Three things I learned in BrightonSEO 2019

As soon as my first BrightonSEO came to an end, I realised I had to write a blog post about my experience. Not only because it’s been ages since I’ve written, but also because I had been looking forward to this event.

This was the fourth time I had tickets, but the very first one I was able to attend it. In the past, I had donated my tickets to other people, unable to attend because of work or personal trips. Also, the last April Brighton SEO session happened to be on Easter. And yes, I was travelling!

So, was it good? Yes, it was! What did I learnt? Let’s see…

I know more of SEO than I thought

Am I too hard on myself? I don’t think it’s a matter of being too modest, but, instead, being a little insecure sometimes. The fact is, I hadn’t realised I knew a lot about SEO until I attended some of these talks.

On the one hand, I was able to understand everything (which doesn’t always happen when you don’t have a technical background. Exactly my case). Also, I found some of the talks too simplistic and closer to a sales pitch than an educational talk. I’m critically analysing the talks. Hello, ego!

According to the comments of other professionals, I’m not the only one who thinks this. There’s nothing wrong with trying to sell your work and the positive outcomes of it, I think. What’s your view on this?

Back to the topic, I was super proud of myself. All those hours invested in reading articles online, all those talks with Rachael at work… all that has finally paid off. I won’t bore you with the technical stuff. Truth is, I still have to keep working on learning, but I am more encouraged to do so.

Social Marketers and SEO Geeks are clearly differentiated personalities… or do they?

I mostly attended talks on PR and SEO. Why would a Social Media manager prefer to attend PR and SEO talks like I did? Well, because I want to learn more about these two huge areas of marketing. I already read about Social Media and I’m sure I’ll go through the Social Media talks online at some point.

There’s something I noticed. SEO talks were crowded, but, as soon as they finished, everyone left the room and little or no questions were made. Even when there were questions, people were leaving the room and they were anything but quiet. How rude, right?

When I attended a Social Media talk in the afternoon, I realised everyone was chatty and loads of questions were asked at the end of the session. Nobody left while the experts answered them. There was a different vibe in the room.

Are Social Media geeks more sociable and chatty than SEO geeks? Sure they are! I want to appreciate, though, that PR people seem to be something in between, which is something I felt very pleased to find out.

And talking about PR…

My previous idea of how a PR note works is totally wrong

What on Earth was I thinking? Truth said, my PR skills are limited. I was interested in PR when I was doing my Masters degree, but then I went into Social Media, then SEO, and I think I lost track of what’s going on in the PR world.

Luckily, the talk of Carrie Rose opened my eyes. I have scheduled a meeting with my Marketing Director and the Marketing team to discuss a new action plan. To use Carrie’s words, we need to create ‘Sexy AF’ PR pitches in order to land sexy AF links. AF meaning As Fuck. Pardon my French.

I don’t know if I’ll be there for BrightonSEO 2019, but I’m sure going to do my best to put into practice everything I’ve learnt with a new positive attitude.

Did you also go to BrightonSEO 2019? What did you learn at BrightonSEO 2019?