The lovely Angie Hilem wrote a blog about live tweeting events after we attended <write/speak/code> together this weekend. She got me think about my secrets.

I’ve been live tweeting events for many years and have met so many people this way. I’ve made friends in Rome, Amsterdam, London, Tunis, Mexico, and Argentina.

Physically Connect

Early Bird

If you show up for an event early, tweet with the hashtag and see who else might be around. When the husband and I arrived the weekend before Strange Loop, we broadcasted that we wanted to spend the day exploring the city. We met up with several attendees and even an organizer who’s kinda a big deal.

Hallway Track

There are tons of options for impromptu meetups while at the conference. You can grab a section of wall, meet by a sculpture, or grab lunch. Tweet at someone who is tweeting about things you like to get the ball rolling.

That’s how I met Pam Selle before she moved to Philly.

Boost Others

It feels great to boost the signal of others at the conference. Retweet anything and everything that interests you. Replying to tweets is another excellent way to engage.

I use the Mac Twitter app and save a search of the hashtag. This search will also show up on your mobile device.

Sketch Notes

Try sketching your notes and tweeting the final product. The engagement with my image-based tweets was much higher than text-based tweets.

I was inspired by Chui-Ki Chan, Android conference partner in crime, to start this weekend. It was a lot of fun once I let go of the feeling that I can’t draw. As Chui-Ki puts it, I am illustrating — not creating a masterpiece.

Storify

Make a Storify after the event of your tweets and others that you enjoyed. It allows you to capture your notes in one place and craft a story.

You can do it for a particular session, the whole event, or even to bring different content types into one place.