Heading to Content Marketing World for the first time? Or perhaps even the third time like myself?

A few days before I left for my first trip to the event two years ago, I scoured the web for advice but still felt a bit unprepared for the conference. I had an amazing three days (yes, I know that word is overused, but it really fits in this case). I made new friends, learned a lot about content and came back wanting to save the world – well, the content marketing world, that is. And then last year, I felt like I knew the ropes, but I still felt like I was still finding my way, especially since I was a speaker. It’s a fantastic conference, but it’s so bad with so much going on that it can be a bit overwhelming.

With many new attendees this year, I wanted to share what I learned the last two years:

1. Download and use the conference app. Not only is the Content Marketing World app great for telling you where your next session is located, it also contains valuable networking information. You can also communicate with other attendees. I know that last year a group of running enthusiasts met up through app and went for a daily run along the river before sessions each day.

The app lists all the attendees along with basic information, such as where they are from and their employer. You can also use it to share more detailed contact information (email, phone, etc.) with specific attendees by connecting through the app. I found it to be very valuable when I had a quick conversation with someone but forgot to get their last name or card. This way I was able to search on the app and usually find out who I had been talking to so I could follow up on LinkedIn. This ended up saving me when I left all of the business cards I collected in the hotel room when I left for the airport, but that’s another post in itself.

2. Follow and Tweet #CMWorld. Hanging out on the Twitter hashtag is a good idea for any conference, but especially so with Content Marketing World, since it’s a gathering of a bunch of marketers who use social media for a living. And–bonus–you will learn about many unofficial gatherings and happy hours hosted during the conference. The free food and drinks last year were great, but the contacts I made during the happy hours I learned about on Twitter were definitely longer lasting.

The #CMWorld hashtag is very active, so get tweeting. Last year I met two content marketers on my flight out of Raleigh headed to Cleveland two years ago all because I checked #CMWorld while waiting to board and saw someone else was posting from the same gate.

3. Find your own networking strategy. Going to conferences is a bit nerve-racking for me. My goal is always to meet people, but it can be intimidating to get the conversation started. Last year, I found that the round tables set up during meals and breaks were a great place to start conversations. I would find a table that had an open spot, ask if it was OK to join them, and then set my coffee, muffin or whatever yummy snack was in my hand down on the table.

The other strategy that worked for me was to get to sessions a little early and ask the person sitting next to me what the best session they had attended so far was. Almost every person had an answer, and I learned a lot and made some new friends. The trick for those of us for whom networking does not come naturally is to figure out what feels comfortable.

4. Attend all the related events. I was surprised when other attendees told me that they didn’t go to the opening night party, cocktail hours, or the concert. Yes, the sessions are interesting and educational, but the events are honestly the best source of networking. And they are a lot of fun. The opening event by one of my favorite clients, Skyword, is always one of the highlights (and the food is always good.) One of the best contacts I made the first year was when I gave a leftover drink ticket to someone at the Bare Naked Ladies concert. And last year, I made some friends I have kept in touch with after my colleague held up a sign at the Cheap Trick concert and got a shout out.

5. Eat all meals and snacks onsite. Normally conference food is boring, bland, and unhealthy. But the food at CMWorld the past two years was fantastic. The frittatas at breakfast were tasty, lunch was a wide variety of gourmet sandwiches, and the snacks between sessions were yummy – can you tell I like to eat? My favorite last year was the orange sherbet break – yes, you will eat more orange food than you ever thought possible during this event.

Instead of eating breakfast before heading to the conference or scheduling an offsite lunch, be sure to eat the yummy meals that are included in the conference. Yes, I know that I just used yummy three times in this post, but hey, the food was that much of a highlight for me last year. And don’t forget to check the vendor floor for morning and afternoon snacks as well.

6. Make a coffee (or lunch) meetup with someone you connect with. Sometimes everything is such a rush or a blur that it seems like all the conversations happen on fast forward. If there is someone that you connect with at the opening party over a common content marketing challenge, see if they want to meet up with you later. I often think of the networking at the conference as the opening line. But to turn it into a real relationship, you have to get to know the person more than the 3 minutes after a session. What better way to do it than during the conference.

7. Don’t overwhelm your boss with all of your new ideas when you get back. I learned this the hard way the first year. I called my biggest client on the way home from the airport last year and talked for 25 minutes without taking a breath about all the new ways I wanted to improve their content. She humored me and luckily she is still my client.

8. Go to the keynotes. I was surprised at how many people miss the keynotes. And I honestly think that is a huge mistake. The majority of the keynotes at CMW are fantastic, even the one’s you don’t expect. Last year, I almost missed Michael Jr’s talk because I didn’t think it was something I would find interesting. However, I have thought about his message of Find Your Why many times in the last year, and I can honestly say it was life changing. And the year before I was moved to tears when Rajiv Chandrasekara spoke about moving from being a Washington Post reporter to a content marketer with Starbucks.

What are your best tips for the event? First-time attendees – any questions that veteran attendees can answer?