Editor's note: Although Anne Mai published this a few months ago on her blog, it feels just as timely now-- as the recession slogs on and we're now finally seeing summer in the North East. Enjoy her piece and please, feel free to offer your comments on what "you did-- or are doing-- during the recession."

Do you remember the inevitable back-to-school writing ritual: “What I did during summer vacation”?  I hated those assignments as a kid.  Our family never went anywhere interesting on summer vacation.  With seven kids, the best my parents could afford was to pile all seven of us into the station wagon for a week of tent camping on state camping grounds.  Nothing glamorous:  no exotic locales, no historical sites, no wondrous natural sanctuaries.  My essays paled in comparison to my classmates’ stories of beach houses, European jaunts, or adventure camps.

I’ve been thinking a lot about those essays recently.  What stories will emerge when the economy rebounds?  Suspecting in late 2008 that my business, like many others, might be significantly down in 2009, I devised a plan to stay current, engaged and marketable during this involuntary “vacation” period.   The plan, in a nutshell, was to read, write and actively participate in marketing, social media and social change conversations — areas I feel passionate about — while keeping the financial costs to a minimum.   Along the way, I’ve met or learned of individuals involved in similar plans with some amazing stories to tell:

• Rebecca G who is participating in Seth Godin’s SAMBA program — an alternative MBA program — working on The 150 Project
• Tiffany W who is providing pro-bono PR services to a non-profit for a cause she is passionate about
• Sadhna P who is starting an online health community

For my part, here’s what I’ve been doing during the recession:

• Embarked upon a self-styled “continuing-ed” program: to hone my marketing skills – particularly for mobile and social marketing.  I spend at least half an hour each day reading relevant blogs, articles and books on marketing strategies, tactics and campaigns.  I attend conferences and webinars.  To keep costs down for the conferences, I look for promotional pricing, bar camps, meet-ups or, in some cases, have offered the conference organizer assistance in exchange for free or reduced registration pricing.  This last strategy is harder:  conference organizers are hurting so you have to have something of value to offer — e.g., sponsor or speaker contacts/introductions, advertising, etc.  The primary goal in attending these events is to learn and secondly, to raise awareness of your own personal brand.  Don’t be disappointed if projects or job offers don’t come out of these events; everyone is aggressively networking at these events.  If you focus on the learning, you will be that much more marketable when the economy rebounds.

• Started a blog.  I’ve been thinking about doing this for a while as a way to capture thoughts about marketing trends or campaigns as well as social change initiatives I’m passionate about.  I have no pretensions that this blog will become a run away hit – but it gives me the opportunity to return to an early passion: journalism.  With little “marketing,” I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the traffic the blog has acquired.  If you want to get started, you might consider reading Arianna Huffington’s book “Blogging” – it’s an easy read with useful tips and examples.

• “Mastering” Twitter – learning how to use it as an efficient “reader” of content and sharing interesting, worthwhile readings via Twitter.  You can see my blog about Twitter here.

• Begun a bartering service:  I have developed social media strategies for other small businesses in exchange for services I need — e.g., graphic design, private pilates instructions, etc.

• Established a Facebook Fan Page:  This Fan Page, while small, let’s me share marketing insights with past and future clients.  It also lets me link to other Fan Pages that I have helped create on behalf of my clients.

• Found analytic partners to develop a rigorous approach to measuring social media.  For several years, I have lamented the lack of a consistent, rigorous approach for measuring social media ROI.  Conversations with colleagues and friends have uncovered a number of interesting analytical practitioners and approaches.   I am working with some now to develop an approach that will withstand the scrutiny of the CFO — after all, in this environment it is critical to justify your investment requests.  Our goal is to find some beta partners and ultimately publish a white paper on it.

• Next up:  Creating and publishing my own website.  As a small business, it’s difficult to find enough hours in a day to provide extraordinary services to your clients and manage your own business.  Having been involved in many client website developments efforts, I have a lot of learning to draw upon — but alas, very limited programming skills.  Stay tuned as I play with various “free templates” to launch my own site.

Finally, during this whole experience, I opened myself up to the possibilities of what sharing information publicly might generate.  In general, I am a private, behind-the-scenes kind of person.  I rarely get published credit for my work but often my clients get acknowledged.  Becoming “public” was a big step for me but it has been made easier by doing what I’m most comfortable doing:  being helpful, connecting people. 

A private response with some helpful suggestions and links, for example, to an inquiry posted on a LinkedIn group, ultimately led to a project.  But more importantly, sharing information publicly has significantly increased my professional network.  This network has shared terrific insights, leads and support during this tough economic time.

When the recession ends, I know I will have a stronger set of marketing credentials and wider network.

I hope these examples have inspired you.  When the recession ends, what will you say you were doing during the recession?