Social Media Sunday : My First (Virtual) Blog Conference
Even though I have been blogging about various topics for longer than I can remember, it was only this year that I decided to take Debbie in Shape to the next level.
After almost 2 years on existence, I started building my brand seriously in May and went self-hosted last August. The process is not the fastest since I have to squeeze my research in the same time slot I have reserved for blogging and social media. Still, the page is growing and I could not be happier about it.
Still, I am sure that if I could attend a blog camp or summit, things would be so much easier… Unfortunately, they are mostly in the US and adding the price of plane tickets to the event’s price and stay is not viable to me at this moment. And there is also the extra days need to travel from Belgium and back afterwards. Therefore, when I read about the Blog Well Summit, I had to jump in!
Blog Well Summit is a virtual conference that started last Friday and ends today. It has been put together by Laura and Lance Williams from Girls Gone Sporty and by Rita Barry from Blog Genie. During the summit, one has the chance to follow education sessions as well as panels and interviews.
I have to admit that when I signed up for the summit, I was thinking about just checking one or panels and that was going to be it. Spending hours with the sessions was not in my plans at all. But when I started digging in, things changed.
The eye-catching were the “Edu Sessions”. I am not even going to try to remember how many blogs and (e)books I read in my quest to putting my brand on paper. My blog was growing, I had a (clear) idea of what I wanted it to be, but summarizing everything that was in my head in just a sentence or 2 was not happening. Well, that was before watching Rita’s “Planning Your Design” session…
Because it is a virtual meeting without cameras on, I allowed myself to go through the first sessions while cooking yesterday morning. It did not take me long to realize that I was going to need to put more effort in it and that it would pay off. After getting home from the Saturday groceries, I printed out Rita’s workbook and went for it. Since I already had listened to everything, my thoughts were already aligned when I started to follow the instructions from the presentation. By its end, I had finally been able to write down my elevator speech in just a couple of minutes.
Unfortunately, because of the time difference, I could not join the live panels, but I will be attaching them together with the great material available from the weekend.
I cannot stress enough how thankful I am for this opportunity. It is not only the fact that it is only and accessible to anyone, but mainly the high quality of the material and information being shared. It is a priceless investment for both beginners and experienced bloggers (there is always something new to learn out there, isn’t there?). I do hope it is the first of many of such virtual events that I will be participating in!
And you? Do you want to join the fun and learn from experienced bloggers on how to improve your brand, your site and interact from the comfort of your home? So visit their site now and watch the material available. All sessions will be available for streaming for free for 24 hours from their start time. Afterwards, you can do like me, and still access them by upgrading to Full Access.
Have you ever participated in a Blog Summit or Camp? Was it virtual? How does the virtual fit in your schedule?
I would love to hear from other participants how they enjoyed the summit. What did you like best? What was your favorite feature? What would like to see more?
In the meantime, blog on!
#DebbieInShape
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