talk shop. Honestly, that turned out to be time well spent, too!)
And I'm so glad I did.
At one of the affiliate parties, I noticed Neil Patel standing in the middle of the crowd, chatting with attendees and taking photos.
I've followed Neil for more than 15 years, so I decided to take advantage of the moment and introduce myself.
He took the time to ask about my business, and when I shared the direction we're taking The Mustard Seed Agency to help small businesses adapt and grow, he was genuinely encouraging.
It was one of those moments in my career I'll always remember.
There's that saying that people may forget what you say or do, but they'll never forget how you made them feel. His kindness and encouragement reminded me just how true that is.
Another evening event felt like something straight out of a movie. There was so much to see and experience, including an oxygen bar! I had a wonderful time with friends and colleagues and would have missed all of it if I'd decided to stay in my room.
The Best Learning Doesn't Always Happen on Stage
One of the most valuable parts of attending LevelUp is getting to spend time with other agency owners.
We may operate in different markets and serve different types of businesses, but many of us are working through similar challenges.
How are you onboarding new clients? What processes have you automated? How are you managing projects? What's working well, and what would you do differently?
Those conversations gave me so many ideas for improving efficiencies at Mustard Seed.
I came home thinking about ways we can streamline everything from discovery calls and proposals to client onboarding, reporting, and ongoing communication.
There's something incredibly valuable about learning from people who are actually doing the work, not just talking about it.
Neil Patel Confirmed Something We've Been Telling Our Clients
The day after I met Neil at the party, he took the main stage, and once again, it was incredibly validating to hear him teaching many of the same principles we've been sharing with our small-business clients.
With so much talk about AI changing how people find businesses, it's easy to think everything we've learned about SEO is suddenly outdated.
But many of the tried-and-true SEO fundamentals still matter.
Things like having a well-structured website, helpful content, credible mentions and links, and a strong online reputation are still important. These signals can also help businesses become more discoverable and credible in AI-powered search.
I'll be digging deeper into this topic in an upcoming article about what businesses can do to improve their visibility in AI search.
Don't Skip the Trade Show Floor, Either!
I'll admit, after sitting through hours of presentations and filling my brain with new ideas, it was tempting to skip the trade show floor, too.
But I'm so glad I didn't!
I discovered a couple of vendors I'm genuinely interested in working with, including one offering direct mail campaigns using CRM smart lists and another with a paid advertising platform I want to explore.
But one of the most interesting things about walking the trade show floor wasn't necessarily the technology. It was listening to the vendors pitch their services.
There were so many companies offering virtual assistants and support services, and I found myself listening to essentially the same type of business explain what made them different. Each had its own approach, unique selling points, and a different way of communicating its value.
As someone who has spent more than 20 years in marketing, I found that fascinating!
It reminded me of something I think we all struggle with as business owners sometimes. We look around and think the market is already saturated. There are so many other people doing exactly what we do, so how can we possibly stand out?
But the reality is that even when businesses offer similar services, they don't necessarily deliver them the same way. Everyone brings something different to the table, and people are often drawn to businesses and individuals they genuinely connect with.
That reminded me of something Daymond John shared during his keynote. When talking about how he evaluates potential investments on Shark Tank, he said his number one criterion is whether he likes the person he's considering investing in.
Think about that! With all the financials, business plans, and growth potential to consider, the person behind the business still matters enormously.
And then there was something else I couldn't help noticing.
So many vendors appeared to be using AI-generated graphics for their handouts, promotional materials, and even stickers. And honestly, I was disappointed.
Not because I'm against AI. Clearly, I'm not! But because so much of the creative work started to look the same.
It was such an interesting contrast. Here were vendors working hard to explain what made their businesses different, while their marketing materials often looked remarkably similar.
And maybe that's another reminder for all of us. Just because AI can create something quickly doesn't mean we should let it make all our creative decisions.
Bringing It All Home
I came home from Dallas with plenty of new ideas, a renewed appreciation for the people in this industry, and a lot of excitement about what's ahead.
But I also came home with a reminder that learning and growing as a business owner involves more than attending sessions and collecting information.
It's about making time to connect with people, stepping outside your comfort zone, being willing to try something new, and then doing the work to put what you've learned into action.
Over the coming weeks, I'll be sharing more about the marketing and AI lessons from LevelUp, along with some of the new tools and strategies we're testing at The Mustard Seed Agency.
If you're a small-business owner wondering how AI might fit into your business, I hope you'll follow along.
You don't have to know everything about AI to start exploring what's possible.
Frequently asked questions
What is HighLevel LevelUp?
LevelUp is the annual conference for HighLevel, the software platform The Mustard Seed Agency uses to build marketing and automation systems for clients. LevelUp 2026 was held in Dallas, and HighLevel announced more than 300 features and enhancements during the event.
Does SEO still matter with AI search?
Yes. A well-structured website, helpful content, credible mentions and links, and a strong online reputation still matter, and those same signals can help a business become more discoverable and credible in AI-powered search.
How can AI help a small business?
Tools like conversational AI, voice AI, and website chatbots can help small businesses respond to customers, capture opportunities, and reduce repetitive work. Mustard Seed tests these tools in its own business before recommending them to clients.
Wondering how AI might fit into your business?
You don't have to know everything about AI to start exploring what's possible. We help small businesses put practical automations, chatbots, and AI search visibility to work.