CT Biz Blogs

On my to-do list since March has been to write about the upcoming SOBCon , put on by Liz Strauss and Phil Gerbyshak

It’s going to be in Chicago, on May 11 - 12. I just realized that the block of rooms reserved for this will be released today, so you have to move fast if you want to be at the convention hotel.

Having met Liz and read her blogs for years, I know she is one blogger who really gets it about creating relationships. Here’s what’s on the agenda at SOBCon:

Together we will strategize, discuss, and learn how to

• respect that in business and blogging all things are based in connecting relationships
• treat our blogs like a business, or a business-like hobby
• define a vision for our blogs that inspires others to be part of it
• identify like-minded bloggers whose blogging goals match our own
• evaluate our work through the eyes of a first time reader
• use links, trackbacks, and comments to lead to increased participation, extended reach, and relationships that could develop into business ventures
• ensure that navigation, in presentation, and in all reader experiences, is intuitive, simple, and elegant
• know our brand values as readers define them and be able to articulate the unique and remarkable values we offer
• understand basic tools that are useful in adding video, podcasting, social media, and voice commenting
• reach out beyond the blogosphere to nonblogging readers to become a resources they rely on
• recognize the traits and characteristics of a successful and outstanding blog

Presenters with specialized experience, will get the conversation started, and together presenters and attendees will work interact to get you where you need to go - to take your blogging to the next level.

What’s not to like? I think the price is reasonable for two days of learning, networking, and sharing ideas.

I’d be there if I could, and I think anyone who can make it should go. Speaking as someone who comes to blogging because of fascination with its technical aspects, I could sure use the info being shared at the con. You can learn more about successful and outstanding blogging in two days in Chicago than what some bloggers are taking years to figure out, if they do at all.

Technorati : SOBCon07

I went down to Podcamp NYC 2007 yesterday, April 7, and had a great time.

Valorie Luther, from Creative Concepts, gave a talk on Corporate Blogging, and I helped out by creating the presentation slides, and offering some tech support. Follow the link to the post on her blog, if you want to see the slides.

The audience was great, and Valorie is a fantastic public speaker. Anil Dash, from Six Apart, was in the audience. We had a brief conversation with him afterward, and hope to talk more in the future. He’s one of the bloggers I was reading early on, when I first started investigating the whole blogging world.

We didn’t have time to stay at the conference, but did manage to catch Adam Varga’s presentation on Building Dialog With Your Audience (using voicemail, message boards, and wikis). He is one sharp guy and really understands about building community! I came away with some good ideas and a better understanding of the technologies and issues in community building.

I was particularly struck by his points on the cons of using Wikis as a way to build community. Wikis don’t allow for a conversation, for responding to points, and it’s hard to see where the action is. You don’t see right away what’s new, what’s busy, where the latest info is. Wikis, I believe, are more of a way for an already established community to build something together. I think Etienne Wenger (who’s written a lot about communities of practice) calls that “reification.” In my understanding, for communities, reification means a documentation of already established actions, for reference and further action.

Adam did a great job and I hope he puts his notes up on his site. I’d put up mine from his talk, but I’m trying to be less delusional about how much time I actually have for things like that.

Yippee, I’m back. Gotta work on that whole work-life balance thing.