I’ll be speaking at the I_Blog Blogging Conference next week, and I really hope I see you there. Why? What makes this conference different from the rest? It’s simple, really: It’s small. In fact, it’s small enough that you’ll know everyone who attends by the time you leave. It’s small enough that you’ll have answers to your exact questions answered before you leave. But it’s big enough that you’ll hear solid information from professionals who have been at this blogging gig a while. You’ll also meet marketing professionals who are embracing social media and want to connect with bloggers. And you don’t have to fight for their attention because there’s room for everyone.
Jody Halstead, the power behind the conference, started I_Blog last year because so many of the so-called major blogging conferences were in coastal cities and were expensive to travel to. She decided it was time Midwest bloggers had a place they could afford to come to and learn. Personally, I love Iowa. My family is from there, we try to visit several times a year, and it’s beautiful to me. When I found out about I_Blog last year, I couldn’t wait to take part and I don’t regret it a bit. I’m so pleased to be returning next week to make a presentation on beginning blogging and to serve on another panel with Jody and Ang England about monetizing your blog. Speaking of which, please, please, let me know what specific questions you have about beginning blogging or monetizing your blog (whether you’re attending I_Blog or not). I’d love to address those (both here at Blogging Basics 101 and at I_Blog next week).
Would you like a little more information about I_Blog? Let me help you with that.
When: November 5-7, 2010
Where: Hotel Pattee, Perry, Iowa
Tickets: Still available at http://iblogconference.eventbrite.com. A limited number of free Friday passes are also available. Friday’s sessions include: Utilizing Linked In to Expand Your Network, Mobile Technology and Protecting Your Computer.
Registration is $199 for a full conference ticket. The following “a la carte” tickets are also available:
- Friday evening Iowa Wine and Beer Social $30
- Saturday only, $100
This year the conference will feature two tracks of classes: one for the beginner and one for individuals who have more experience in social media and blogging.
Classes are designed to educate attendees in social media techniques and are taught by experts in that area.
Speakers include:
- Joseph Lundberg, Linked In Corporate Solutions on Utilizing Linked In to Expand your Network
- Claire Celsi, the PR Princess on How to Use Social Media to Build Your Online Presence
- Brett Trout, P.C. on Intellectual Content vs. Owned Content
- Melanie Nelson, co-author Typepad for Dummies on Blogging Basics
- Plus tips on photography, how to use video online, the importance of SEO and much more!
Rooms still remain at the Hotel Pattee for conference attendees. To make a reservation, attendees should call the hotel at (515) 465-3511.
Halsted said that unlike other social media conferences, the focus of I_Blog is on the sessions, “not the swag.” She said, “Our goal is to build a Midwest social media community; to give them the knowledge to create a social media presence that will help achieve their goals and fulfill their dreams!”
Melanie Nelson, owner of Blogging Basics 101 and co-author of Typepad for Dummies, highly recommends attending I_Blog. “I especially loved that everyone who attended last year (whether a new or seasoned blogger) learned something new,” she said. “All of the presentations were relevant to what people are doing regardless of their level (of social media involvement).”
More information about, and registration for, Destination Midwest at I_Blog Conference can be found on the website at www.iblogconference.com
Contact:
Jody Halsted, I_Blog Conference Organizer
515-707-6547
jody@iblogconference.com
http://www.iblogconference.com
Test comment. Please ignore.
This is amazing! I do many Internet searches to find other blogs and just today was searching for “Iowa blogs.” Then I decided to add “the Internet”, “blogs” and “blogging” to my Blogger Complete Profile interests. While looking at the interests of bloggers who had listed “blogging” as an interest, I clicked on Staci’s name and learned that yours is one of the blogs she follows. (A thank you will go to her when I find her name again.)
I began my blog, “Mid-Prairie HS and Park College 1960-1965,” in January 2010. Each day I compile what I wrote in a diary fifty years ago as an Iowa farm girl who went to college. So far my biggest follower is the former husband of one of my sisters. Recently I invited readers to feel free to go back to January 1, 1960 to leave comments, but so far no one has taken me up on that. I check for comments most days and go back to the beginning of my blog.
I wish I could attend the I-Blog conference but since November 5 will be my 68th birthday, I will remain in Kansas City to enjoy the day and night with my husband.
From what I have read in your blog so far, I know I will be able to gain a great deal of useful information from it.
You asked for questions. Mine is: What steps do I need to take to make my blog look less like that of an amateur and more like that of a professional?
Enjoy the beauty of Iowa while you are back in it. And thank you for your keen interest in helping other bloggers.
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