Countdown to a #Blogger #Conference - Tips for Success #BloggerIssues #WorththeRead

Things to Think About Before Your Next Conference

Blissdom CA 2014 is fast approaching and I am feeling much more confident than last year. BlissdomCA 2013 was the first blog conference I attended and having been blogging for a whole three months I was more than a little intimidated and green as you can see from my post Blissdom post Reflections ... Did I find my Bliss? 

Photo via Blissdom Canada site

It's more than a year later and BlissdomCA 2014 will be my third conference; I have written 204 posts for Cathy Thinking Out Loud, 8 posts for PTPA Blogaholic posts, and several guest posts on other blogs. I'm feeling much more confident going into this Blissdom Conference having Conference #2 Under My Belt. I have a better idea how to prepare for, what to expect and how to manage my expectations so I get the most out of this experience.

I actually wrote this post a year and a half ago, and in April 2016 will be attending my 6th conference BConnected Conference in Ottawa, but all the resources are still Worth the Read. 

I can tell you the prospect of attending a conference where I had only met a few of the attendees in person was more than a little overwhelming. To make matters worse my avatar was a picture of my dog so no one actually knew what I looked like. 

BLISSDOMCA 2014 AVATAR

BLISSDOMCA 2013 AVATAR

Tip #1: Share a picture of yourself prior to the conference so people know what you look like. Speaking from experience, this really is important, especially if this is your first conference, you don't know other attendees, or you're a introvert. 

Tip #2: Get business cards! and make sure that the font is large enough for people to actually read! 

Before:

After:

Below you'll find some posts and resources for preparing for, and getting the most out of your conference experience I think are Worth the Read. I hope they shed some light on the 5 W's (Who, What, Where, When, Why) and the H (How) of blogging conferences. Knowledge is power, and being prepared is your best tool. Hopefully it will give some newbies bloggers the courage to attend a blog conference. No need to limit this reading to newbies; I know that this old dog can learn new tricks and think we can all benefit from these resources. BlissdomCA is mentioned because it's the next blogger conference I'm attending, but the resources and posts linked here provide excellent information that is not limited to any one blogger conference or even any one type of blogger conference. 

• How to Prepare for a Blogging Conference via Tales of a Ranting Ginger
• Ten Tips on What to Bring to a Blogging Conference via Maple Leaf Mommy
• Five Tips for Successfully Attending Conferences via Food Bloggers of Canada
• Bling Out Your Blog: 25 Helpful Resources For Attending A Blog Conference via Kayla Aimee Writes
• Bloggers IRL: Get the Most Out of Blogging Conferences via The Daily Post

If you find yourself at a conference I'm attending please say hi and introduce yourself. I would love to meet you IRL (in real life). 

Yep, just me Cathy thinking out loud about what I think is worth the read.