The third User Groups 2.0 Conference, scheduled for February 19 from 6 PM until 7:30 PM PT (9 PM – 10:30 PM ET) will feature a keynote by the leader of one of the best-run Mac User Groups around: Russ Conte of The Rest of Us (TROU).

TROU has developed a reputation for excellence in many areas. Growing in membership, TROU books outstanding topics and guest speakers for their meetings six months in advance and have developed financial resources adequate to raffle off an iMac without having to charge for individual tickets.

Russ will talk about how they do all this, how to run meetings efficiently and effectively, how to do some really exciting things with your club’s web site (including getting it hosted for free!) and how to find press contacts in your area to whom you can distribute press releases. Russ will also cover where the new members are coming from, why they are coming, and what The Rest of Us is doing to keep them coming back.

Russ will talk about how they are carving a path to the future, by starting to see if they can integrate some of the social networking sites (MySpace, YouTube, FaceBook, Meetup, and more) along with some of the new Web 2.0 technologies, (such as DIGG, Slashdot, Reddit, and Technorati, among many others that they are just starting to explore), into their club to draw people in and have them join. Participants will receive free copies of the files that they use for their web site and their printed materials. The files will be blank, so you may modify them as you need to do so. You and your group can do virtually everything that The Rest of Us is doing, on a very small budget, and you’ll walk away excited by the possibilities that await you as you begin to implement these ideas for a 21st century user group, and be the best you can be for your membership. So whether your role is financial, membership, meetings, raffle items, publicity, or web administration, this is an event not to be missed!

There is no charge for attendance, a limited number of participants will be involved due to the nature of efficient virtual communications. To participate, you will need a telephone or Skype Out (with headset), iChat, a desire to learn to think different, and a willingness to participate in discussions of pro-active MUG leadership. Bring your ideas and bring your enthusiasm!

To apply to attend, please email your name, user group name and leadership position and group URL to The MUG Center. Once confirmed, you’ll receive the details for attending and participating.