If you believe that blogging, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn is the future of media, the way we shall communicate and share information with one another from now onwards, you may want to check out BlogWorld, the largest social media conference in the world.
With over 3,000 attendees, 140 educational sessions, not to mention all the gurus of social media, accessible to talk to, so they say, this may be a perfect way to kick your blog up a notch.
You might be thinking, “I’m not interested in selling anything, or branding myself,” however, every blogger is a writer, who shares content for others to read and as such, learning to improve your content, is not such a bad thing. More and more journalists and businesses are turning towards new media.
Presenters such as Mark Burnett, (Producer of the show Survivor) talk about the importance of story-telling. I sent in a video to the Survivor Show in 2001, to become a contestant. (In the video, I bench-pressed my seven-year-old son and pretended to eat a bowl of worms, consisting of Japanese noodles in teriyaki sauce to make them look real in color.) I was so hopeful to be one of the contestants in the Marquesas islands but was not selected. Just had to tell you my story.
Darren Rowse (one of the approachable gurus of blogging) says that attending BlogWorld, helps you shift your mindset so you start taking social media seriously. There are so many bloggers who fly from all over the world to attend this conference, including Annabel Candy from Australia. I told her I’d like to meet her in L.A. in November, as she plans on attending.
Here are some statistics on the BlogWorld website I found very interesting. Especially the third one, over 57 million Americans read blogs, and spend on average 23 hours a week reading them. For all writers, almost 90% of companies say they think blogs will be more important in the next five years.
* Over 12 million American adults currently maintain a blog.
* More than 147 million Americans use the Internet.
* Over 57 million Americans read blogs.
* 1.7 million American adults list making money as one of the reasons they blog.
* 89% of companies surveyed say they think blogs will be more important in the next five years.
* 9% of internet users say they have created blogs.
* 6% of the entire US adult population has created a blog.
* Technorati is currently tracking over 70 million blogs.
* Over 120 thousand blogs are created every day.
* There are over 1.4 million new blog posts every day.
* 22 of the 100 most popular websites in the world are blogs.
* 37% of blog readers began reading blogs in 2005 or 2006.
* 51% of blog readers shop online.
* Blog readers average 23 hours online each week.
So do you think you’d consider attending a BlogWorld conference? Why or why not?
(I know it’s expensive.)
Yes, I'd love to attend a blog conference… but it's impractical when it's nowhere near where I live.
Why? To meet bloggers and learn more about social media…
Your last line summed up why I won't be there. I would love to, and hope maybe next year.
It reminds me of those seminars people put on to show you how to get rich in real estate or some other marketing scheme. The people who get rich are the ones putting on the seminar. THAT's why it is expensive!
@ladyfi
Are there any blog conferences in Scandinavia? What about London?
@Barbara
There's one closer to you in NY. But it would be fun to meet people we know from blogging.
@Robert-the-Skeptic
For me this is about learning more from a variety of people from writers, to PR people to understanding social media and improving skills.
Sounds interesting and I might go next year. But I have a conflict two of the three days that require me to be in California.
Blog World sounds great, but I'm considering backing off from blogging a bit. The reason is the last point on your list – the hours I spend a week reading blogs instead of writing, working, or doing other things. My profile says Book author/freelance writer. It does not say Blogger/book author/freelance writer so I need to switch my focus.
I agree that improving content is never a bad thing, but as you suspected I am thinking "I'm not interested in selling anything, or branding myself". On the other hand, I think it would be great fun to meet the participants and hear what they have to say.
Wow, 1.4 million blog posts a day is an impressive statistic. No wonder we spend so many hours a week reading them.
Do you think maybe we could all car-pool to get there? My little Toyota gets pretty good gas mileage!
that's cool that mark burnett was there – and how funny to see that you sent in a video for survivor — me too!! i laughed to read your gimmick was to eat a bowl of 'worms'! i seem to remember digging up someone's fake dentures for my audition tape but can't recall why 😉
No doubt social media are with us and blogs are an important part of the new scenery. There is an awful lot that can be learned online, often for free, especially for those new to blogging.
I share the sentiments of Robert the Skeptic. Still, a conference can be inspirational and fun, but also exhausting. If it's worth the money depends on if it gives you what you want to get out of it. It's important to ask yourself that question.
And most likely you will not learn any "magic tricks" that will make you successful overnight.
Do I want to go to this blog conference? No, not yet, anyway.
It would be great if there was a similar happening in Europe!
I'd love to meet all those people I've been following for some time already! 🙂
I love networking in real life too. Nowadays my life is more real than online. 🙂
@Doctor Eclectic
Did you see the one on November 2-4in LA?
@Penelope
I understand, however, blogger helps you get known as a book author/freelance writer too.
@Jeanie
I am like yuo in that I think it's great to meet people in the flesh rather than simply online.
@Polly
Sure we can carpool. My little KIA gets good gas mileage too. See you soon.
@Amanda
Wow, fake dentures. Were you trying to play a Vampire or something?
@Miss Footloose
I love conferences in general as I always get inspired and learn something from each one. They are tiring and exciting, but often expensive, I agree.
But you're in Moldova now. How is it there? I heard some of your stories and can't wait for more.
Loved the fish with eyes and the red cabbage for dinner.
@BLOGitse
I think you have the same personality as me. We should meet. Perhaps in Finland or Calfornia if you want.
Since I'm planning to sell an ebook from my blog before the end of the year I really could use some blogging advice but I'm too far away.
Haha, Laughing about your fake worms. You probably got off lucky and you're a real life survivor anyway.
The best thing about attending these conferences is meeting all your bloggy friends in real life. I will be so excited about meeting you and really hope I can make it!
The cost is huge but if funds are tight you can always loiter in the corridors which is quite common even for big bloggers:)
It's a buzz.
Those statistics are mind-blowing! Thank you for sharing them. My sense is that conferences like this are more for pro-bloggers. Please do enjoy though if you are able to go!
@Sandra
I have not made plans to attend. It is in LA, which is about a two hour drive from my house in traffic. As Annabel mentioned, sometimes people just show up and meet in the hallways. I would like to meet Annabel and others though. Have you been to one?