Behind the Booth: What We Learned at SyliusCon 2024
SyliusCon 2024 was a big moment for us at Fifty Deg. For the first time, we joined the conference not just as attendees - but as sponsors, showcasing our new product: DegDitor, the CMS plugin for Sylius.
Here's what went down, what we learned, and how this experience helped us grow - both as a team and as a product company.
The Pre-Party: Where It All Started
The pre-party turned out to be more than just a warm-up. Chatting over beers and burgers, we had our first chance to introduce DegDitor.
The informal atmosphere helped break the ice and allowed us to make meaningful connections before the official start of the conference.
Several attendees showed curiosity about our plugin right away.
These early conversations helped us build momentum and familiarity with the crowd.
Pro tip: networking works better sitting across the table with a burger and a beer. 🍔
Takeaway: Don't skip the pre-party. It's the perfect place to plant seeds before the show begins.
The Conference Floor: From Crickets to Crowd
The morning started quietly, but word of mouth did its magic. As people talked, more and more attendees stopped by our booth.
What worked:
Visitors were visibly impressed by the frontend UX and design quality. In a community full of PHP backend devs, it stood out.
Even competitors gave us positive feedback. That surprised us - and encouraged us.
Our live demo was the real game changer. Once people saw DegDitor in action, they understood its value.
People started asking if they could use the plugin immediately, even in its current beta form.
What didn't:
Unfortunately, no mention of sponsors in the keynote.
Some attendees wished the project were open source (it's not).
We could've done better at engaging people online during the event, and walking around to invite others to our stand.
The Stand: Setup vs Strategy
Our takeaway? It wasn't the booth setup that made a difference - it was our attitude and interaction.
Standing up and actively talking to people worked better than waiting behind a desk.
Our video demo caught attention
A high-resolution projector would have helped.
No fancy swag - but maybe next year we'll run a “best page built with DegDitor” contest to draw traffic and generate buzz.
Ideas for next time:
Skip the desks, go with tall standing stations for demos.
Prepare and rehearse the live demo to avoid long or confusing block setups.
Bring more marketing material - carefully thought out and purpose-driven.
The After-Party: Loose Talk, Real Insight
As expected, the after-party helped us gather more insight - this time in a relaxed, informal setting.
People were more open, honest, and ready to chat about their challenges and expectations after a drink or two 🍻.
Still, we felt the pre-party had more strategic value overall, especially for early-stage introductions.
The Survey: What the Community Told Us
We ran a survey at our stand. Here are some key insights from the 13 responses (often one per group of 2-3 people).
Below, some stats.
Roles:
4 Developers / 9 Business (CEO, CTO, Agency owners)
Would you recommend DegDitor to your clients?
Average score: 9.3
7 out of 13 gave it a perfect 10
How intuitive is DegDitor?
Average: 8.9
40% scored it 10, 30% 8, 5% 9, 15% 7
What CMS are you using today?
4 x Custom solutions
4 x BitBag CMS
4 x Monsieur Biz Rich Editor
3 x Sulu
1 x Contentful
2 x None
Top requested features:
4 x Rule-based visibility for content blocks
3 x Embed content in product detail/listing pages
3 x Headless integration
1 x Header/footer menu builder
1 x Page/block templates
1 x AI-powered page generator + Unsplash-like image library
We're extremely proud of how DegDitor was received - especially in a space where Magento and Shopware dominate with built-in CMS features.
The Sylius core team confirmed that a native CMS is planned, but won't offer the same depth as DegDitor.
So what's next?
Improve our demo experience
Boost our online presence during events
Consider Netcomm or similar events for direct leads
Propose a business-focused talk for SyliusCon 2025
Keep refining the product, UX, and roadmap based on real user feedback
Final Thoughts
SyliusCon 2024 confirmed what we believed:
There's a real demand for a powerful, intuitive, and flexible CMS inside the Sylius ecosystem.
With DegDitor, we've sparked curiosity - now we're ready to turn that into momentum. 🚀
Thanks to everyone who stopped by, gave us feedback, and helped shape what comes next.
