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This past weekend I went to Midwest Moms Media Brands & Bloggers Summit in Chicago. I went there thinking I was just going for the info & to meet a few people that I have wanting to meet. I came away with sooo much more. I met two new friends that I was drawn to instantly and to quote one: it felt like meeting an old friend all over again. Check out their blogs: Diary of a Stay at Home Mom and Connecting Women.
We stayed at the BestWestern in Chicago. It was my hubbys first time in Chicago so he spent the day exploring. He discovered Navy Pier, which was on the end of the street where our hotel was, and got to wander around beer in hand. Good day for him! Here is the fantastic view of the street from our hotel room:
I learned quite a few things at the summit.
- My blog is my brand. I already knew this, but now I finally understand it. I am the CEO, the PR director & Social Media coordinator. It’s all me. What I write and the opinions I express I have to own. If I can’t/won’t back them up if trouble arises, then I should not post them. Period.
- Be authentic. I was privy to musings of actual PR reps and they gave us a few tips on how PR people view us. They told us that if they see a blogger that has no problem expressing their authentic self they are more willing to work with them. Note to self. I always TRY to be as authentic as I can, but it made me look close at partnerships.
- See a failure as a learning experience. Failure happens everyday. If you gave it your best, don’t beat yourself up about it. If you didn’t…now you know what to do better next time. Give yourself room to change your mind, but also be open to change.
- Disclose, Disclose,Disclose. I do disclose-see my disclosure policy: TOS. I learned just how IN DEPTH I need to disclose. I am now working on a twitter disclosure.
- Be Bold! In the words of Miss Lori Musings from My Minivan from PBS Kids Preschool Block. She was a fabulous speaker and gave me LOADS to think about. Like maybe possibly doing v-blog posts soon. Gulp! We’ll see. 😉
I am looking forward to attending another summit next year and I would like to thank all the fabulous ladies from Chicagonista for setting up the event.
