My Experience of Blog World Expo 2011 LA [#BWELA]

Were you there?

Blow World Expo 2011 Los Angeles was everything I wanted it to be and more – WAY more.

The amount of high quality information I took in and the meaningful, powerful and thoroughly amazing connections I was able to make, made #BWELA a masterpiece of Social Media art.

I’m hooked. I’m in. Sign me up as a complete and utter Fanboy

On a personal note: I was fortunate to be able to take my wonderful wife RuthAnn on the trip. It was a joy to have her there – wide-eyed and bushy-tailed – enjoying the experience with me. We had not had a vacation in almost three years – to say this was needed was a gross understatement.

Let me recap the event on two levels:

1. The information I took in while at BWELA

2. The connections I made while at BWELA.

The Information

 ”Google + For Business” with Chris Brogan and Guy Kawasaki.

Yep – went straight to the top of the heap right from the start!

While talking a bit about Google + and how they use it, this session was more about Chris and Guy talking about how they use Social Media across multiple platforms.

Stating the blatantly obvious: These two know their stuff – backwards and forwards. The takeaway for me was that the reason they are so good at their stuff is because they are so engaging. Both Chris and Guy had a style of speaking and interacting that was honest, humble and completely approachable.

Chris was pretty much the Master of Ceremonies for Guy during the session (another sign of Chris’ humility – he realized this was Guy freakin’ Kawasaki!)

Here’s a couple of tweets I sent out from that session:

“Buffer App gets recommended by @GuyKawasaki” at #BWELA

“I might be schlepping gold and silver in downtown LA if it were not for Steve Jobs” @GuyKawasaki #BWELA

“I think Google Plus is to Facebook what Macintosh is to Windows” @GuyKawasaki #BWELA

“7 Blogging Ideas That Will Brand Your Business and Make You the Voice of Your Industry” with Marcus Sheridan

Holy Moly Batman – Marcus is a ball of energy and enthusiasm when he speaks. His passion for Content Marketing and the best was to do it is palpable. You simply cannot sit through a talk by Marcus and not be excited AND full of useful takeaways.

The cool thing about this sessions was that all 7 blogging ideas that Marcus related were backed by specific illustrations of how they have worked in his pool business.

You want social proof – Google anything to do with fiberglass pools and his company River Pools and Spas and see just how well this style of inbound marketing can work.

I could have sat for hours taking in all that Marcus had to say and picking his amazing brain for more!

Tweets from this session:

“If a consumer is thinking it – you should be writing it” @TheSalesLion #BWELA

“Use your customers questions as your blog post titles and content” – @TheSalesLion #BWELA

“The best keyword tool is not Google it’s your customer” – @TheSalesLion @BWELA

“The Ultimate Zombie Survival Kit for Social Media DoGooders” with Danielle Brigida, Stacey Monk and John Haydon

Confession: I went to this session for three reasons:

1. The title - how cool is that?!

2. Because I think Danielle and Stacey do great non profit work – the best in my book.

3. I have said it many times before – I would not be blogging today without my friendship with John Haydon.

This session was another perfect example about how passionate bloggers are about what they do.

When these three individuals talk about the work of non profits and especially their work – you want to get up, dance and sling them tons of cash!

The session ended with Stacey bringing forward two children and “Mama Lucy” their Headmistresses from the Shepherds Junior School in Tanzania, a project supported by Stacey’s Epic Change organization.

The children spoke. Mama Lucy spoke.

Frank cried. Like a baby.

It was powerful with a capital P.

One tweet from the session sums it all up:

“Infuse your communications with love” – @StaceyMonk #BWELA

“Blogging From the Heart {But Smart} with Darren Rouse

Yep – Frankie got to meet Mr. @problogger himself and have a conversation at the mic with him about an Extrovert (me) blogging to Introverts (Darren and many of this community) and how to do it. Darren was gracious as I tried to formulate my question.

Gracious is really the best way to describe Darren Rouse and the way he presents during a session. He gives you TONS of useful information in a way that completely draws you into the conversation.

RuthAnn was in this session with me and she now is a HUGE Problogger fan.

Tweetage from the session:

“Tell stories and tell your story” – @problogger #BWELA

“When you inspire people, wonderful things happen on your blog” – @problogger #BWELA

“If you want your blog to be a business one day…. Treat it as one Today” @problogger #BWELA

“How YouTube Can Make You Rich and Famous Even When You’re Not a Partner with Gideon Shalwick

Can you say “Let me show you how I do it”? This session was basically Gideon opening up his business model and techniques and showing you how to make money on YouTube.

I sat and watched people around me typing as fast as they could to get the info down from Gideon.

From start to finish, I thoroughly enjoyed Gideon’s style and manner. Like all the presenters I came in contact with, his humility and enthusiasm was contagious.

Info filled tweets from this session:

“The most important question about your YouTube Channel: Who is your audience?” @GideonShalwick#BWELA

“Create videos that are “good enough” so you can get them out there and gain traction” @GideonShalwick #BWELA

“Value attracts in your YouTube videos” – @GideonShalwick #bwela

I was also able to attend the Keynote with Peter Shankman on Thursday morning. Peter is a engaging speaker  - I wish I would have taken better notes

The Connections

I had always heard that the best part of any conference is the networking and connecting. This is ABSOLUTELY the truth of the matter!

The coolest part was actually meeting face to face, having coffee or lunch with so many of the people I had been conversing and working with over the last two years.

It was like coming home to old friends.

I cannot describe the feeling – all I can say is that if you have not had this experience yet – MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Let me just list some of the connections – and if I miss anyone please know that it’s all about me and my brain and nothing about you”

Becky McCray – meeting you sealed in my mind that you are most definitely #betterthanthat

Bob Dunn – everything your wonderful wife said about you is correct. What an amazing friend you are Bob.

John  Haydon – There is a reason I call you “brother” – now I fully understand why. Thank you for all you do for me and others.

Srini Rao – you fill a room with your presence Srini – even if you are the hardest guy to catch up with

Pace and Kyeli – Crap, I can’t even think of what to write because you two simply WOW me. Your spirits are infectious – thankfully!

Grant Griffiths – You have a genius son and I’m so very thankful because his work brought us together. Another “brother” experience for me.

Jenna Langer – If John and Grant are brothers – you are most definitely the “sister”. Your smile, good heart and passion for LiveFyre have made me a better blogger.

Jordan Kretchmer – To meet the Big Kahuna at LiveFyre was top of the world for me my friend. You have an amazing product because you are an amazing person.

Last, but certainly not the least Rick Calvert – Mr Blog World himself – you and your team are sparkling gems. We started out on a weird foot after BWENY – but that was more about me than anything about you. You have become a friend and whether you know it or not – a mentor. Thank you.  

Final Thoughts

I’m sure there may have been a better way to write this post about Blog World (Marcus did a nice job here). I could have told you that the venue was great, the wireless availabilty was spot on and that LA is a truly beautiful and energetic city.

I wanted you to know about the takeaways that I will be using in my business here and the inspiring connections that I was fortunate to make.

Take some time and check out the Presenters and their work. Connect with the people on my connection list, and most importantly, do all you can to be at the next Blog World Expo in New York City next June.

I’m betting lock, stock and barrel that you will enjoy the experience!

Your Turn:

Did you attend and what were your takeaways? For those who did not attend, what do you think about the experience after having read this “review”? Are conventions and Expo’s on your radar?

Let’s chat below.