Attending a conference? Do this.

I’m writing this at the start of the American Evaluation Association’s national conference.

Unfortunately it’s another year that I won’t be attending. But I want to pass some advice to all of you who attend conferences like this one with hopes of building both your skills and your professional reputation.

It’s time to think beyond the physical space, networking opportunities, and personal connections.

First, the secret.

For every conference that draws thousands of people to a physical space somewhere in the world, there are lots of people (in the same network) who won’t be present. That potential audience could be 10 times, or even a hundred times, the number of participants that show up live.

This is an opportunity.

My evaluation comics started drawing an audience because I drew them and shared them during evaluation conferences that I attended. And the comics, along with associated blog posts, carried with them a snapshot of the lessons learned during the live conference.

Because even if it feels like there are lots of people at the conference, there are more people on the outside looking in. And these people are often hoping to learn a little by extension.

Here are some ways that you can leverage your participation at a conference to help amplify lessons learned, while also boosting your own reputation.

1. Turn your presentations into blog posts.

This can be a really quick win. Chances are, if you are presenting, you spent a lot of time thinking through and planning that presentation. Take the opportunity to turn it into a blog post. And if you don’t have a blog, you can write a LinkedIn article.

I know I’ve done this before, but I couldn’t find an example when writing this. So here is a guest post written by Kylie Hutchinson based on her experiences at the 2011 evaluation conference.

2. Turn your presentation into a YouTube video.

As you’re practicing your presentation, turn on your mobile phone selfie style, and create a recording. If it’s a long presentation, give a shortened version. Then upload to YouTube to share.

Want to see my first ever AEA presentation? Here it is…

3. Amplify other people’s presentations with social posts.

Attend presentations, and then share your takeaways on social. It doesn’t have to be much, just a simple post on LinkedIn. You can also tag the presenters and hashtag the conference.

4. Ask your fellow attendees questions, take a picture, then make a small infographic to share.

This is a strategy that can also help you network, even if you’re an introvert like me.

Pick some interesting questions based on your background. Then ask everyone you meet that question and take their picture (if they let you). After that, put each question & answer, with the photo, onto a slide sized image in Canva or PowerPoint. Now you have a bunch of original infographics to share.

5. Simply document your experience for others who can’t make it live.

The most valuable parts of a conference are not always the presentations or workshops. I always got most value from personal conversations and connections with peers. There can be long days, and it can be exhausting, but simply documenting your experience can provide value for all the people who won’t be there live.

What else am I missing?

Do you have any suggestions for turning a personal conference experience into something that can be shared more broadly? Let me know in the comments.