Morning after thoughts about BlogHer, definitely my most-loved conference of the year--
What worked so well
- Maintaining a warm, accessible tone, even with 700+ people
- Giving the attendees a feeling of ownership and participation in the program
- Being real and authentic and presenting a wide range of interests
- The diversity--there were more people of color at this conference than any other I've attended--and that's the way it should always be
- Childcare
What could work better (aka plan for next year)
- Speaker/presenter training for hands on workshops--I was in a poorly run session on day 1 and a little training would most likely have fixed things
- Help/orientation for newvbies--If I had not known anyone, I would have felt lost in the crowd
- Ways to keep it going via newsletter or social network after the conference
Susan,
Thank you so much for this post. I am grateful for your excellent, specific suggestions for how to make things better next year. And, of course, they are excellent and perfect.
Best,
Maria
I agree with all you've said. I remember last year, they DID have a short session with speakers and live bloggers and I was surprised that this year they did not.
Nice, simple points. I agree especially with the one about help/orientation for newbies.
The closing keynote was terrific. A really spectacular discussion with great moderation. My favorite part of the whole conference.