I went to a conference today that I wasn't speaking at (rare for me!) and had a blast despite being in a ton of pain with my arm. I suppose I'm doing a bit too much too soon in regards to resting after my surgery. #OverAchieverNOT

I am glad I went and learned a lot by attending. Great speakers. All attendees were women (and two men!). Tons of great ideas and actionable items. I am on the business side of social media and technology and I really need a kick in the pants when it comes to marketing myself using the same tools and channels. I've got two solid pages of typed notes on things I need to do, follow up on, check out, DO, be inspired by, research & even more people to get in touch with.

The attendees were highly Twitter & Facebook focused (the audience were bloggers wanting to reach out into the professional blogging space and/or increase their blog readership/income) but there was a very high level of interest and love for Google+. I cannot tell you how exciting it is to (casually) chat with other women that are seeing (or hearing) about the amazing community and platform we have here in Google+. I'm hoping that as some of the ladies I talked with find me here they decide to start thinking about ways to integrate themselves into this community and thrive. The three biggest tips I gave out about getting something out of Google+ as a new/newer blogger:

1. Don't circle only people you know. A lot of people I talked to were looking at Google+ as if it were Facebook (the comparison is unjustly made). While you can type more than 140 characters into a post here, the idea of circling someone should more mimic how they use Twitter. Follow people that fit the demo for your readership or lateral blogs/topics/content.

2. Post public. All. THE. TIME. At least in the beginning. Be sure to not just post a snippet of a blog post, but link back to it. Yes, I know it's a pain to 'double post' here and say +HootSuite but if you are serious about building a community and traffic, you need to do it. Once you create quality content it really really doesn't take that much longer to come here and post and be a part of our community. Four years ago no one wanted to 'waste' time with Facebook. Just do it.

3. Come back. Yes, I actually told people this. Google+ may be a ghost town for you because you poke your nose in the door, walk away, and come back in a month. You need to invest effort here with the community if you want to reap the rewards. It's not a 'dump & run' – you can't not circle anyone (or very few), never reach out and start engaging with others first, and post your content then ignore it. Live here for a bit. You don't need to make it your primary residence (at first….) but it does need to be your 'vacation home'!!

So, back to Bloggy Boot Camp. Smart & successful attendees, organizers & speakers. Here are some amazing ladies from this weekend I HIGHLY recommend you take a look at & follow:

– +Laurie Turk
– +Dali Burgado
– +Tiffany Romero (https://plus.google.com/u/0/113278972331758768165/posts)
– +Cheldin Barlatt Rumer
– +Dresden Shumaker
– +Cecily Kellogg

Sadly, I tried making it to the Doylestown / Philly HIRL but sat in traffic for way too long & had to head home ;( With as much pain as my arm is in I have no idea how I stayed upright all day…

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