Blogging Tips

This past weekend I was at WordCamp Dallas, where I was given the opportunity to both speak to and interact with a group of over 300 fellow WordPress users, bloggers and soon-to-be bloggers. It was a great event that was a unique combination of wonderful sponsors, great planning, spectacular speakers and great attendees.

But if you are a blogger that is new to conferences, whether they are blogger-specific, technical or otherwise, there is a lot to remember. Blogging, for the most part, is a solo activity and if your job doesn’t sent you to a lot of conferences there may well be a lot that you forget or don’t think to bring.

Since conference season is under way and many bloggers may be treking out to their first convention, here are a few things that you should remember before you get in the car.

6. Swag

Swag, which now famously stands for “Stuff We All Get”, are giveaway items that you hand out at conferences. These are small, but useful items that carry your logo and information.

Swag isn’t right for every blogger but it is a great and relatively cheap way to make an impression. Bring something creative that is cheap but people will want to keep. If you’re not feeling imaginative, pens, buttons and plastic bags are all cheap, if environmentally unfriendly, ideas for giveaways.

Swag isn’t something that every blogger needs or should bring, but if you want to stand out and your budget allows it, it’s a great way to stand out from the crowd.

5. Business Cards

Business cards may seem to be archaic in the age of Facebook and Twitter, but when you are meeting people face to face in large numbers, they are very handy.

Be sure to make them attractive and interesting. Also, make sure they have all the relevant information including Twitter, Facebook and other accounts you want people to follow you at. Business cards, especially for bloggers are not just name, company, address, phone, etc.

If you aren’t sure how many to bring, it is better to have too many than too few. For most people who aren’t being very pushy with their cards, a run of 500 will be enough for several conferences but if you plan to be giving them out aggressively or putting large stacks on card tables (which most conferences have), be prepared with more.

Do this even if you don’t have anything to sell or to pitch, it’s just a great way to give your contact information to someone that you meet.

4. An Elevator Pitch

The term “Elevator Pitch” refers to a short, usually under a minute, description of what you or your site is about. it’s designed to let you describe what you do while riding up or down the elevator with someone who might be interested.

Ideally, your pitch should be very brief and be able to convey what makes you and your site unique. Anyone who hears it should know what you are about and why they should remember you after the conference.

It’s worth taking a few minutes to write and rehearse one, even if your conference doesn’t have elevators as most meetings at large events are very fleeting in nature.

3. A Nametag Holder

Yes, most conferences provide these, but you’re going to want to bring your own. A name tag holder at most conferences becomes much more than just a means of displaying your name but also becomes something of an additional pocket. Regular conference goers put business cards, ticket stubs and other necessities in their name tag holder rather than in their regular pockets, purse or bag.

The other problem is that most conferences, understandably, do not spend a great deal of money on their name tag holders and, as a result, they often break or otherwise fall off. Going to the store and buying a solid one can be a huge help and aid you in keeping track of both your name tag and whatever else you find is best to put in there.

2. Camera and Laptop

At a conference you’re going to be mobile so having a really good smartphone (Blackberry, iPhone, Palm Pre, etc.) and a decent laptop is crucial. Not only so you can be blogging, Twittering and otherwise talking about what’s going on at the conference, but so that you can record notes during talks, take photos, preserve contact information and generally take in everything you see.

Personally, I tend to favor my phone more than my laptop for most things but like keeping at least a small netbook nearby for anything that requires significant amounts of typing.

Not having good equipment causes you to miss great opportunities and not be able to retain as much information. If you want to get the most for your time and money, it is best to come ready to learn and record.

1. Your Courage

The most important part of any conference is networking. You are there to meet people so you need to prepare yourself to start talking to otherwise perfect strangers. This isn’t easy, even for people who are otherwise very sociable, so it warrants taking a few moments to practice.

Get used to talking to people when you’re out and about. Talk to people when you are waiting in line at the grocery store or while you’re waiting for public transportation. Starting up a conversation with random people is an important part of any conference and it is important that you know how to do so before you get there are a convention with hundreds of people is no place to learn.

The good news is that most of conferences are extremely friendly in nature. I’ve never been to a conference where I felt that people were rude or angry, though I may just be fortunate in that regard. Still, being surrounded by so many people you don’t know can be very intimidating, especially when trying to initiate 1 on 1 conversations.

Start today and by the time you go to the event, you should be in good shape.

Bottom Line

This is just a short list of some of the things bloggers should or must bring to every conference they go to, I’m eager to hear from you all what I left off this list. Let’s see if we can make this one a top ten.