Last week I attended my first search conference. I gleaned a lot of valuable info and met many interesting people. Throughout the conference I compiled a mental checklist for my next conference. My hope is that my experience and the corresponding checklist will become a learning resource for all of you.
Before the Conference
What to bring
Business Cards - I didn't have business cards and it was awkward ;-( Don't make the same mistake as me. It is not necessary to get anything special. The person giving the card is much more important than the quality of the card. Unless you have superfluous design resources, I don't recommend spending significant time or money (no more than $20.00 USD) on your business cards..gif)
Branded Clothing - Become a self serving billboard and wear your company’s logo loud and proud. (Notable Exception Possibly NSFW) Laptop/Notepad - The medium onto which you transcribe your notes is a personal preference. Just make sure you bring something and utilize it to its fullest. Good Shoes - You will be standing and walking around all day. Think function over fashion. Weather Dependent Clothing - Check your favorite weather source and plan accordingly.Water Bottle (Nalgene with a Carabiner is how we do it in Seattle) - You are going to be surrounded by hundreds of other heat producing attendees. Be sure to always have a source of water on hand so you can stay hydrated and healthy. Wear Deodorant - No one likes smelly people. Sorry Rebecca..gif){kind=small}
Bring a Paper Clip - Generally name tags at conferences will be badges that attendees wear around their neck. Unfortunately, the badges have a tendency to spin and hide the wearers name. This problem can be avoided easily by paper clipping the badge into place.
Prepare yourself
Get a Twitter Account - At search conferences there is always a conversation going on behind the presentation. Be involved and in the know by following the right people. (I will list some power accounts if there is a demand in the comments.)Know the Big Players/Companies - You are going to need to know who the big players are before you get to the conference. Read more about important SEO people.Optional
Bring Separate Wireless Internet Source - If you have the resources, bring an external internet source (e.g., PC card). This will keep you connected if the Wifi goes down and has the possibility to make you a good person to know. Be Born at Least 21 Years Prior to the Event - In the United States the legal drinking age is 21. Although drinking is not required by any means, it can be Find Restaurants Nearby - Knowing places to eat is always a great way to help you network. People unfamiliar with the area will be looking for someone who is in the know.During the Conference
Show Time
Arrive Early or Late (not too late) to Avoid the Registration Line - Every person at the conference will need to register at the beginning of the conference to get in. Make sure you are not the one at the back of the line. Wear Branded Clothing - You brought it, now wear it! Network - Network, Network, Network. The relationships you make at conferences have much more potential than the information you learn in sessions. Since almost everyone at search conferences are there to network, meeting people should be easy. Attend All Session Blocks Except One - The big names at conferences got to where they are by knowing most of the things discussed in sessions. This means that they are unlikely to attend many sessions. Choose your least important sessions and skip them. Use this time to meet the big names. They will be much less bombarded and far more likely to really get to know you. Go to Popular Booths - Popular booths will feature more important people and offer conversation starters for all the people you don’t know. At Lunch, Don’t Sit With Friends - This is hard because most people see lunch as a time to relax. This is not necessarily true. Network, Network, Network. Drink a Lot of Water - Keeping yourself hydrated keeps yourself energized and fully functional. Use Your Notepad/Computer - Take a lot of notes. I recommend at least one new page/file per session. Keep All of Your Random Ideas in One Place - This can either be a separate text document or the last page of your notepad.Collect Cool Schwag - Free stuff is great. Gather as much as you can and bring it home for friends and family.Parties
Party Hop - Maximize your chances to network and learn from the more experienced attendees.Avoid Useless Conversations - Make your impact but keep most conversations short and to the point. Here are a couple of things to bring up if the conversation stops.- What do you not get to do enough of? (Thanks Carlos.)
- Have you ever watched the Viagra SERPS to study black hat techniques? (Hint: "Buy Viagra" is much more interesting than simply "Viagra".)
- If all else fails, remember that people at start ups LOVE to talk about their company.
After the Conference
Before Sleeping
Review Business Cards - Reviewing the business cards you received will help you remember all of the people you met. Review Notes - This will likely help prioritize your work. Create a To-Do List - After a conference your motivation will likely be really high. Use this opportunity to define future tasks and goals.Reconnect
Blog About It - Not only will this help you keep a record of the event, but it also provides an avenue to cement connections with people. Connect Online - Find people you met in real life and connect with them online. Specifically, I recommend finding people on Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin.If you are an experienced conference attendee, feel free to share your opinions and expertise in the comments. This post is very much a work in progress. As always, feel free to e-mail me or send me a private message if you have any suggestions on how I can make my posts more useful. If that's not your style, feel free to contact me on Twitter (DannyDover) and/or Linkedin (Danny Dover). Thanks! (I'm taking my own advice here!)
Danny - You'll know you've "made it", when you can have both.
I have to be honest - I wasn't expecting much from the Title, but I have to say - yet another great post. You're fast becoming the "go to check-lister" of the search industry.
I have to agree with Sean about having both in a shoe. However in all seriousness you can get an incredibly comfortable shoe that is sleek and stylish at Ecco. If you have never heard of them you should definitley check them out. By far the most comfortable dress around.
But if you wear a size 14 like me it's a little hard to find them.
Great Job Danny. Only other minor one I'd add is smile and look alert. Apparently sometimes the local news is there taking photos. You want something professional sent back to the boss, not something where you look like this.
:)
How about this one, Kate?
man...that's god's car right there.
Good thing the camera wasn't aimed slightly further to the right, or you would have seen me, possibly looking embarrassing.
Re: Business Cards
It's only awkward if you make it awkward - Patrick gets by just fine without business cards.
Re: Branded Clothing
You know you've made it as a company when chubby nerds force themselves into your "always one size too small" shirts just to be associated with your brand - usually proudly displaying their man boobs.
Re: Good Shoes
Yellow kicks, ala Rand?
Re: Your own Wifi
This is a MUST - do you really want someone snooping what you are doing on an open wifi network? You guys are a resourceful bunch so I'll throw out a tip: www.sprint.com/SERO you are going to need your GoogleFu to find a @sprint.com email address that works, so dig deep. $49.99/month, 2-yr contract required.
Re: Feedthebot
The man runs on beer - kinda like how Bender runs on alcohol in Futurama...Except he's much more fun and isn't as mean spirited :)
Really enjoyed the post, especially the paper clips. Of course, we just need to get better badge holders, too!
Great post as usual. I too like the paper clip idea. I also inadvertently skipped one session and it was nice to be able to talk to people that were otherwise engaged during lunch. And it was nice to drown my sorrows in the Moz booth.
Cheers!
I sort of disagree about schwag. I think that portion of your checklist should be modified to say, "If you enjoy bringing home random crap, go get lots of schwag." Maybe I'm in the minority, because I don't really care to bring home (mostly) useless junk that's just going to clutter up my home. Just because it's free doesn't mean it's great!
(Obviously, there are some exceptions to the rule--I love Google thermoses, pens can be useful, and I enjoy quality, good looking t-shirts that fit. However, I can't tell you how many "painting" t-shirts and "sleeping" t-shirts I have because most companies seem to think that every conference attendee wears a size XL.)
Or get the schwag and give it to the interns when you get home, they love random gifts, even if it is junk :-)
heh...it's not only the interns. I've had VPs and Directors want the crap I schlep back from conferences too...
I agree with Rebecca - I don't need more schwag but pens & pencils are always great.
Even though I'm an L to XL sized guy, even I don't usually wear t-shirts with other company logos or slogans on them.
I do collect XL t-shirts though and they go in a drawer for whenever I have a sleepover guest and she needs a t-shirt or something. And if she likes it she can take it home with her. A bit of a prize I suppose.
Sadly, at the current rate of sleepover guests I have what amounts to a lifetime supply of schwag t-shirts.
heh - nice! If she takes home a shirt, what do you get to keep? ;)
t-shirt schwag courtesy of SEOmoz being the exception. Nice schwag! I think now of the black hooded top finding its way through the US postal system.. :-)
Where was this post a week ago before SMX Advanced? =) I think add to the list to make an agenda before you go, choose your sessions, events, and create a schedule for yourself.
A great follow up post to this would be what are the most common (and maybe the funniest or most awkward) "pick up lines" that the mozzers get as ice-breakers at the conference (So... do you come here often?).
Aside from that, make sure that you don't get snubbed for your party invitations - Rebecca =)
The only other thing I can add is to remember that (most) other people at the conference are also a little nervous, and to not be afraid to just introduce yourself and start talking to someone. I have to force myself to do it (I'm a total introvert) but I'm always glad I when I do.
I guess a corollary to that is to not be afraid of the "big names" - they are just normal people like you and me. I was too shy to go up to Rebecca & Jane at the SEOmoz conference, and I've always regretted it. I will next time!
How about the Paris Hilton effect at such confrences. We still await the Paris of our SEO community though.
Paris Hilton SEO lookalike... Lisa Ditlefsen...
Search Marketing Expo - SMX London November 4 & 5, 2008
On the "skip one session" tip, I would also add that thinking about how the show is organized will help you better understand when the organizers will be more readily available. Just before seminars and presentations is no good because they're probably scrambling around trying to fix last minute issues. Most of the time, the organizers are THE most in-demand people at a show, so figure out when they might not be scrambling and you'll have a better chance of stealing a few minutes with them.
As always, great post Danny.
The majority of your points can be equally applied to any type of conference, not just SEO, so it serves as a very useful generic planner. I've only ever attended exhibitions as an exhibitor and next month will be my first as a delegate so i've already printed off a copy to take with me :o)
Great post there, Can you lsit some people worth following on Twitter? I think i have most people, but could always do with a few more.
I have to say, Danny, that this is one of the best conference advice posts I've seen in a long time. It ranks right up there next to Todd's immortal "15 Ways to Be an SEO Conference Douchebag."
Thank goodness you posted on the blog tonight, too, because I'm 4 hours into my email tonight and still have 100+ to go.
If you blog block me fishkin, e-mails will be the least of your worries! ;-)
Danny - good stuff. The spinning conference badge at SMX was driving me crazy!
Whatever, dude. You're the one who lives in a frat house. It's like sleeping in a giant urinal.
Just saying that all of that running you have been doing is not only affecting you.
That better be a joke, son. Keep in mind that I'm the blog manager, so lots of your posts can either mysteriously disappear or be edited to read "Danny Dover is a turd eater."
*hitches up pants and pulls rank on the newb*
wait wait wait....
I thought all women smell like roses - always!
Next you'll be telling me the tooth fairy doesn't exist....sheesh!
Edit: thumbs up for the "giant urinal" analogy
I really enjoyed this post it’s very informative and interesting. I liked a lot of the items that you put on your list that is necessary to bring to a conference. My favorite item on the list is the branded clothing idea because it’s a great way to visually market your company. This blog is truly a pleasure to read and I cannot wait to read more of your posts.
Very happy to hear you enjoyed my post. Feel free to look at some of the posts I have written in the past.
Danny - I DEMAND you list the power accounts :P
this article applies for any kind of conferences, the most important is the Deodorant :)
Paper clip to deal with the ever-spinning name tags... brilliance Danny!
The emetrics Summit overcomes the spinning name tag problem by printing the same details on both sides of the card that goes in the holder.
Equally brilliant, but it does not allow me to feel like MacGyver.
I agree with BlueAcorn about making an agenda. I have trouble picking between tracks if I don't because I actually find all of the different talks quite interesting.
If I were sober I would say something with biting and clever humor that would make everyone giggle.
Oh and also, Danny, you can't drink more than me.
Don't worry, I still chuckled. And in my sober state, I tend to agree with you, but we will see.
Love the paper clip tip. Good shoes and keep the laptop off of your shoulder so your not feeling sore after walking around with that 15-20 extra pounds of stuff for 2 days.
Power Cable!
I know most people assume bringing your laptop implies bringing your power cable, but last week, that wasn't the case for me. Luckily our office is on 4th and Pike.
Great paper clip idea. Is your middle name MacGyver?
Thanks Danny great information. I'll be assisting to my first Conference next week: SES Toronto, was just thinking about what to bring, how to dress, etc. Anybody assiting to SES Toronto? Let me know.
https://twitter.com/seo_practices
Great post, it's hard to believe it was your first conference based on the insightful takeaways.
I would add that branded clothing can work against you in certain situations. We have an internet retail site that sells products that are very much still part of an arhaic industry, when we showed up at the kitchen and bath show manufacturers cringed at the dot com! Hopefully they will catch up with the rest of the world but in the meantime know when it is or is not appropriate to wear branded clothes.
Can anyone tell me of any conferences that are taking place in the UK over the next 6 -12 months?
SMX London is in November
I have never attended a SEO conference, so I'm wondering: you say to skip a seminar to meet important people. Why are they hanging around if most people are in seminars? Is that when all the big shots talk to each other?
Most speakers don't attend sessions because they know the content that's being covered. Usually they're networking or hanging around during those times. :)
Good work Danny. Such checklists help us not lose our cool before important conferences or presentations. Also, they keep us organised.
Great post Danny!
I would just say always remember to be confident with yourself. People respect someone who is confident. But you can't be too confident that it is perceived as cocky.
Also make sure you work on your people skills. It is a fact that not everyone has people skills. Everyone can work on their own people skills so socializing and most importantly networking is easier and more effective. Nobody likes talking with someone who is awkward.
Gaining people skills is tough though and can really only be aquired through practice. So socialize and socialize to improve your own skills.
Great post Danny. Love the paper clip idea.