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Chicago is set to become the epicenter of marketing, digital commerce, and customer experience as Salesforce Connections 2026 convenes from June 3-4. This year, the annual conference holds particular significance as industry leader Validity prepares to showcase a transformative vision for unified, end-to-end marketing success, heavily emphasizing the practical application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the power of a consolidated email ecosystem. The event, a critical gathering for practitioners and decision-makers, promises to delve into the future of digital marketing, CRM strategy, and the tangible impact of AI, moving beyond theoretical discussions to real-world implementation.
Salesforce Connections: A Nexus for Marketing Innovation
Salesforce Connections stands as a premier annual event, drawing thousands of marketing professionals, digital commerce strategists, and customer experience architects from across the globe. Historically, the conference serves as a vital platform for sharing best practices, unveiling groundbreaking technologies, and forecasting industry trends. Attendees converge to explore how Salesforce’s expansive suite of products, particularly Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud, and Service Cloud, can be leveraged to create more personalized, efficient, and impactful customer journeys.
The 2026 iteration is particularly focused on the evolving landscape of marketing, which, as articulated on the Connections website, is "no longer static. It’s always-on and agentic—and Connections is where vision meets strategy." This statement underscores a prevailing sentiment within the industry: the need to adapt to dynamic customer behaviors and leverage intelligent automation. Discussions frequently revolve around navigating the complexities of AI integration, moving from pilot programs and theoretical models to practical, day-to-day workflows that deliver measurable results. The conference facilitates invaluable peer-to-peer exchanges, where "hallway conversations" and shared experiences often provide insights as potent as the main stage presentations. For many, these informal dialogues offer critical solutions to challenges like data integration and AI deployment, bridging the gap between promise and reality.
A New Era for Email: Validity and Litmus United
A pivotal development shaping Validity’s presence at Connections 2026 is the strategic acquisition of Litmus, which occurred just two months prior to Connections 2025. This integration has been a game-changer for the email marketing landscape, creating an unprecedented, truly end-to-end email solution. For years, email teams have grappled with the fragmentation inherent in piecing together disparate point solutions for various stages of the email workflow—from list validation to campaign analytics. The merger of Validity, renowned for its data quality and deliverability expertise, with Litmus, a leader in email creation, testing, and pre-send optimization, addresses this challenge head-on.
The combined entity now offers a comprehensive suite of capabilities under one roof, including robust data quality and list validation, intuitive campaign creation tools, rigorous Quality Assurance (QA) testing, proactive deliverability monitoring, and in-depth performance analytics. This consolidation streamlines workflows, reduces operational friction, and empowers enterprise teams to manage their entire email lifecycle with greater efficiency and precision.
Riley Dambaugh, Demand Generation Manager at Validity, expressed the team’s enthusiasm, stating, "Salesforce Connections is always one of my favorite events! This year I’m especially excited to be showcasing what’s possible now that Litmus and Validity have come together—we have some really exciting new innovations that we can’t wait to talk about. Excited to meet you all face-to-face!" This sentiment highlights the strategic importance of the merger and its direct impact on the solutions Validity is now able to present to the market.
Spotlight on AI-Driven Email ROI and Validity Engage
At the heart of Validity’s agenda in Chicago is a compelling session led by Danielle Gallant, a prominent voice in the email marketing community. Her presentation, "3 ways to push your email ROI above 45:1 using AI," is scheduled for June 3 at 1:30 PM CT in the Theater. Gallant, co-host of the popular "Email After Hours podcast" and a regular on Validity’s "State of Email Tactics webinar," brings a wealth of practical experience to the topic. Her session will unveil how advanced AI adopters are achieving remarkable ROIs exceeding 45:1, offering attendees a peek into the full-funnel techniques that drive such success. This session promises to move beyond theoretical AI discussions, providing actionable strategies for leveraging AI to maximize email campaign effectiveness.
Following the session, attendees are encouraged to visit the Validity booth to engage with the team, including Sr. Customer Strategist Julio Lopez. Lopez articulated his excitement for the event, noting, "I’m most excited to talk with marketers about how they’re connecting the full email workflow—from data quality and deliverability through to content and performance—and where they’re unlocking the biggest impact. Connections is one of the best places to bring those pieces together and learn from others doing it in a way that goes beyond the hype." This underscores Validity’s commitment to facilitating meaningful conversations about integrated marketing strategies.
A major announcement at Connections will be the formal introduction of Validity Engage, Validity’s new AI-powered platform designed to simplify the email workflow and maximize ROI from every send. This platform is a direct response to current market pressures, where marketing teams are frequently tasked with achieving more with stagnant headcounts. Validity’s Q1 2026 Marketer Survey revealed that while campaign volume and performance expectations are on the rise, marketing headcounts are largely expected to remain flat throughout 2026. Validity Engage is positioned as the crucial lever to address this imbalance, integrating AI into existing workflows in a truly helpful and actionable manner.
Chris Shays, an Account Executive, emphasized the platform’s value, stating, "Meeting with both our customers and prospects is something I always look forward to. Gaining an understanding of how they are implementing and utilizing Validity’s suite and how it impacts their day-to-day workflows and business needs is something I always look forward to discussing in depth. I’m very excited to have conversations around Engage to help prospects execute more consistent, high-quality email programs at scale." Similarly, Jeff Martin, another Account Executive, shared his anticipation: "I’m especially excited to share how we’re helping teams streamline workflows and improve performance across the full email lifecycle, and to start introducing Engage as part of that next evolution." Validity Engage represents a significant step forward in making AI an integral, practical component of email marketing operations, enabling teams to produce exceptional results in less time.
AI in the Real World: Beyond the Hype
A dominant theme echoing through the marketing industry is a collective weariness with AI hype and a strong desire for practical, proven solutions. Marketers are no longer content with theoretical promises; they demand to know what genuinely works in real-world scenarios. Validity’s research highlights that while the potential of AI is vast, several barriers impede its widespread adoption. These often include concerns over data quality, the complexity of integrating AI tools into existing tech stacks, a lack of clear ROI metrics, and a deficit in internal skills or talent.
The organizations successfully leveraging AI are not necessarily those with the largest budgets. Instead, they are the ones that have invested in the foundational "boring work": meticulous data cleaning, clear outcome definition, and the construction of user-friendly, trustworthy human-AI workflows. This methodical approach ensures that AI applications are grounded in reliable data and integrated into processes that enhance, rather than disrupt, human efforts. This philosophy aligns seamlessly with Salesforce’s broader vision for "Agentforce" and AI-first CRM experiences, which aims to infuse intelligent automation across all customer touchpoints, making every interaction more efficient and personalized.
Grace Dixon, Sr. Account Manager at Validity, reflected on this evolving landscape: "At these events, it’s always really refreshing to see marketers in-person and share genuine excitement and ideas. I look forward to hearing about how teams are continuing to approach AI and marketing transformation in the real world, and to leaving with new perspectives that reshape how I deliver value for our amazing customers when I get back!" Her statement underscores the collaborative spirit and the focus on practical takeaways that characterize Connections.
The Validity Team: Engaging with the Community
A formidable team from Validity will be present in Chicago, eager to connect with attendees, share insights, and foster discussions on the future of marketing. Beyond the aforementioned speakers, several key individuals will be available for engagement.
Brady Edwards, Sr. Account Manager, emphasized the importance of understanding customer integration: "I am looking forward to engaging with our community of customers and partners at Salesforce Connections. My focus is on understanding how our clients integrate our solutions into their unique workflows to drive meaningful results. I am particularly excited to discuss how the recent integration of Litmus and Validity provides an expanded, end-to-end solution for modern marketing teams."
Courtney Grab, Director of Customer and Lifecycle Marketing, highlighted the quality of interactions: "Connections brings together the exact people I want to connect with—email and CRM marketers who are genuinely pushing what’s possible in their marketing programs. It’s one of those events where the hallway conversations are just as valuable as the keynotes, and this year Validity is showing up in a big way. See you in Chicago!"
Jim Tobolski, SVP of Global Account Management, stressed the value of genuine exchange: "Every year, Salesforce Connections reminds me of what makes this industry so inspiring. I look forward to the amazing conversations that start with curiosity and turn into a genuine exchange about what’s possible. My number one priority is to connect with as many people as possible. Whether you’re a longtime customer, someone we’ve just started working with, or you’re simply navigating what an AI-first marketing strategy actually looks like in practice—I want to connect." These statements collectively paint a picture of a team dedicated to deep engagement, learning from the community, and collaboratively shaping the future of digital marketing.
Email: The Enduring Powerhouse in a Transformed Landscape
Despite the emergence of new channels, email remains an indispensable, high-ROI channel in the marketing mix. Year after year, it consistently delivers the highest return on investment, cementing its status as a core component of successful marketing strategies. In 2026, email is more complex, more capable, and more central to how high-performing marketing teams operate.
Validity’s 2026 Email Deliverability Benchmark Report indicates a positive trend, with global inbox placement rates improving to 87.2 percent in 2025, a 3.7 percent year-over-year uplift. This improvement underscores the industry’s continuous efforts to optimize deliverability. Simultaneously, the advent of AI is fundamentally reshaping how subscribers "reach" and interact with messages, with features like message summaries, intelligent sorting, and advanced filtering becoming commonplace in inboxes. This evolution necessitates a more sophisticated approach to email strategy, focusing not just on delivery but also on genuine engagement in an AI-curated environment.
Research from Salesforce’s own State of Marketing report further reinforces the critical role of AI, finding that high-performing marketing teams are 2.2 times more likely to use AI than their underperforming counterparts. This statistic removes any lingering doubt about the necessity of AI investment. The prevailing question at Salesforce Connections 2026 is no longer whether to invest in AI, but how to invest in it intelligently and effectively. Validity’s comprehensive suite of solutions, particularly with the integration of Litmus and the launch of Validity Engage, offers a clear pathway for marketers to navigate this complex landscape, ensuring their email programs are not only compliant and deliverable but also highly engaging and ROI-positive in the age of AI. The Validity team eagerly anticipates robust discussions on these crucial topics and more at Connections 2026.
