For the next two days I will be joining a core group of Web, social and content marketing influencers at the Inbound Marketing Summit (IMS) Boston. I will be networking with peers and watching presentations to share in the latest digital media trends affecting today’s business climate.
As I prepared for IMS I couldn’t help but think back to the last marketing conference I went to, and I what I wanted to change in my networking approach for this event. About a year and a half ago I attended the Agents of Change Digital Marketing Conference. At the time I had only been in social media marketing for about 6 months and had preconceived notions of how my counterparts would dress for the event. While most attendees wore either business or business casual attire with a jacket, I showed up in jeans and an oxford shirt. I had always worn a suit to previous conferences or trade shows, and immediately regretted my decision to take a more casual approach.
Granted people probably didn’t even notice, but to be a successful networker you need confidence. Nothing ruins your confidence faster than realizing you are unprepared or underdressed. I’m not the most outgoing person in the world to begin with, so suffice it to say I wasn’t at the top of my networking game. This is a mistake I won’t make again and got me thinking of an old Deion Sanders quote from a blog by Sales Manager, Mark Agostinelli.
“If you look good, you feel good. If you feel good, you play good. If you play good, they pay good.”
– NFL Hall-of-Famer Deion “Prime Time” Sanders
I’m looking forward to learning a lot over the next couple of days, and NOT being underdressed this time. If you’re a marketer in this space I encourage you to come join me!
