The Top 5 Things I Learned at ShesConnected 2012

As previously mentioned, last weekend I attended ShesConnected Conference, a two-day blogging conference in Toronto.

I met lots of awesome people - bloggers and brand representatives. And I'm still in awe of all the swag (favourites in my house - Hannah loved her Telus stuffed animal, I loved the gift certificate from Molson Canadian 67 and Chris really likes my "Baconista" tee from Maple Leaf Foods).

However, the most important reason I went to the conference was to LEARN how to be a better blogger (and in some cases, a more law-abiding one).

Without further ado, here is my top 5 things I learned at ShesConnected.

1. When uploading your posts to Facebook, use a picture. Pictures get more real estate in people's news feeds and Facebook users are more likely to interact (ie "Like") a picture than they are a status.
2. Brands follow bloggers on Twitter to check them out. Make sure your Twitter account is a true reflection of who you are. If you want to work with a brand, like them on Twitter and engage them - that should get you on their radar.
3. If you approach a brand (which was highly encouraged by many of the speakers and panelists), detail exactly what you want from them AND exactly what they will get for sponsoring you. Highlight uniqueness.
4. If your blog earns more than $10,000 a year the government wants to know about it. Bad news - ANYTHING you received for free to review is included in your annual income. Good news - anything you review which you purchased can be included as an expense. The speaker of this session was excellent, you can follower her @shoeboxbegone.
5. It is illegal to ask people pay to enter contests. The legal session definitely scared me the most, and I left with more questions than answers (we only had 45 minutes after all), but if you do giveaways on your blog I would definitely check out the Competition Bureau website to make sure your giveaways are legit.

Additionally, I learned that no one looks like their cartoon avatar. Glad Chris, Hannah and I aren't alone. :)

Did you attend ShesConnected? What did you learn if you did? If you haven't attended a blogging conference, what would you hope to get from it?

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

How Mommyhood Affected My Facebook Account

When I found out I was pregnant, Chris and I actually had a discussion on if/what we would announce/post on Facebook. We waited until I was 20 weeks along before we made any mention of it. Of course we had told friends and family way before then, and thankfully no one spilled the beans on either of our walls until we made our "official" announcement (which we did via a cute (if I do say so myself) Media Advisory note).

But before I made the announcement I did the great Facebook purge of 2011. I had two criteria: A) Have I seen this person in the last 2 years? and B) If I saw them in the street would I be happy to approach them? If you didn't get a yes, you were purged. Why should these people who don't care enough to talk to me be privy to all my cute baby bump photos? Or adorable baby photos when Hannah actually was born?

"Um, aren't you showing complete strangers photos of Hannah?" you ask. Well, yes. However I hope people come to my blog because they are interested in reading what I have to say. If adorable baby photos keep them coming back, then I suppose I'll allow it. 

And let me tell you, purging your Facebook is a huge relief. You only see posts from people you care about. As for work and career-related folks, that's what LinkedIn is for.

Now I log on to Facebook to find out what my friends are up to - AND to read some of the postings in Mommy groups I'm lucky to be a part of. When I click "Like" on a friend's photo of their child sitting up by themselves, it has a whole new meaning. I'm not just clicking because the baby is cute - I'm clicking for support and congratulating the parents, now that I know first-hand how great moments like those are.

I also "Like" more baby pages and companies with baby products (feel free to like YYZ Bambina Blog :D) than I do bands, movies or TV shows. My interests and priorities have shifted, and so has my Facebook account.

Did your social media habits change after becoming a parent?

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.