Congratulations on being chosen to speak at an event! Let the anxiety preparation begin. But wait.

Did you know that social media can help you out? Yes, even now, while you plan. What's more, it can be instrumental in maximizing your entire presenter experience before, during and after your presentation. Here are some ideas to get you thinking.

Before

1. Solicit ideas online.

Most of your connections won't attend your event, but many are probably interested in your topic. Don't hesitate to get help from your network while you work on your paper or presentation. Ask them questions. Get their feedback. (And use the event hashtag -- say, #sasgf or #sasusers for example -- when you do it.)

2. Use social media for research.

Online properties like Quora, SAS Communities, Medium, SlideShare and even LinkedIn can lead to statistics, influencers or research you never knew existed. Type keywords or phrases in the basic search field on any of these websites. You never know what (or who) you might find.

3. Polish your LinkedIn (and/or Twitter) profile. (People will be looking.)

Need a checklist? Start with the Example SAS User LinkedIn Profile on communities.sas.com or Buffer's 7 Key Ingredients of a Great Twitter Bio.

4. Schedule a handful of posts.

One week before the conference or perhaps while you're en route, schedule a few posts to your social media accounts. You'll be too busy at the conference to do this. Free tools like Buffer or Hootsuite allow you to schedule posts throughout the week.

During

5. Skim activity around the event hashtag feed to like, reply, share or comment.

Don't know how? Enter the event hashtag, for instance "#sasgf" (no quotation marks), in the main search fields on Twitter and LinkedIn. Doing this is good for a few reasons:

• It's easy. Especially since you'll be so busy during the event.
• People (even strangers) appreciate when you interact with their event posts.
• Social activity during an event is a sure-fire way to gain followers.

6. Post the occasional photo or a useful tip from a particularly inspirational session.

You'll be so busy during the event, it will be hard to find time to post. If you can, do it in small pieces. A favorite stat. A meaningful quote. A beautiful view of the venue. (Remember, use the event hashtag or other topic-specific hashtags when you do.)

Somebody pinch me. Forever grateful to hear @platon's talk at #AnalyticsX. His ability to communicate through photography is unmatched. Clear and powerful, yet so detailed. pic.twitter.com/PXDQNCxiIG

— Stephen Clowes (@sclowes14) September 19, 2018

After

7. Connect on LinkedIn or SAS Communities.

Immediately after the event (ideally, in less than 24 hours), connect with fellow conference goers on LinkedIn. Be sure to personalize your invitation with a brief note in case they forgot your name. Don't want to wait? Connect with them in person using the LinkedIn QR code trick.

Is your new friend fairly technical? If so, find and follow his or her activity on communities.sas.com (See subhead "How do I search for people?").

8. Add your paper or presentation to your LinkedIn profile (and direct people to it).

There are three sections of your profile where you can add media (in the form of hyperlinks, documents, PowerPoint slides, etc.): your Summary, Experience and Education sections. Professionals: Add your paper or presentation slides to your Summary or Experience sections; students: consider your Education section.

Pro tip: For additional profile views, create a post to point connections to it on your profile or mention it during your presentation.

9. Write a useful blog post.

Alison Bolen wrote about this in 2012, yet her message remains perfectly relevant: How to transform your live event blogging into evergreen content. The bottom line? Readers care about the content, not the conference.