Why Upstate Social Sessions Was Tremendous
In October 2019, I had the pleasure of speaking at Upstate Social Sessions.
Upstate Social is the premier social media conference in Western New York; this year was their fifth year, and the event did not disappoint.
There was such a good atmosphere at the event.
350+ folks showed up eager to learn, network and share information about the world of social media.
As one of the speakers at the event, it was exciting to feel the energy in the room.
There is nothing better than speaking at an event with electric energy, and this was definitely one of those kinds of events.
Speaking on Stage:
I spoke on the Main Stage on the first day (October 3, 2019) of the two-day conference.
My talk was called “The Future of Marketing: Creating Connection in a World Cluttered with Content.”
The feedback that I received on the talk was tremendous!
Not only did I walk off stage with 60+ new Instagram followers, but I received dozens of mentions on social media referencing my talk and the value that attendees got from it.
One of the highlights of the event?
During the Q&A portion of my talk, someone from the audience stood up and thanked me for the content that I delivered.
They said “I guess I don’t really have a question. I feel inspired to make myself vulnerable right now and share, so thank you.”
I almost burst into tears.
Moments like that are exactly WHY I make myself as vulnerable as I do in my content.
My goal is to create content that truly connects us as humans.
I am proud to craft content about anxiety, depression, perfectionism, and comparison because I believe that this is the kind of stuff that really connects us.
We can all relate to these feelings, and it’s this content that when shared, has the power to create real relationships.
The main takeaways:
I was able to capture the majority of my talk on camera. (Word to the wise: be sure to charge your camera battery fully before your big speaking event.)
My camera battery *did*, unfortunately, die about 10-minutes before the talk finished, so I wanted to share the 5 main takeaways from the talk with you here so that you definitely walk away from this post with value:
- Humanize your marketing: Add more humanity into your marketing. Show the faces of the folks that work for your business. The more human you can be, the more engagement you’ll drive.
- Show you care: We all want to feel seen and heard. Make your followers feel that way! Spend time engaging consistently!
- Use self-awareness as a superpower: Figure out what you do best and what sets you apart, and infuse that into your marketing! My superpower is vulnerability.
- Consistency creates community: You have to show up consistently and provide value, in order to create a sense of community.
- Create something worth tuning into: I share exactly how to do that in the talk!
In the talk, I walk everyone through how to use my custom, 6-point system “the HUMANS system” to infuse more humanity into your marketing so that you can cut through the clutter and create real connections online.
If you’re looking for a speaker for your event or organization, I would LOVE to be there!
Please reach out and let me know how we might be able to work together to elevate the excitement and expertise of YOUR team today!