Blissdom 2012 Recap

Since I wasn’t allowed to attend Blissdom (just flat pet Preston), I sent my Mom to report. Here is her account:

My Thoughts:
I came, I saw, I finally stayed in the Opryland Hotel, I stuck out like a sore thumb (seriously when you’re the only pet blogger with a cutout of your pet you will stand out), and I got some awesome swag!

Reflections:
Mommy bloggers are a different breed than pet bloggers, LOL. They love shoes, love to talk about their families, love to dance and sing karaoke, and party with the girls. At pet blogging conventions we must be old folks. Our events are over early and involve hanging out with the dogs and cats that come with us. The animals are the stars of our events. I guess it is the same concept though, we just have dog strollers they have strollers with humans. Also, their kids seem to be better behaved than some of our pets, LOL.

Both types of conventions are tiring with a lot of walking. Blissdom’s sponsor Famous Footwear gave us a pair of Dr. Scholl’s shoes (did I mention awesome swag?) while at a pet conference we get puppy pads and pet food (but I like free shoes better)!

Labels:
At Blissdom, it seems like the bloggers were resistant to having a label put on their blog. I spoke to countless bloggers who all said they were not mommy bloggers. When you ask what they blog about, they are women who blog about having children, women who just happen to live a frugal lifestyle to support their families, and even bloggers who write about family traditions … but they don’t consider themselves mommy bloggers. I even sat at a table during a session that the group’s title was “don’t niche me in”. Maybe it’s because I’m a complete outsiders to this other blogger world, but honestly, I think most of the blogs I met are mommy bloggers. I’m a pet blogger, and proud of it … so embrace the mommy blogger title. Mommy bloggers are a powerful bunch, (That is why I came to this conference, I wanted to learn from you mommy bloggers!) so be proud! Use that title to your advantage, go after the sponsors who actively seek out mommy bloggers, use your mommy blog to raise funds for a charity close to you, or just be an advocate for those moms who read, and follow your blog.

Meeting Interesting Women

You never know who you will talk to. I had breakfast with two amazing women who work for the OWN network (Think Oprah). It was a fluke encounter, we just happened to sit down at the same table. It turned out that both are huge animal lovers. One of them told me about how their family raises dogs for dog sledding and the Iditarod up in Alaska (I am so asking her if she wants to be interviewed by Preston!). The other woman talked about her experience finding a homeless animal and dealing with animal shelters in LA. Later that evening at Blissdom, we saw a screening of one of Oprah’s new shows where she visits Paula Dean and stays at her house. I admit, I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time at a TV show. Oprah, Gail, and Paula Dean were a riot. Paula got Oprah out of bed and in there nightgowns they went fishing for breakfast! We also got to see Paula Dean’s dogs too!

Empowering

Blissdom is about empowering women bloggers. There were a lot of sessions focused on your goals, your direction, and even tracks on how to better yourself. I’ll be honest, I was out of my element. I am not the mushy type. After all, our blog is in the voice of a male dog! So “woman power” isn’t big on my agenda. Don’t get me wrong … I want women to be the best they can be. At the same time though, I don’t want us to just be the best “woman” bloggers, but the best bloggers period!

Would I go back? Yes. I learned a lot. Also, while I was totally out of my element, maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing. Sometimes you need to be shaken up to see a different point of view. I would change one thing about Blissdom though if I could. I would make sure the conference and hotel was pet friendly so Preston could come with me. Come on … Preston is a ladies man! At a conference of mostly women, he would be more popular than Joe Jonas Yep, we saw him in concert at Blissdom!)