Posts Tagged ‘blogworld’

Last year, I wanted to go to Blogworld so badly, but just couldn’t figure out the logistics of getting there or how to afford the weekend of events and staying in Vegas. This year, however, I am going no matter what and am very excited about starting to plan the trip (yes, I know it is 6 months out…it’s the type-A in me).

Anyway, last week, I was thinking about the wine tasting event I had with the girls last month, and how much more we were able to learn about each other in the 3 1/2 hours worth of limo time, and how much more effectively we are able to help each other in business because of the stronger connections – which led me to think about Blogworld, and how one of the most important pieces of a trip like this is building stronger networking. There are tons of people from the Southern California area that are attending Blogworld – some will fly, some will carpool but very few will get to network with each other until they get to the event. So, I am thinking about fixing this problem, by organizing a limo tweetup trip from Southern California to Vegas! This would give a group of 25-50 people (depending on the limo size) a chance to network, connect and learn more about each other prior to arriving in Vegas.

But, as with any big plan, there are a lot of things to consider:

1. Who would even be interested in an event like this? Am I the only one who thinks it would be fun?
2. We would have to leave on Wednesday evening, 10/13, so that we can all get checked in before the conference starts on 10/14 – but what about people who are only coming for the weekend events? What would they do/could they still come?
3. Where would we leave from? I want LA County, Orange County, Riverside County and San Diego County people to be able to come on the trip – so logistically, leaving from Orange County would make the most sense (in the middle), but Riverside County is on the way out to Vegas, so then the limo time would be shorter…
4. What would the cost be per person? The trip would be between 4-5 hours, depending on where we left from and how many stops we had – so pricing it out, we’re looking at probably $150/person for the big limos. Is this a reasonable cost?
5. What about getting a limo sponsor/partial sponsor that we could promote to help eliminate costs? Or a sponsor that has nothing to do with the limo but still could benefit from a large group – wireless cards? Cell phone provider (we’ll be tweeting from the limo’s)? Food?
6. Can we expand it so more people can come? The largest Limo (I don’t want to do a shuttle bus..those are no fun) I found fit 44 people…but we could do multiple Limo’s and have a train headed out, that way we could get as many people as we wanted!
7. Has there ever been something done like this before? Would it be an expandable idea that other cities could do as well?
8. How would everyone get back to California? Would we want to do limos back or would people fly home? And then if they flew home, how would they get their cars from where the limo picked them up?

As you’ll notice, I have a lot of unanswered questions – which is where all my readers come in! I want your thoughts on the idea, would it be something you would be interested in? What about helping to make it happen? Any ideas of sponsors or how to turn this into a reality? And of course, I want to know who would want to come so I can see if the interest is there for the trip…

Let’s get talking!

All the big players in the blog world are getting sponsors to go to BlogWorld and New Media Expo 2009 – or in other words, a company is paying for their trip/hotel/etc so that they will get press and someone talking about them the whole trip.

I like to talk. I have a blog. I am interesting and would promote a product well.

But, I am not a superstar blogger yet. I don’t have 100k readers, and so the sponsors don’t have a huge reason to want to pay for my trip to BlogWorld. Although, if they gave me 10 minutes, I could convince them…but most won’t even do that!

Catch-22 strikes again: They want to sponsor someone who has a following, but you gain a following by being able to attend events like this and learn to promote yourself better. It is hard to attend these events if you are a just starting out blogger who owns their own business, it is financially too difficult. So you can’t afford to go, which means you can’t learn all the great information and network to grow your blog, which means you can’t get a sponsor.

But what about passion? What about the fact that I would be so excited to be sponsored by someone that I would probably work twice as hard as a ‘power blogger’ to promote my sponsor before the event, at the event and after the event? I think thelostjacket.com‘s post on why companies can benefit from up and coming bloggers really hits the point home. Finding someone up and coming is the future…

So, I figured the best way to find a company was to ask those who already read my work – and know me a little, to help me with my marketing of myself! So here is my request:

If your company, or you know a company that is looking for a representative at blogworld, and would be interested in sponsoring me (even partially), please send them either the link to this blog, or contact me at kirsten(at)wrightcreativity.com:

Thanks for all your help and support!

Being an solo-preneur, finances don’t come freely. So when big events that can help my career come up, there is a lot to think about. Of course, I want to attend, as hopefully it will grow my business but there is the cost to think about.

I posed a question about attending Blogworld yesterday on twitter, and unfortunately, was met with minimal response. I was hoping to get some insight on people who have attended, which events are really worth it, and maybe some details.

This would be the first year that I would potentially attend and find that I am unsure about what to choose. I like the idea of being able to go to everything (the full package) but there are a million questions I have floating in my head. I have attempted to search through the blogworld site and find what I am looking for, but have been unsuccessful, so I am turning to you, my lovely readers, for your sound advice.

First, what time does the event start on Thursday? Do I have to get there Wednesday night or could I drive out Thursday morning? And the more important question…is the Thursday daytime event worth it? Obviously the speakers will be amazing, but other than that, is there a lot of time during the day on Thursday to mingle and chat, or is that reserved for the Thursday night party?

I could just get the Weekend pass, get into all the parties (including Thursday night) and then attend the events on the weekend. This would save a big chunk of money, both for the pass and (potentially) one less night in the hotel.

Of course, then there is the exhibit and party pass, which may be enough too? I am not one of those people who will just wander around and not talk to people, so maybe all I need is the parties and the exhibits to connect?

Then there is the question of hotels. Should I save the money and stay off the strip like I did for CES, even though it was a pain to get into the strip…or should I stay on the strip because it will be more convenient and easier to get to the events?

What is there to do for people who don’t want to go to the events (my husband) but that I want to be there with me (as I am not sure I want to go by myself)? Or should I go by myself so that I can attend all the events without worrying about him and he doesn’t have to take time off work? Or If I him just the exhibit and party pass – would he enjoy it? He loves techie stuff, and a good party, just doesn’t get the whole ‘blogging and social media’ thing.

Can you sense my dilemma yet?

Opinions? Thoughts? Similar questions? Are you going? Let’s get discussing!