Podcamp Montreal is behind us and after having a day or so to reflect on my experience I have a few observations. 

Day 2 of Podcamp was just as captivating as Day 1. I did only manage to attend a couple of sessions, but what I experienced was well worth it. 

C.C. Chapman and Mitch Joel did a compelling open-concept session about creating quality content. They covered everything from how to record good audio to the best way to interview people. Since I’m a video person, a lot of the tips were things I already knew. However, something really interesting struck me about their conversation, which, by the way, you can hear a portion of on the most recent episode of Mitch’s podcast Six Pixels of Separation. 

Podcasting is truly evolving (sorry Rob Blatt – I don’t think it’s dead either!). Back in 2006 when I attended Podcamp Toronto, almost every session had to do with monetization of podcasts and blogs. Everyone was touting the next great business model for making dough in social media. Well, in 2 years, we’ve learned a lot.

These days, people are definitely still interested in making money – but the emphasis has changed entirely. Now, conversations are centred around creating technically sound, content rich podcasts that build loyal followings of fans. The means of making cash is changing – podcasters and bloggers alike are realizing that by producing compelling content they can not only achieve a loyal fan base that is attractive to advertisers, they can attract potential clients who may enlist them to produce a similar type of quality product.

The other session I attended on Day 2 was with the always entertaining Julien Smith. At first, I felt a bit like I was at a rock concert rather than a presentation, as the crowd whooped and cheered as Julien was introduced. Julien’s gaming analogy drew people in right away, as he discussed how people need to up their game to become agents of trust in the social media space. Social capital is the “currency of the web” as he says, and being a trust agent means you are out there building that capital; by banding together, sharing, lifting each other up, and making the community work better for everyone. In the end, it’s all about people. Julien is writing a book on the subject of trust agents with Chris Brogan, and based on how engaged the audience at this session was, I am willing to bet that the book is going to be a resounding success (You heard it here first, folks – ha ha ha ha :-))

Aside from the terrific sessions I attended during this un-conference, the best part for me was being able to see old friends, like Jay Moonah and Bob Goyetche, and finally meeting some pals I’ve known only online until now, like the aforementioned C.C. Chapman and Rob Blatt. I also had a chance to meet some new people, like Dana (aka Wankergirl), Scarborough Dude and Sean from Akoha, and I look forward to getting to know them better as time goes on. 

Overall, Podcamp Montreal, in my opinion, was a wildly successful event, due in no small part to the hard work of the organizing committee, the many volunteers, and the generous support of lots of terrific sponsors.

I am officially hooked on Podcamps, and you will definitely see me lurking about at many more in the months to come. Hope to see you there!

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Day 1 of Podcamp Montreal was a resounding success. The energy of this event is phenomenal…people are really enthusiastic and the whole place just seems to be a buzz of activity and creatitivity.

The presentations yesterday were really terrific. Sylvain Grand’Maison told us how to not suck. He gave some awesome tips to content creators, pointing out some obvious and not so obvious ways to help ensure the quality of the content you are putting out, whether it be a podcast, a blog, or a tweet, is up to snuff. What I want to know is, where did he get that fabulous green font???

Unfortunately due to some work stuff that came up, I had to forego the session with Mitch Joel and David Usher. But the room was absolutely bulging to the seams, so I get the distinct impression it was a valuable session.

Connie Crosby and Eden Spodek of the Community Divas podcast put on a great little talk about how they have developed their podcast. These lovely ladies are new to podcasting. They spoke highly of their podcasting mentor, Jay Moonah, and in addition to passing on some great advice they’ve gotten from people, they also weren’t afraid to put questions to the audience, to find out how other people do things. This just proves the community theory of social media. Podcamps provide a safe, open forum where people don’t have to be afraid to ask questions if they don’t know something – even the presenters. The community is there to help. They do not judge. Use their wisdom, people!!

The day was capped off with a terrific chit chat facilitated by Jay Moonah on Old Media vs. New Media. As someone coming from an “Old Media” background, this is a topic I am quite passionate about. Like Jay, I believe that in order to know where we are going we need to know where we come from. It’s something I’m trying to pass onto my college class. The conversation (which included Mitch Joel, Bob Goyetche, and several others whose names escape me) revolved around how new media creators really “fit” into the media world. Is old media dead? Or is it just evolving, to encompass the changing landscape, where everyman can be the journalist. That’s a blog post for another time, but suffice it to say that there are vast and varied opinions on how we as the new media creators fit in. It was a great conversation and I wish it could have gone on for another hour or two!

Last night I was privileged to spend the evening at dinner with Cheryl (aka Fendergurl on Twitter), Allan Isfan, Dana (aka. WankerGirl on Twitter), Gavin (aka Gavin1980 on Twitter),  Sean Power from Akoha, and Christine from Miami. We ate at The Three Amigos on St. Denis and it was delicious!

Afterwards we walked around a bit and ended up at the Podcamp party at Benelux, where the DJ’s were spinning Duran Duran and the beer was micro-brewed and yummy.

The common theme of this Podcamp is really about us, as content creators, finding our voice. We have built communities, produced podcasts, personally branded ourselves, and now we are ready for the rest of the world to find out about us. I think the questions that will be answered over the next while are, “Where do we really fit in?” and “How do we expand the community beyond the tech-geek, early adopter communities?”.

Looking forward to Day 2, and exploring more ideas with all of you.

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So after a hectic day of work, my friend Cheryl (@fendergurl on Twitter) and I arrived in Montreal about 9pm last night, and, after getting quite lost and literally intuiting our way to the hotel, we headed for La Quincaillerie, where the opening night party was going down. We were starving, and not in the mood for poutine (hey, we’re from Ottawa – we get to eat that stuff all the time!). However, we decided to make a brief appearance at the bar to see who was lurking about.

We were greeted warmly by Mark Blevis, who proceeded to tour us around a large table to meet some of our fellow podcampers (how DOES he remember everyone’s name!!!). I’m sorry if I don’t remember all your names yet, but hopefully by the end of the weekend I will!

After ducking out for a bit to eat at Caféo down the street, we came back to a packed bar with all sorts of people milling about. It was terrific to meet up with Jay Moonah and Bob Goyetche again, since last time I saw those two was at Podcamp Toronto over 2 years ago! What was also exciting about last night was I finally got to meet some long-time Internet friends in person, like C.C. Chapman and Rob Blatt. What fun!

Anyway, we headed home to our cosy little hotel room and are rested up for day 1. I look forward to meeting and talking with my fellow campers in what promises to be a fun filled 2 days!

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I am heading to Podcamp Montreal this weekend. It’s only my 2nd Podcamp, and I’m really excited to be going. My first Podcamp was in Toronto in 2006, and I attended pretty much on a whim. I was going down to Toronto to visit a friend anyway, and thought it might be an interesting way to spend some time in the Big Smoke. We figured we had nothing to lose, since it was free, and besides, if it was boring, we could always go shopping. 

Little did I know the life altering impact that one little un-conference would have on my life. I’ve made a pile of amazing new friends, made long-term business connections and, I learned the power that we as a community have to really shape the way people are communicating now and in the future. THAT really blew me away. 

I’ve noticed something interesting about how Podcamps have evolved over the past 2 years. 2 years ago, nearly every session on the schedule had SOMETHING to do about how to make money in podcasting and social media. The business models were numerous and diverse – everyone seemed to have the next best way to make a buck with this new medium. 

Podcamp Montreal has a very different flavour. As I review the impressive schedule, I see a very distinct shift in focus. Here’s a sampling:

• Why the Future is Always Too Far (Technologically Speaking) : 10 Tech Trends You Need To Understand As Social Media Masters with Sylvain Carle
• Please Don’t Suck! with Sylvain Grand’Maison
• Using Twitter to Monitor and Build Your Personal Brand – with Adele McAlear
• Podcasting From The Heart – The Value Of Recording A Show With No Editing And No Second Takes with C.C. Chapman and Mitch Joel
• The Self, the Identity and the Internet with Isabelle Lopez

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