Let me start off by saying that I had a wonderful time at the Bloggy Conference 2015. It was a pleasure having this opportunity to meet some fabulous people. I learned a lot through this interaction and enjoyed my weekend.
The Bloggy Conference is a conference for bloggers held annually. This year it was held at Cedar Point, in Sandusky, Ohio. If I`m not mistaken, feel free to correct me if I`m wrong, this was the 5th year that the Bloggy Conference was held. It was my first opportunity to attend.
The reason I signed up was to meet like minded people that are doing what I`m doing (blogging). I also wanted to find inspiration through interesting speakers to spark my interests and help give me a sense of direction. I left the conference energized and focused.
Did the event live up to my expectations I had before the event?
You bet ya it did.
- Speaker Dan R Morris gave me some inspiration and fun ideas on how to monetize.
- Speaker Donna Hup made me realize that I truly need to step up my Twitter game.
- Speaker Claudia Krusch gave solid advice on how to craft a proposal. Her Brazilian background inspired me to embrace my Swedish one, even when it comes to business.
I learned a lot this weekend at the Bloggers Conference, but I narrowed it down. Here they are…
Top 5 Things That I Learned from the Bloggy Conference 2015
5 Things that will make a difference for my online business.
1. Relationships Trumps All
If you go into a new business relationship with the mindset of “what can I help you with” you will be far better off than if you start “selling”. Now I`m not saying you shouldn`t promote your own business or blog but it all starts with a relationship.
Not sure that my daughter will keep up with this relationship, from this Hallow weekend…
2. Think Outside the Box
When it comes to monetizing our blog or site, we have this idea of either putting ads on there or use affiliate marketing. I know I`ve been guilty of this myself. Thinking outside the box and ad in physical products like selling t-shirts or playing cards relevant to your niche can make you an additional income.
3. Twitter Rocks
So I have not been huge on using Twitter in the past. That just changed. After listening to Donna Hup`s session about Twitter, I will definitely give the platform a try. My goal with Twitter is to build relationships and interact with other bloggers.
So to give you an idea of how “non active” I was, I just checked out my Twitter analytic. You can do that by using analytics.twitter.com when you are logged in, thanks for the tip Donna. My tweet impressions are up 660% since the Bloggers conference. Not bad.
4. Social Media Focus, Take on a Few
So attending the conference a lot of new social media platforms where thrown around. Some, I must admit, I had never heard of. It made me realize that you can`t be a master of them all. Just take on a few and focus on them. Find where your readers are at and focus on that.
5. Live Events Inspire
After the event I went home and started searching for more. Attending live events like the Bloggers Conference gives me a boost. It makes me feel inspired. It gives me ideas for my business. It connects me with fantastic people. Interacting via social media is fun, but nothing beats the face to face conversations.
Thanks for this year and I hope I see you next year at Blogger Conference 2016!
If you were there I would love to hear what your thoughts are, feel free to chime in with a comment below. If you were not there, I would still love to hear from you, maybe you have attended a similar conference or just want to participate in one. I would love for you to share below.
Have a productive day,
Vicky
nice blog Vicky so cute the photo you add on, nice art on her face
Thank you Renelyn,
Yes it was a fun day! She was a little scared but as long as they gave her a treat she was fine 🙂
Thanks for going for us Vicky and sharing good info. I’m beginning to implement some of these myself in my blogging. Unfortunately, I got a bit of a hiccup with my Twitter account. Long story short; I got impatient and gave in to generating thousands of followers but no genuine reader. Not the way to go at all – unless you only like seeing big numbers next to your followers. So waiting for the 30 day deactivation to re set up my Twitter account again.
I’ll try and go to some conference here relating to online marketing and blogging here where I live.
Seems like you learned loads.
Drew
It was a great time! Social media is all about building relationships. I rather have a smaller group that I follow / that fallow me with similar interests, than a large fake number. A big number of followers that`s been bought or increased using unethical techniques is not for me… Looks like you learned the hard way Drew. Thanks for sharing with us!
hi Vicky!
well that sure seemed like a great inspiring conference! I did not even know such a thing existed. It seems like you left with a head full of ideas 🙂 I have to admit that I am also not a fan of Twitter. Actually I do not even have an account. I focus on FB, Google + and Pinterest. And it does take a lot of my time. But maybe I will check out Twitter. I do not know what the speaker talked about but it seems like it changed your mind about Twitter!
Hi Emily,
It was so much fun! Yes, I have tons of ideas. My husband is getting an ear full lol.
I will share my Twitter “adventure” with you guys when I get a little bit more experience. Hopefully be able to give some tips on it.
Loved your post and meeting you! Can’t wait to see you grow!!!!
Thanks for stopping by and commenting Claudia. You were such an inspiration at the conference!
Hi Vicky,
I agree more and more with the principe of building a relationship rather than to be out there to collect money from people. It’s like one of those great president once said: “Don’t ask what the country can do for you… but rather, what can you do for the country”
That’s more the kind of approachI have today. Of course my goal is to have a business. But the best way to have and sustain a businessv is to be there for your customers first of all — not just your wallet!
And social media are more and more the thing now… And that’s where I’m going to.
Really great points you brougt!
Couldn`t agree with you more. Helping others will not only be more satisfying, it will also give you far better returns than selling.
Take my affiliate sites for example, my visitors arrive there because they are looking for something, for a solution. It can be in the form of a product or information. I will never tell them “go buy this” what I will do though is outline the benefits of a product, pros and cons and who it will be suitable for… Now if it`s what my visitor is looking for then great, they have found their solution. If not I don`t want them to get it…
Glad you enjoyed the post.
Hi Vicky,
In my former life, I was in sales and the number One Thing was Building Relationships. Some things should never change! I miss the physical contact that we as bloggers are missing. Perhaps I will attend a conference at some point!
Julie
Hi Julie,
Very true. Somethings will never change… building relationships is one of them. Providing quality is another.
Yes, attend a conference they are great. Check out the Bloggy Conference that I attended, great for all bloggers.
Vicky
Hi Vicky, I like being honest with my comments and this one is no exception. First and foremost, I like the way you write because it simply resonates with any reader visiting your blog. You sound genuine and this is what is important. I live in South Africa and can’t tell you how much I love building relationships. This doesn’t only work with Blogging, it works with any type of business. If you want to succeed in life, help every other person get what they want. That is life success! Thank you so much for this.
Hi Peter, I totally agree with you. Building relationships works in any aspect of life.
Thanks for stopping by and adding to the conversation,
Vicky
Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon everyday.
It’s always interesting to read through articles from other authors and practice
a little something from other websites.
Thanks Kerri
What a great post! I think you nailed it and I learned so much at the conference as well. Most importantly–relationships matter. i am so happy I got to meet you as well and I am thrilled to be following your posts now to keep up with current trends and ideas ! Thank you!
Yes, it was great meeting you at the conference.
I`m so glad I chose Twitter instead of Facebook that day 🙂
It gave me not only invaluable information but also new friendships.