Cybermummy 2011 Meet & Greet

I can't believe we are almost halfway through the year or that CyberMummy 2011 is already this weekend.  For the non-bloggers out there, this is the second year of this UK parent blogging conference where bloggers get to put faces to names/words, exchange ideas about blogging and just generally chit chat.  Huggies has kindly sponsored my ticket for the second year running and I'm looking forward to another good, inspiring day out.

Carly at Mummy's Shoes has again organized a 'Meet and Greet' to help those of us going recognize each other so here are my "stats":

Name: Tanya
Blog: Bump2Basics
Twitter ID: @Bump2Basics
Height: 5ft 1" but will be in a small heel
Hair: Long Brown
Eyes: Brown
Likes: Talking, morning scrums, running, Pilates, fine wine, long walks, adventure, writing
Dislikes:  Milk, being condescended to, ugly words

Please come say hi, you can tell I like to chat!  This photo is a little deceptive because my hair is tied back and is actually quite long but this is the most recent, close-up shot that I have of me.....LLC gets most of the camera time around here these days, thankfully!!

CyberMummy Snapshot

This weekend I attended the exciting, emotional and informative whirlwind that was CyberMummy. The UK parenting blogging community is no doubt well established, and this premier mummy blogging conference only served to take this presence to a new level.

Thank you CyberMummy organizers for a fun and interesting day; thank you Huggies for sponsoring my ticket and all your support and attention throughout the event.

So what did I take away from this hotpot of blogger networking and blogging chitchat? A lot, but here are the things that stood out for me:

• Networking never felt so good – I’ve done my fair share of networking through work and it can be strained and a real effort. I’m really struck by how open and friendly our blogging community was in the flesh; conversation easily flowed; people seemed genuinely happy to be there.
• Good content is more than just good writing – Honest content that others can relate to or discuss emerged as a key ingredient to “good content” and served as a reminder forget the mass blogosphere out there and just keep it real.
• Copyright issues extend to music – Obvious, right?, but I hadn’t considered that by linking a YouTube video to my blog I could be creating copyright fraud.
• Social networking is vital if you want your blog published –I didn’t recognize how important a strong online social networking presence is when pitching a book to publishers as a new author.
• Tactically placed keywords enable SEO (Search Engine Optimization) – Be proactive in building your audience; think about the keywords that will deliver users to your blog. Search engines look at your keywords based on density, frequency, prominence, proximity and semantic reinforcement.
• Crowdsourced Keynotes rock - the day's final roundup of posts from bloggers themselves proved an emotional and striking reminder of the strength, widsom and humor to be found in the blogging world - a real reminder of why I enjoy dabbling in this big pond in the first place. 

A small snapshot, but to me a vital one from a fab day. My only regret is that I didn’t get to meet everyone that I’d hoped to!

CyberMummy Here I Come

I didn't understand the massive scope of the blogosphere when I began blogging.  I naively didn't recognize the force that is the parent blogging community on both sides of the Atlantic.

This was probably a good thing to start, as it allowed me to actually start writing and blogging rather than spend hours delving into other blog content.  I re-discovered my writing and established a blogging rhythm of some sort.  And then I stepped off the deep end into the blogosphere.  It's been a thought provoking and inspiring leap. 

The 2010 CyberMummy Conference is a testament to the UK parent blogging tribe that I now mix with.  It's an opportunity to talk blogging, exchange tips with and meet the characters behind my Google Reader.  I really wanted to attend yet at £100.00/ticket the price was a bit steep for my maternity leave budget.  

You can thus imagine my excitement when Huggies contacted me out of the blue and offered to sponsor my pace at CyberMummy.  I've graciously accepted and look forward to this eye and mind opening event.  Thank you Huggies.