I can hardly believe a week has passed since I was in Bournemouth with the most amazing bunch of ambitious females. It’s been a long time, but the UK Virtual Assistant conference is back with a bang!
VACT Ltd purchased the rights to the conference and awards in October 2021, and Amanda decided the conference would have the theme “rejuvenate” and she certainly delivered.
As expected, registration and informal networking was LOUD. What do you expect with nearly 100 women in the room all excited to catch up? There were lots of opportunities for established VAs and new VAs to mingle not just at the start of the day but throughout the whole conference too.
After a formal welcome from the new owner of the conference and awards, Amanda Johnston, we were straight into business with Lucy Whittington blowing our brains with her MOPS system on how to make our marketing shine. Loads of fabulous tips and tricks, some things I’d tried before but wasn’t consistent with, and some new ideas floating in my head that I now need to formalise. This was an excellent session that catered to new and established VAs alike.
Next was the effervescent Sarah Clay. Where does this woman get her energy? I need some of that. Sarah highlighted some of the Do’s and Don’t of LinkedIn. Copious notes were taken around the room; this was clearly a popular talk. I know I’ve personally taken a few action points that I want to explore.
The day was peppered with table talks. This basically meant all attendees had the opportunity to talk directly to the expert speakers (and exhibitors). Excellent way of making sure those in the room who were perhaps a little shy to ask a question publicly got an opportunity to ask in a smaller group.
After a yummy buffet lunch, it was time for WordPress expert Alison Rothwell to take to the stage. As a geek myself, I felt in good company with Alison. Unfortunately, I was far too engrossed in what she was saying to take down as many notes, but I’m definitely adding this guru to my stalker list (in a nice way, of course).
The last speaker of the day was Clare Turner. And just when you think you’ve soaked up enough information and starting to tire, Clare came along with a massive sheet of paper, and we had some group exercises to do. The kind of thing that makes you sit and think about things that matter. It was the perfect session to end a perfect conference.
And then it was time for the awards. Amanda, ably assisted by Lucy, called out the winners one by one. Congratulations to winners Sarah, Amy, Katie, Katie, and Emilie. I don’t think the finalists realised this was a bumper year for applications so it was a fantastic achievement for those shortlisted.
With the formal part of the evening out of the way, it was time to let our hair down. Normally at events the DJ plays a few tunes before the dance fills up…not tonight, 1st song was on and the floor was full, and it stayed that way all night.
Amanda…you should be very proud of what you and your team have achieved. I think it’s safe to say the whole day was a roaring success. 2023 will no doubt already be in the planning and I’ll be keeping it on my radar because I won’t want to miss it.
