I’ll betcha didn’t you were going to have to hear the word bulimia again after I’d finished my presentation, did ya? This morning, I’m putting myself first

As I always do…Selfishness is a strategic business asset. Don’t delude yourself. On a side note: have you ever woken up in the morning and wondered – when did I turn into a pubescent, acne-plagued teen? I spent 20 minutes this morning looking for my Clearasil and was staring lovingly at a bottle of lighter fluid when the Clearasil eluded me…

and putting out my redux of Chicks Who Click Denver 2010. Saturday rocked my world. Admittedly, I didn’t know what to expect when Denise Smith asked me to be a speaker. My first thought was: people want to hear what I have to say? Even if they didn’t, it looked like I was on the slate. Shit howdy, let’s rock it.

I lurved meeting everyone throughout the day and will admit that I completely suck all sortsa things at remembering names. Poke me, prod me, lob softballs over my Twitter and Facebook fences. Remind me how we met and let me know where you live online!

Melanie Mills started the day off with a humbling and energetic jolt to the core: who are you, how do you operate and…what shape are you? I’m kinda hourglass and if I eat too many cream puffs, more pear than anything. But I digress. I’m a squiggle. A fun-loving squiggle FTMFW! She’s NOT a motivational speaker, ladies. She’s a motivator because of who she is and what she brings to the table. It’s rare I’m rallied by a speech (hence, my question as to whether anyone wanted to hear what I had to say), but Melanie made me laugh, smile…and think. Damn her, it was barely 9AM and she was making me think. Loved it.

Up next? POTTY BREAK! It was evident that The Curtis Hotel had seen me coming and wanted to see how long I could hold it (as it’s evident I wasn’t allowed in this stall). To spite them, I used the next stall, peed on the seat and then left the seat UP. Erika: 1. Curtis Hotel: 0.

Shelly Kramer was first up after our group pee. Fabulous in a cocktail dress, sweater and boots, she’s the kind of woman I could meet for coffee with a dog in my lap and a cowboy hat on my head. I’d shared off-color email banter with her (shocker) in a thread that went awry the night previous and was fairly sure she was my f-bomb soulmate – I was really looking forward to what she had to share. Key takeaways? Interview your clients – don’t just let them interview you. Dive in. Have a plan. Poop sharks are part of daily living and bring your personality to the table when it comes to social media. People love people. Know what you know, ask questions and get the answers to what you don’t know. Be. Real.

Misty Montano of Channel 4 here in Denver rocked it seven different ways during her presentation, sparking a great dialogue and mini-debate on the media’s role in reporting the news. Broadcast versus commentary – fact versus opinion. If you’re in Denver and you haven’t connected with Misty on Twitter, she’s a vibrant personality that’s doing new and innovative things when it comes to getting the news, breaking the news, and sharing the news with our local community. And through Twitter, she’s taking local news international. High five, girl!

A huge thanks to Noodles & Company for the killer schwag bag and for sponsoring the day’s festivities. They shared with us over lunch some details about their marketing philosophy and how they were growing and entering into the social media space. While I think they’ve missed the boat by leaving Twitter out of their strategy to-date, I have no doubt they’ll hop on board soon enough and see what a kickass marketing plan can do in conjunction with a great Facebook following and satisfying in-store experience.

And then – I spoke. I won’t rehash my preso in my own blog about the event, so if you want to see the post on which my presentation was based, read it here: Twitter – Multiple Personality Management Without Medication. I’ve also posted the slides if you’d like to have a run-through again (if the toilet bowl images weren’t clear enough the first time around). Again, my door is open for any questions. My contact information is on the last slide of the presentation as well. Reach out, I’ll help in any way I can! (And again, I apologize for the “plethora of penises” image on the opening slide. This is why my mother told me to not procrastinate. Everything looks good at 11pm on iStock the night before a presentation…) And to answer one question I don’t think I adequately answered during the event: How do you manage lists using HootSuite? I’ll also give you the list of tools we discussed during my presentation for online efficiency:

HootSuite.com – manage Twitter, Facebook personal profiles, Facebook Fan Pages and LinkedIn from on portal

Twellow.com – great tool for finding followers by keyword

TweepML.com – online resource for building private online lists of Twitter users (thanks @ShellyKramer and @Greeblemonkey)

Twitter Karma – my favorite resource for quickly following, unfollowing, and blocking on Twitter. A cool once-a-month clean-up tool.

If any of you have additional resources to share, add a comment below. The more tools you have to choose from, the better. You’ll find your groove and what works for you.

I was completely humbled by the day’s “mommy blogger” panel (@greeblemonkey, @Crazycanuckblog, @oliviaomega, and moderator @fruitlady). If you think that these mommy bloggers are nothing but Tide Brides, think again. From family safety to online privacy, handling pitches with integrity to how they balance the blessings and related curses of being working mothers with young children, I relished each and every part of the panel. Advice from a redhead: hug a mommy blogger. And then high five ‘em.

The day wrapped up with the #morebangable @tarable (Tara Anderson of Lijit) who took us on a rollicking journey of social media lessons learned through sit coms. While Melanie Mills had us searching for our ideal shape, Tara had us singing the theme songs from TV gems like Small Wonder and Growing Pains. She always kicks a lot of ass and if you’re not using Lijit on YOUR blog (it’s FREE – doh!), give her an @ on Twitter. Truth: we’ve got a hawt lunch date on February 5th to discuss integrating Lijit into my blog. Yeeha!

A huge shout to Denise Smith for organizing Chicks Who Click. The details for the next conference (Omaha! Woooo!) are already up on the website. Here are just a few reasons I’m glad that Chicks is around:

• Social media in your own backyard. After the conference, you have local connections and resources – not just speakers who fly in and fly away.
• A whole day with everyone on the same page - no breakout sessions means the benefit of group discussions and big thoughts bouncing around in one room.
• Real people – learn from people just like you. We’re all real and part of the beauty of social media is that it’s the perfect place for YOU to be.
• The Right Money - Under $250 for 8 hours of conversation and collaboration with no consternation! That’s $30 per hour (including lunch and assorted schwag). If your business isn’t worth $30/hour…

GO GET A DAMNED TACO!

Again, thank you for giving The Redhead the chance to offend you and making me feel like I’m not just a crazy lady with a keyboard. Share Chicks with your friends…even if they’re technically Dicks.