OK. I just got back from the Legal Marketing Association’s annual conference. Wow. What a great time. The educational opportunities were incredible. The networking phenomenal. The ideas from the exhibit hall inspiring. So, before you shut your door and start replying to all the e-mails and voicemails that have backed up, take a time out. I don’t care if it’s just a half an hour, or half a day, but you MUST pause and collect your thoughts and capture your experiences before you move on. Here are a THREE minimal things you can do today so you don’t lose the VALUE of the conference:

  1. Grab all those business cards you collected and start connecting on LinkedIn. I actually did this on the plane last night, and it was great. Don’t use the standard message, but type something personal. You’re building your network, after all, it’d be nice to be memorable. If we’re not connected on LinkedIn, send me an invite from here.
  2. Write a quick marketing recap for your notes or the PTB. What great ideas inspired you, and what do you need to move forward? For instance, I love the idea from the GC panel that there is value to them when we listen for their corporate messages in press and across the social web. OK. Now what? Well, Manzama has a great “social listening” product that will allow you to do that.
  3. Walk the halls and show your enthusiasm. I’m tired too, and I also have a lot of work to catch up on, but I’ve already popped into a couple offices, shared that not only am I back (sans tan, by the way), but I learned a lot, I’m excited, and I’ll share more later. And, then follow up and share more with them later, after you’ve caught up on your e-mails, voice-mails, and put out those fires.

Way too often I leave what I learned at a conference on the tarmac and jump right back into the office where I left off. Not this year … I’m capturing that enthusiasm and I’m going to use it to keep me motivated until we meet again in Dallas for LMA 2012!