Learning about Social Media – Ottawa Event is set to Engage

Next week, on May 31 and June 1, is the annual Social Capital Conference in Ottawa.

This conference stands out for me not only because I sit on a few committees to help out, but also because I’ve been to few learning events where I learn so much.  The line up for this year is pretty amazing – there’s a little something for everyone!

This year, the conference is going to be held over the course of 2 days, the first being a smaller, hands on workshop day and the second being the traditional conference day.  You can buy a ticket to either day or both.

On June 1, I’ll be hosting a roundtable session called ‘From Hobby to Hire’ which will essentially look at how your social presence (blog, Twitter, Facebook etc) is like having an online resume.  I’ll chat about how you can find paid opportunities through these sources, and why people might want to hire you because of your social media engagement.  I’ll also highlight how to build your ‘for hire’ stock.  It’s a topic I can speak to because over the years I can draw a direct line from my online social media endeavours to paid contracts and positive opportunities. I’m hoping to share a snippet of how I did this – all within limited hours while being an at-home mom primarily!

Here’s the description from the website:

From Hobby to Hire: How your blog and social presence build an online reputation that can open the door to paid opportunities.

Rebecca Stanisic

Can you really make money on and off your blog?  Find out how to position yourself so that people want to work with you, where to find opportunities and to know when free is a good thing or a four letter word.

I’m really looking forward to it! I couldn’t attend last year’s conference, but in 2011 I spoke at a session and hosted a Twitter round table.  But beyond that, I’m looking forward to taking in the learning myself. I will be attending both days and need to brush up on topics like video, strategy and a few other sessions that I’m looking forward to.

Check out this post from the ReSoMe website about 5 Reasons to Attend Social Capital. It captures how I also feel about the conference really well.

And I can’t emphasize enough that the benefit these types of conferences have to re-energize your business, your plans, your goals and to opportunities to network and learn are immeasurable.  No matter if you own a business and are looking to ‘get’ social media a bit more, or if you are the social media person at your organization, or if you are a blogger and want to grow your knowledge, these learning events are worth the investment.

There are a few giveaways going on right now so you can enter for a chance to win, or you can still buy a ticket.  Follow the #socapott hashtag on Twitter to see the giveaway links and keep up to date with the latest news.

Are you attending this year? Are you thinking about attending?