She's Connected Conference 2011

I was on the way to Toronto in my brother's vehicle, running everything through my head from 'Did I bring everything I needed?' to 'I'm so nervous. I hope I'm not sitting alone in the corner somewhere."

Something about being in a room with 199 other women that you've never met in real life, have similar goals as you do, and meeting top brands that you hope to connect with is sure to make even the most confident break a sweat.  I'm talking about the She's Connected Conference that I was humbly invited to on September 29th to September 30th  which took place in The Sheraton Centre on Queen St East in Toronto.

Upon check-in, I was warmly greeted by one of the ladies I chat with every now and then on Twitter who was also checking in and to be honest, that turned down my heartbeat notch a little bit.

I was pumped and ready to network and connect. Much like what we do online, but this time, face-to-face.

Sheraton Centre impressed by not only upgrading my room but also having one ready for me to settle into instead of having to wait another hour or so.

My room was cozy and my view was spectacular! And hello Starbucks coffee and Tazo tea! :)

As soon as I got myself settled in, I headed downstairs to the conference hall to register and start connecting.

It was fantastic. The exhibit hall was large and the different brands were strategically placed around the room. We were given a brand passport to keep track of all the brands that were present to ensure we didn't miss any. I met some great brands and was so excited to meet Christine Cushing, host of Fearless in the Kitchen. She was pleasant and personable and did I mention she was giving out her new EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) and delicious pasta sauces? Yum! 

I also had the opportunity to learn more about our fantastic sponsor, Ford, and the new technology they have to offer in their vehicles. They had car-aoke! I didn't sing but I watched others do it and it was hilarious. I was able to park "hands-free" which was uber awesome! So cool and such  great features. Oh, and the navigation system they offer is one thing that hubby would definitely benefit from. Shh, don't tell him I said that. He seems to think he's got the directions thing down. 

We received custom conference shirts so we can identity one another better. They fit and felt comfortable and looked fab! Great way to remember the conference down the years, that's for sure.

Many of the great brands that were there were offering take-away swag to the attendee's which was fantastic. More-so because it offers us the opportunity to sample what their brand/name has to offer and of course to remember them by. I was also intrigued to learn more about LGFB.ca which stands for Look Good Feel Better. They believe that an improved self-image can help lift women that are fighting illnesses spirits and nurture hope with greater confidence. Look Good Feel Better is Canada’s only cancer charity dedicated to empowering women to manage the effects that cancer and its treatment have on their appearance, and often on their morale. Over 100,000 women have been helped through their workshop and services.

Once the conference started, I was lucky to be sitting at a table of smart and savvy women bloggers, all with very different backgrounds and careers. Two of which were brands, and the others were strictly bloggers, some with focused career, others SAHM's and WAHM's like me.
We had the opportunity to hear from Ford's Sheryl Connelly discuss Global Trends. It was very informative. We also had some fun taking part in some group work and exercises helping us connect with one another.
I promise to write a separate post on the amazing things I learned from the speakers.

Unfortunately, on top of me still recovering from a stomach bug and still feeling under the weather, my daughter who was graciously under the care of my mother for the night, was feeling very sick and wanting mommy, so I had to leave before lunch on Friday. But before I left, I was glad I was able to catch Elisa Camahort Page, COO and Co-Founder of Blogher, speak and learned a great wealth of information in relation to blogging, engaging bloggers/brands and utilizing social media effectively.  Also, thanks to twitter, I was always informed and caught up on what I was missing through my timeline.

Overall, being my first conference, I was very impressed and happy to have been able to experience such a great conference connecting me to other digital women and fantastic brands that understand the importance of social media marketing and building brand enthusiasm by working with their largest consumers -- women!

Oh, and did I mention I won two SCCTO giveaways? One from Purdy's Chocolate and a gift basket from PTPA! Woohoo! :)

Thank you to Donna Marie Antoniadis, Co-Founder & COO of She's Connected, and the team of She's Connected for the opportunity and organizing such a great event.

On a side note, check out my view at night from my room! AH-mazing!