This past weekend (June 22 – 24, 2017), we were thoughtfully invited to check out the national #BlogHer17 conference, presented by SheKnows Media, which took place at the Hilton Bonnet Creek in Orlando.
Last year the conference was held in LA, but SheKnows Media President and Chief Revenue Officer Samantha Skey explained there was demand for Orlando as a lot of the attendees wanted to bring their families for the three-day event.
According to its website: BlogHer was founded in 2005 by Lisa Stone, Elisa Camahort Page, and Jory Des Jardins to answer the question, “Where are the women bloggers?” Since then, BlogHer has become an empowering movement, inspiring women to find their voices and turn their passions into content, community and commerce, attracting some of the web’s best talent and top social sites, in topics from food and fashion to politics and parenting. Today, the BlogHer conference is the largest annual celebration of women online content creators, social media influencers, entrepreneurs, media makers and brand marketers.
The event brought in big-name keynote speakers such as Chelsea Clinton, Serena Williams, Maria Bello, Carla Hall and Cat Cora, and covered a range of topics from women’s health and sexuality to overcoming challenges and following your passions. Breakout sessions were more focused to help bloggers in the following categories: The Art & Science of Building Your Platform; Technology and Tools; Heart and Soul; Health and Wellness; Food is Life; and Partner Workshops.
Attendees also enjoyed several networking opportunities – to connect and learn from one another – and mingled with about 40 exhibitors, such as blogger-related WordPress.com and Guestbooker.com to female-focused brands like Olay and Poise.
It was a great experience for Christi and me as we try to increase our online presence with this blog. And we also got a few takeaways and ideas for the 2018 Orlando Women’s Conference. Save the date for Thursday, April 5!
-Kate