ShesConnected Conference 2012

Did you know Canada..  last year I SO enjoyed the ShesConnected Conference in Toronto, but with the baby on the way it was not possible to plan travelling and conference tickets when I did not know where we were going to be come conference time.  Thankfully the awesome folks at Canadian Beef offered us a conference pass and our fantastic Toronto Representative Faniya was able to attend the ShesConnected Conference for Did you know Canada?.  See how it went..

This year I was really lucky to attend Shes Connected Conference 2012 in Toronto to represent Did you know Canada? I prepared in advance for this event including my grey outfit and learning in details the Conference schedule, but everything did not go as smooth as I expected. I became sick before the Conference so party evenings were closed for me but anyway I think I did a good job by attending the sessions and meeting brands. So my advice is do not get sick before the Conference.

I liked the Kate White session a lot; I think it was the first one that took my serious attention, two points still sit in my mind: first one - Go Big or Go Home and second one - Ask if you want to get it (may be these are not exact words, just how I got it). It was great to learn from Author, Career Expert, Speaker & Former Editor-In-Chief, Cosmopolitan Magazine.

Another interesting session I found was Claiming Blog Income: Blogger Compensation session, you can also get their free tax Guide at www.shoeboxbegone.com/sccto, great resources to find out about blogger’s business expenses.

I had a really good experience talking to the brands; I found it was one of the most exciting parts of the Conference.  Canadian Beef our sponsor to the Conference with nice booth and friendly people.  Almond Fresh with tasty drinks, Maple Leaf with lots of product we love to talk about.  We tried IOGO yogurt, played games with Elephoto and CAA, escaped with Ford after posing with Ford cars.  And everyone was so excited to get our Mabel's Labels “I LOVE CANADA” teeny tag.

One of my favorites was the Molson workshop about beer, cheese and luxury. So here’s what I learned and love to share: Molson M paired with Oka Classique, Rickards’s White paired with Brie, Molson Canadian 67 Sublime paired with Spicy Monterey Jack. Our beer was served in special beer glasses which everyone received (two of them) to take home after the session.

McCafe Lounge was so welcoming and cosy, I did not want to leave this place with pampering stations and live music.

So these were fantastic days to spend: to learn, network and communicate, plus every attendee received a generous swag bag in addition to brands gifts. I absolutely love my Ford T-shirt, a bag of organic wild Canadian rice and Molson’s beer glasses.

Now I am still looking through the material I received at the Conference, trying to apply what I learned for example legal aspects of blogging or visual elements.  And of course, looking forward to the next year ShesConnected in Vancouver, hope to take the most of it.

Faniya
Teddy Out-Ready