Observations
It’s Monday morning and some 1,500 mostly women (with a smattering of some very cool men) are working off their BlogHer hangover. We each went to this technical conference in Chicago with a set of expectations, hopes and maybe even a few dreams. We all walked away with some very memorable experiences. I’m sure many bloggers already have and will continue to give a rundown of specific sessions, speakers and parties. I am going to start off with some of my observations from the 2-day conference.
- Attending this conference by yourself would be very intimidating. First, there are 1,500 participants and that’s a lot of people to work through. Alone. Second, almost everyone I met there already knew someone, so to be the only person knowing no one would be scary! My advice is to show up with other blogging friends or with plans to meet up with blogging pals you haven’t yet met in person. There are pre-conference meet-ups in cities all over the country, so if you don’t know other bloggers yet, plan to attend one of those before going to the conference itself. (Thankfully, one of my favorite local bloggers, a fav DC blogger and a fav Seattle blogger were attending, so I spent most of Day 1 with them and spent the rest of the time meeting up with other blogging friends.)
- They tell you to come up with a 20-second blurb on what your blog is really all about. And they mean it. Even if your blog is a personal blog (or, as I now like to call mine, a life blog), come up with some interesting twist to your blog. Otherwise you will wind up with blank stares and glazed-over eyes. (I promise, it happened to me on Day 1 when I forgot the tagline to my own darn blog and started rambling about really stupid stuff. By Day 2, I remembered: … the dog days of happily ever after … which then segwayed into a great description of my blog!)
- We all have formed relationships and friendships with fellow bloggers before ever meeting them. Having the opportunity to meet many of these bloggers is exciting. However, don’t be surprised if you actually don’t like the real person behind the blog. I think this can happen partly because we put certain bloggers on pedestals and our expectations cannot be met; and partly because you just might not like the person behind the blog. (It happened on at least 2 occasions with me this weekend and no, I will not name names.)
- They tell you to wear comfortable shoes because you will be standing for long periods of time (and they’re not lying – wear comfy shoes). What they fail to tell you is it’s equally as important to wear comfortable undies. And bras. Try pulling wedgies out of your butt all day and you’ll come over to my side on this one. (Thankfully, I wore my favorite boy briefs, of which I have 5 pairs – they served me well over the weekend).
- BlogHer attendees are over-the-top connected. And I don’t mean with each other. Well, at least not in the face-to-face sense. About 50% of bloggers lugged laptops to every session for live blogging, Tweeting and distracting from uninteresting topics. Every blogger kept her phone out. Texting. Tweeting. Posting to Facebook. And other mobile applications. Overheard at one of the parties was, “People are too busy on their phones that they’re not enjoying the experience.” (For someone who values her unplugged time, this trend was a little distressing.)
- There were a large number of discussions that wound up talking about “monetizing” your blog. There is lots of envy over mommy bloggers who get a lot of attention from advertisers and from companies who want to send them products to review. There were also lots of people who wanted to learn a blogging model that would open those doors for them, even if they’re not mommy bloggers. (This focus surprised me. While there are some bloggers who make good money off their blogs, most do not now and likely never will in the future. And so, these conversations quickly became irrelevant for many bloggers, even for some still participating in them.)
- Different people have different expectations for what they will get out of BlogHer. It’s important to take time to read about the different sessions and choose those that are right for you. Don’t be afraid to break stride with your friends. And be willing to change your strategy midway through the course if your initial strategy just isn’t working. (I went in with one set of expectations that were sorely missed. After the first session on day 1, I changed my expectations. I decided I wasn’t going to learn anything specific to my own blog, so I chose to go to interesting sessions, regardless of whether they related to me or not.)
- Most panelists are very approachable. They are extremely grateful for people who tell them that they did a good job. Don’t be afraid to say something; just because they sat on a panel in front of a room of people doesn’t mean they’re not human. (I yelled at one panelist from across the room that she was a great moderator – she was so overcome with joy and made me so very pleased I said something at all. I also ran into and chatted with another panelist over the course of the weekend. She is someone I will keep in touch with post-conference and will seek out an IRL meeting on my next trip to New York.)
- Don’t be afraid to say no to swag. I guess I should preface that by saying, if you’re flying to the BlogHer conference, be sure to bring an empty suitcase because you will be bringing home a helluva lot more than you come with. Even still, just say no. There are many vendors appealing to a wide array of audiences. I promise that each of you will come across vendors that have very little relevance to your life. Don’t waste precious cargo space with their swag. Politely say no and move on. (Sweets and I have been trying to get rid of shit at our house, so I took minimal amounts of swag. Though I did manage to bring him a big block of chocolate each day and he didn’t seem to complain.)
- There is such a thing as overload. Too much time with so many women reminded me of sorority life in college. As in, we all joined the same sorority therefore we’re all supposed to be friends. Well, guess what? Not everyone drinks the same BlogHer punch. We don’t have to like everyone we meet. We don’t have to like every panelist or even every session we attend. It’s ok to take breaks, skip sessions and to show up late to parties. You gotta pace yourself and gain the courage to say “no” when necessary. (I went to the first night of parties and skipped the next two nights of parties. It was just too much for me.)
Stay tuned tomorrow to hear my final thoughts on the BlogHer conference.
July 27th, 2009 at 7:44 am
“There is such a thing as overload. Too much time with so many women reminded me of sorority life in college. As in, we all joined the same sorority therefore we’re all supposed to be friends. Well, guess what? Not everyone drinks the same BlogHer punch.” ~ Love this!!! I wondered if it would somewhat be this way. . . . So kudos to you for laying low when you needed and wanted. Love the run-down of the weekend! Glad you enjoyed it!!!
July 27th, 2009 at 7:55 am
Thanks for sharing. I have been reading and seeing pictures of other bloggers experiences at BlogHer and I’m not sure its something I want to attend. The overload and the constant connectedness of a lot of the people, thats not really appealing to me. I’m looking forward to reading your final thoughts.
July 27th, 2009 at 7:59 am
Number 3 is so true…so very very true. I find that I’m always surprised when I don’t like the person behind their blog more than I am when I do like a person behind a blog that I think is sorta “meh”. We all get to edit ourselves online…not so much in person!
Anyway, glad you went and had fun and all that good stuff.
July 27th, 2009 at 8:25 am
Sounds like it was fun and that you were able to meet some new and interesting people.
July 27th, 2009 at 8:53 am
I don’t think this is something I would ever attend. It’s too much. But I’m glad to hear other peoples’ experiences of it.
Plus, this got me thinking about how I would describe my blog. I have no idea.
July 27th, 2009 at 9:01 am
Sounds like a lot of fun but could be a little overwhelming too. I don’t think I’d be able to go to every party and every session. There’s only so much a person can take with that many people running around the place.
If we ever meet, I hope I don’t disappoint!
July 27th, 2009 at 9:25 am
I thought I would be envious after reading this but honestly, apart from missed opportunities hanging out with you, I’m not really. I don’t want to monetize my blog and know that I’m not so incredibly fascinating that anyone would pay me to write. I’m okay with that! I think I would benefit from a writer’s conference on how to improve expressing myself instead of a conference such as this. I already know how great the blogging community is and my blog (should I call it a life blog?) is exactly what I want it to be. The only last steps are my own domain and a great layout! And that’s just for me, not because I feel I have to.
I know what you mean about the overconnectivity; that happened to a lot of folks in NOLA as they all had their laptops, were answering emails, etc during the breakout sessions and keynotes and I think that really detracts from the experience, not to mention, in my opinion, a tad rude & disrespectful to those speaking. Sure, I’ll send a text here and there and check my email occasionally when I’m in a conference, but it’s not like I’m glued to it.
Can’t wait to hear your final thoughts. (and once again, sorry for the long comment!)
July 27th, 2009 at 9:28 am
Its somewhat intimidating to me to even think of going next year, which I do plan on doing since it will be on my turf :) – It’s so much more than a local blogger meetup. People, and a lot of people come with intentions of ‘business’ and ‘monetizing’. I’m always looking for new blogging ideas however I’ve always depended on “Write it, and they will come.”
I know there’s a world much bigger than my small number of readers but I’m not sure if I should enter it, or want to.
July 27th, 2009 at 10:03 am
But I WANT you to name names! I am dying of curiosity over here.
July 27th, 2009 at 10:14 am
#5 – YES! While I am as addicted to Twitter and Facebook as the next person, I try to be very conscientious about when, where and how much I do it. I notice it in my own blogger/twitter community here in Denver; people are stuck in their screens rather than having real experiences. It bugs me.
And I always say that if you don’t have outside-of-the-internet experiences, then you probably aren’t a very interesting blogger.
Loved your thoughts and observations, as I knew I would :)
July 27th, 2009 at 10:15 am
P.S. Just saw Jess’s comment above mine. DITTO! Do tell!
July 27th, 2009 at 10:31 am
This is so interesting! I would love to have heard those conversations on monetizing too, especially having heard a corner of your thoughts on this previously. Can’t wait for tomorrow’s post!
July 27th, 2009 at 10:54 am
wow, i’m so glad you wrote this. i was wondering if it may not seem a little “sorority-ish” and was thinking, “this may not be for me” because of that reason. however, i do think that your points about going with someone and knowing that you do not HAVE to love everyone, are things that will be well-noted when i go next year.
July 27th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Thank you for this! It was a refreshing change from all the “squee! BlogHer was SO FUN!” recaps I’ve read.
I’m not knocking them (really, I’m not) I’m just a little tired of it. And, okay, a little envious.
July 27th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Don’t know if you read Woulda Coulda Shoulda or know Mir at all, but I really enjoyed her perspective as well:
http://wouldashoulda.com/2009/07/27/what-i-did-and-why-i-went/
July 27th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Wow. Who knew there were boy briefs for women? Well, I didn’t before this blog post.
Great summary of BlogHer, even though I wasn’t there. This gave me a real insight to what it was all about.
July 27th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Thanks for the visit (and thanks wafelenbak for the shout-out!), and I really enjoyed reading your perspective as well. I think expecting the moon and the stars and an entire convention full of like-minded souls is what leaves folks disappointed after an event like this. But yes, yes, there’s awesome interactions in little ways that will make the trip worth it.
July 27th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Damn! I knew I should have went!
July 27th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
oooh, i like your recap. very honest!
July 27th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
I think we need some pictures for this post!
July 27th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
It was me that you didn’t like, right? Damn it.
;-)
This post is spot on about BlogHer. I hope the cleaning service at the hotel likes the shwag I left them. I wasn’t about to pay extra for a heavy suitcase!
July 27th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
P.S. I just adore you.
July 27th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
This is a great recap. Hopefully I’ll make it to the conference at some point. Glad you and Sizzle got to spend some time together – that picture is the cutest. :)
July 27th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
It was great chatting with you Friday!
July 27th, 2009 at 9:56 pm
I had to laugh about remembering your pitch. I met you during the speed dating and totally stumbled all over myself! I even thought about what to say on the plane ride over and still forgot!
Anywho… thank goodness for business cards right? and very nice to meet you!
July 27th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
Yeah it can definitely be intimidating. It was so good to see you there! I had a moment of overwhelm where I had to just go to my room and be alone for a few minutes. Then I was set.
August 1st, 2009 at 9:47 pm
Interesting! I would love to go to one of these conferences if I wasn’t in NZ! :P
August 16th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
I would have to work on #2. I wouldn’t be able to sum up what my blog is about!