FinCon is one of my favorite professional events of the year. I remember attending for the first time in Denver, Colorado with a whopping 200 attendees (maybe less). That was 2012. Now, it’s eight years later and the event hosts thousands of attendees. It has also changed as the attendees and community has changed. And, I believe that’s a good thing. Change happens. Let’s be clear: FinCon, in my opinion, is a marketing conference for people in the personal finance space. These people are marketing content to their communities and changing lives along the way. Given the event’s growth, it’s important for attendees to be thoughtful about how they approach it. Don’t just show up, have a strategy. If you’re planning on going to Fincon 2020 (or any other large conference) this episode will help you break down a strategy to make a large event small, grow your brand, and have fun at the same time. Yes, it’s possible. I’ve recorded shows similar to this one, but I wanted to be transparent about what I’m doing for FinCon 2020 and hopefully give YOU ideas of what you could do to own your next FinCon experience.
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Listen to the Show
Show Notes
- Your year long goals (Vision Board!) should align with your conference strategy.
- I’ve already worked out what events I would like to attend next year. Why did I do this so early?
- They cost money!
- Trying to manage my time and energy
- I want to make sure that I’m able to pitch the events that I would like to present at-without rushing.
- Have realistic expectations about what the conference can do for you and what you can make happen in that small period of time. Some actions and results will require more time-hence my year long strategy.
- About Me:
- I’ve attended 6 FinCons: 2012 Denver, 2013 St. Louis, 2014 New Orleans, 2015 Charlotte, 2016 San Diego, 2017 Dallas.
- I was the head of Colorado FinCon for 5 years and just recently stepped down right before FinCon 2019 (time for a change)
- I run the website and podcast “Michelle is Money Hungry” and the Money on the Mountain Retreat for Financially Single Women.
- I’ve spoken on panels or ran sessions at: FinCon/Podcast Movement/Denver Startup Week/Outlier Festival/ Fuel Your Influence Conference and More.
- Here’s How I Make FinCon a Small Event
- I kept noticing how often people mentioned how big FinCon was. Well, I attended my first one in Denver and there were maybe 200 people. How do you think I feel? But, I still experience FinCon as a small event. This is what I do.
- I connect with other personal finance influencers throughout the year.
- I attend smaller events attended by other FinConners
- SkiFinCon-I actually missed this one LOL! A ski trip in Colorado
- Meetups
- Plutus Voices
- Local Meetups
- Pop Up Business School
- Elevate Conference for Financial Influencers of Color hosted by Sandy Smith
- Statement Event for women who are financial influencers hosted by Stefanie O’Connell Rodriguez and Emma Pattee
- The Lola Retreat a women’s personal finance retreat hosted by Melanie Lockert who will also be speaking at Money on the Mountain
- Cents Positive-A wonderful women’s F.I.R.E. event hosted by Tanja Hester
- The Adventures to FI retreat hosted by the amazingly meta Jillian Johnsrud
- There are other events, but you get the picture.
- Join a Mastermind Group
- Take on a leadership role
- Connect with FinConners coming through your town. Disclaimer* Be safe
- By taking a year long approach it does three things
- Takes pressure off of me regarding what happens at FinCon
- Allows me to build connections over an extended period of time
- Enables me to walk into the event already connected on some level with a number of attendees.
- I kept noticing how often people mentioned how big FinCon was. Well, I attended my first one in Denver and there were maybe 200 people. How do you think I feel? But, I still experience FinCon as a small event. This is what I do.
- At the time of this recording it is nearing the end of September 2019. I’m working on a couple of things as related to FinCon
- What is my intent for FinCon?
- What do I want to make happen before October 2020?
- What results do I want to show up having achieved?
- How do I plan on experiencing the event?
- I’ve decided that I don’t want roommates
- I will stay in California for 3 weeks. 1 week before FinCon in Venice Beach or Santa Monica, 1 week in Long Beach for the event, and 1 week afterwards in Manhattan Beach or El Segundo.
- This affects my budget and I will be opening an account for the expenses.
- For 2020 this is what I’m working on:
- Growing my brand visibility via podcast interviews. I love podcasts and I love talking. This will be a great fit for my personality.
- Growing my email list-I will be sharing resources during those podcast interviews with the intention of growing my email lists
- Growing my passive income-I’m now starting to make a nice steady income each month. Now, I’m working to grow that income.
- Be very vocal about your attendance to the event so that people know that you’re there.
- Spend some time thinking about your goals:
- Meet new people/meet online besties in person
- Elevate your brand
- Sell your course/coaching/books/etc.
- Meet with your course affiliates
- Do a launch (books/course/coaching/etc.)
- Meet with and collaborate with brands
- Connect with the community that you’ve been building
- Run a workshop/create a panel/or speak at the conference. Head’s up-March is when FinCon will begin taking proposals
- Connect with a potential new business coach or business support person
- Host a successful meetup during the event
- Win an award/professional recognition-Plutus Award
- Find Love (am being serious)
- Attaining these goals require strategies and a consistent focus on them.
- Do you want to make money as the result of your attendance at your next event?
- Are you an affiliate of a well known course that will be going on sale during the event? Do you understand the cookie duration for that course? My course has a 30 day cookie, so I would be contacting my affiliates 30 days prior to FinCon or any other event that I planned to sell my course at.
- What kind of content are you sharing that could be helpful to attendees? Is it SEO rich? This post/podcast isn’t an accident.
- How are you known in your space? What problems do you solve?
Show Sponsor
- The Money on the Mountain Retreat-Looking for a space to talk about money from the financially single woman’s perspective? Go to the following link to apply for a scholarship. Like Yoga, happy hour, and cool people who want you to win with your money? The Money on the Mountain Retreat will be held October 2019 in beautiful Denver, Colorado. Check out the retreat details at: michelleismoneyhungry.com/retreat or Text: MONEYONTHEMOUNTAIN to 44222 to get on the list and stay in the loop!
Resources Mentioned
- Get the 3 Things About Self-Publishing You Need to Know Tool Kit today! By texting: threethings to 44222. Or, click here to sign up.
- Take my free mini-course: Do It Ugly Today. Get it below.
Related Shows
- Figuring Out My Conference ROI (FinCon 2017)
A Special Shout out to the
Current Money on the
Mountain Sponsors and Speakers
- Plutus Foundation Harlan Landes and Charlotte Baker are amazing
- The Financial Gym-Shannon McLay is changing lives
- Kassandra Dassent, Financial Coach
- Jessica Garbarino-Every Single Dollar
- Emily Guy Birkin
- Jason Vitug-Phroogal
- Ryan and Carrie-Hashtag Colorado
- Melanie Lockert-founder of The Lola Retreat and author of Dear Debt.
- Phylecia Jones TedX speaker and creator of the speaking service iFindYouClose
- Jenny Bayless-Real Estate Investor
- Danielle Desir-Founder of The WOC Podcasting Community and The ThoughtCard website
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This is really good. I haven’t thought about what my plans for FinCon 20 are yet, but I need to get on it. Right now I’m worried about finished 2019 out strong.
Well, you stukk have to decompress and work through your 2019 experience. Once that process is done-game on!
This is great advice for a FinCon first timer!
You would be surprised at how many returning attendees need to hear this too.
Good stuff Michelle, actually by being present in the Facebook group, I had already been able to connect with a few people before the conference. So, even if I had never met anyone physically (I actually met Lee Huffman two weeks before), it felt like meeting  « old friends » when I met them in real life. So definitely good to try to attend conference or other events before Fincon2020! I have booked my ticket already for next year so see you there 😉
Hey Jon! I’m glad you enjoyed the show. I think that way too many attendees put way too much emphasis on FinCon the event vs. understanding that it’s a community with many different opportunities to connect authentically throughout the year. Even though I haven’t attended since 2017, I would argue that I still now a lot more people in the community because I make it a goal to always be connecting. Lee is good people btw. See you in Cali!