By now you’ve probably heard about SOBCon ’07, that tremendously cool conference that several of us have put together in Chicago for this May. If somehow you missed it yesterday, as of this writing Technorati is already showing 130 links to the site (here’s the Technorati SOBEvent.com search). You get right down to it that’s pretty good for a web site that hasn’t even been live for 18 hours yet! Especially when you figure that’s about a quarter of the number of links SuccessCREEations has and we’ve been around for nearly 6 months.
Ah, the power of blogging. You gotta love it.
Why SOBCon?
If we set aside all the buzz for now, why would you want to attend this conference?
I mean there are tons of conferences and even a few blogging conferences you can go to this year. Why SOBCon? What makes this one stand apart?
David Armano is calling it the Brat Pack of Conferences. Listen to what he says:
Look. The rules have changed. Anyone can blog. Anyone can have a voice. But having a voice and being heard are two different things. You have a blog—but is it “remarkable”? Is it breaking through the clutter? You want to take it to the next level. You want to break through. You want conversations to convert into relationships. You want to bring your business or brand closer to the people who matter.
Then he goes on to tell how this conference will help you achieve that. (And I imagine he’ll be sharing more along that line during his session at the conference in Chicago!)
We all do things for reasons that often are very much our own. Therefore let me share with you a few reasons why I think this conference will be different and worth attending. (Your mileage may vary.)
The List
So without further ado, here are my own Top 10 List for Why I Will Be Attending SOBCon ’07:
10. Meet Cool People – Not only is the speaker’s list a who’s who of bloggers I would like the chance to meet, but I know there will be ton of interesting folks who won’t be out in front of the room. In fact I suspect many of the people who aren’t up front will have the most to offer at this conference.
9. Different Kind of Conference – If you’ve ever been to a conference where the biggest focus of your mind was how do I stay awake though this boring speaker or how much longer before the lunch break then you are in for a big treat at SOBCon. This conference will be different from the moment you walk into the room. It is set up to be much more participatory than most conferences. You won’t want to have your head buried in your laptop because if you do you’ll probably miss something.
8. Potential Tax Write Off – Are you blogging for your business? If so, attending this conference to learn how to be a more compelling and effective blogger may very well be tax deductible for you. Of course you’ll want to check with your tax preparer just to make sure. But I bet you will find your trip to Chicago to hang out with all these cool folks will be tax deductible!
7. Shake Phil Gerbyshak’s Hand – For those of you who haven’t heard of Phil Gerbyshak, well, first of all I have to ask you what rock you’ve been hiding under. Everyone knows Phil it seems. He’s got over 400 connections in his LinkedIn profile. I have like 17. And with what I know about Phil I’m sure the vast majority of those folks are far more than just names to him. That’s because Phil is an amazing guy and I’m looking forward to shaking his hand.
6. Christine Kane – I don’t know that many musicians who have recorded CD’s. I know a few. But none of them have 5 albums (Can I still call them that? Or does that mean I’m old?) to their credit. Nor do I know any musicians who are avid bloggers. Christine Kane is both. And she at least pretends to be amused by my stupid jokes at Open Comment Night over at Successful-Blog on Tuesday nights. Hearing Christine performing at the conference live in concert will be a special treat.
5. Open Mike Night – Live! – Speaking of Open Comment Night. Right after Christine sings for us we’ll go into an in-person version of the Tuesday night Open Comment Night. It will be a great way for us to break the ice and get to know each other with an informal setting and lots of back and forth conversation. To get a feel for the whole concept, check out Successful-Blog on Tuesday evenings after 7 PM Chicago time.
4. Gorgeous Will Be There – I’m one of those guys who married up. My wife got the short end of the deal in our marriage. So you can trust me when I tell you that she’s be a whole lot more interesting to meet than me. She doesn’t blog (yet) but she is helping sort out much of the hotel arrangements and event planning stuff. Much of what is good about this conference is because she’s involved.
3. I’m Speaking – Well, technically I’m moderating, not speaking. And that’s a good thing. It’s not that I have any difficulty running my mouth. (Help I’m talking and I can’t shut up!) Nor am I intimidated by getting up in front of folks. But this time there will be a bunch of folks with tons to say. Besides, my background – and where I really shine – is in operations and logistics. I’ll be doing some stuff behind the scenes, helping out with last minute details and the like. So moderating a panel is quite enough up front time for me!
2. Become A Better Blogger – The bottom line is we all want to become better bloggers, to learn how to blog more effectively. We’ll all walk away from this conference with lots of juicy tidbits that will improve how we blog and how we relate to others online. Not only that but this conference is a tremendous opportunity to network with 250 other like minded folks. Talk about way to get more contacts! And I bet many of those new folks you meet will become new readers of your blog too. Everyone walks away a winner!
And finally the number 1 reason why I’ll be attending SOBCon ’07 is…
1. Liz Strauss – The Mistress of the SOB Hall of Fame and A#1 B.A.D. Blogger herself. Liz is the Conductor of Open Comment Night. I consider her a good friend. She is the very first person who ever linked to a post of mine. (Wonder if she knows that.) She is kind enough to allow me to contribute to her blog from time to time. And she is forgiving when my work schedule gets too nuts for me to keep up with my posting over there. She is a class act and meeting Liz will be a treat for all who attend.
So there you have it. My top 10 reasons for attending SOBCon ’07.
Why are you planning make the journey to Chicago for the conference?
