5 Things I Learned From Podcamp

I attended a free conference this weekend called Podcamp. I had heard about it through Twitter and thought I would give it a shot. While I thought it was going to be an interesting conference, (or unconference as it's called), I didn't realize how inspiring and motivating it would be. I came away re-energized and focused about social media, nonprofits and my own business.

5 Things I Learned:

1. Nonprofits and Social Media are made for each other

As I talked through the day on Saturday about what I do for a living and how I believe nonprofits and social media are a good fit, I became more and more assured of the fact. I truly believe that nonprofits, especially small nonprofits, can leverage social media to increase donations, connect with prospects and most importantly, build a community.

2. Everything you do on the 'net can be tracked

I attended a great session by Sean Power (@seanpower) entitled Stalking Your Audience for Fun & Profit. It was incredible the amount of things you can discover about people by tracking them through the internet. Ireceived tons of great links and ideas.

3. It's important to think about the ethics of social media

When I walked into the Ethics and Social Media session by Dave Fleet (@davefleet), I was never expecting to have a hearty discussion about the consquences of ghost blogging. As a writer, I've done ghost blogging for several companies. It was interesting to hear the points from the other side. I think it's a topic that you can debate forever, but it opened up my mind to other ethical issues with social media and how they should be handled.

4. Ideas come from everywhere

One of the best things about a conference like this, is that even if you are hearing information you've heard before, it may spur something new. I spent several sessions jotting down ideas for my business and this blog. I recommend attending as many conferences as you can. It can help you jump start your brain and make you think of things you've never thought of before.

5.It's all about the people

Networking has such an ominous tone to me. It sounds too serious and a little intimidating. What I did instead was meet a ton of people from a variety of backgrounds and businesses. Some potential clients, others colleagues and mentors. Everyone I met was friendly and open to discussion.

Podcamp was a breather from the work, a chance to connect and a way to lasso those mythical beasts; creativity and inspiration.