BlogHer '11: 3,500 of your Closest Blogger Friends

What an experience...BlogHer '11 is a wrap! Shelly and I had an amazing time in San Diego with 3,500 social media-savvy bloggers. I tried to take it all in, but there was just too much going on for one person to conquer it all. I found most attendees fall into one of 3 attendee types; the Learner, the Networker and the Swag collector.

• The Learner: BlogHer is packed with 2 days of informational, motivational and inspirational sessions. The Learner is there to soak in as much knowledge as possible from the experts by packing in sessions from 8am to 5pm with some one-on-one time at the 'Geek Bar' squeezed in. BlogHer brings in pros to cover everything from 'Perfecting the Product Review' to 'Boomer Blogging'.

• The Networker: Networking is everywhere at BlogHer, even in the bathroom line. I was warned to have more than enough cards on hand, and I'm glad I did. I would say the business people to blogger ratio was 40/60, which actually made for some great discussions. Bloggers want to connect to other bloggers and find companies they might partner with. Businesses and professionals are there for the same thing. It was great to meet the people I've only talked to on Twitter and to be exposed to so many new bloggers.

• The Swag Collector: Oh the swag! Companies from all walks of consumer goods descended on BlogHer '11 to get their goods into bloggers' hands. It was interesting to see how different brands integrated social media and blogger relations into campaigns. Some target specific bloggers with more private events....others were going for overall brand awareness with interactive booths and suites. Surprisingly, I heard from many bloggers that the 'Tweet to Win' contests were easy to win because few people participated.

I tried my best to be a little of each of these types by learning a lot, meeting great people and taking home a few goodies. The only question left is; will I see you at BlogHer '12 in NYC?

Double Click to Content: Results

Last week, I took it upon myself to explore the Double Click to Content phenomenon sweeping the nation.  Okay, maybe it isn’t that intense, but I did a quick survey to explore just how many people were affected, and how they felt it.

• 73% of those surveyed have had a “Double Click to Content” experience
   
• The most common used words to describe feelings towards the experience are annoying (35%), hate (28%), obnoxious (7%) and irritating (7%).

• Ninety-two percent of those who have experienced double click to content were directed to Facebook, compared with 28% directed to blogs and 7% directed to Twitter.

• Thirty-five percent of those who have experienced double click to content would not click through, while 50% were less likely to click through and 14% were just as likely to click through, regardless of the extra click involved.

After the conclusion of the survey, I was approached on Twitter about some differing opinions, specifically from a survey participant who had decided he didn’t mind double clicking to content as much as he originally voiced. However, that did spark discussion from fellow survey participants about their continued dislike of the process.

It’s interesting to note that 28% of those who have experienced double click to content noted they’ve been sent to a blog as the intermediate landing page. Is there a misperception about what the end content is? Do you view a blog as the end result or is it the now-deemed annoying landing page where readers need to click through the blog to get to the content?

Do the ChaCha

ChaCha is a new text messaging service that is catching on quickly. ChaCha lets you text a question and it sends back a response shortly. Simple as that.

I was introduced to it about two weeks ago. A few friends of mine were trying to test the limits of what ChaCha would answer. I thought it was neat, but didn't get in to it until about a week or so later. Much like twitter, it is a valuable service, but doesn't quite have the revenue aspect worked out entirely.

CNBC reviewed the serviced here.


Great service, but it is about to get a lot of flack soon with the return of school this week. Imagine half the students in a classroom trying to use ChaCha during a test....

Facebook Harmony

The post about The Facebook Movie reminded me of a parody-infomercial of Facebook and eHarmony.

The parody is brilliant. Facebook the movie... probably not. We'll see when it comes out but I'm guessing it will be lame.

What's in a blog name?

One of the blogs I read on a weekly basis changed its name today. It went from "The Origin of Brands Blog" to "Ries' Pieces." Why the change? Who cares about a blog name anyways? Laura Ries covers these questions in-depth here.

It is rare to see an industry professional admit a branding mistake, but she confesses that she picked the wrong blog name and stuck with it for four years. She gives a few good examples of how brand names matter and how change can be difficult, but often times for the better.

Check out her thoughts on double-branding below.

Twitter Trends: Summize

Most Tweeps (twitter users) already know this tool/site, but I thought I would comment on it for those who don't.

Summize is a great search tool for tracking conversations that are taking place on twitter. On the home page, it lists the most searched topics and lets you view the conversations taking place. This can be an incredibly valuable tool for marketers looking to engage in dialogue with the consumer.

Recently it is purchased by Google, so I'm assuming that can only help with accurate search results.


Check it out.

Hopefully, AT&T is paying attention to some of the conversation going on.

YouTube Conventions

You can follow both the Democrat and Republican Conventions on YouTube.

Also...if you want to put your money where your mouth is, you can bet on the presidential election here.

21 tips to increase blog traffic

Who doesn't want more blog readers? Exactly. Check out how to increase the number of viewers/subscribers to your blog here.

Dancing With The Stars

This is the first time I have seen one single topic occupy the top 5 searches on Google Trends. Therefore, I feel compelled to write about it even though I have no real interest in the story. But for the massive amount of you who want to know who is on Dancing With The Stars this year, the list is below:

Kim Kardashian, reality TV star

Cloris Leachman, Oscar-winning actress

Maurice Greene, Olympic sprinter,

Lance Bass, former N' Sync star

Rocco DiSpirito, TV chef

Warren Sapp, NFL star

Misty May-Treanor, Olympic beach volleyballer

Toni Braxton, Grammy award-winning R&B star

Cody Linley, that cute kid from "Hannah Montana" show

Ted McGinley, veteran actor (who I hated on "Happy Days")

Brooke Burke, actress/TV personality

Jeffrey Ross, celebrity roaster and comedian

Susan Lucci, "All My Children" star

Apple App of the Week: Ambiance

This is truly something that I always wanted to have, but never put in the time to search out a CD of it: Ambiance. Or soothing background noise.

This App goes for a mere 99cents in the App store and features 13 different sounds to fall asleep to. From birds to crickets to the wind.

Highlights:
- Inexpensive
- Includes a sleep timer
- Features a wide variety of sounds

Lowlights:
- Includes white noise sound. Possibly one of the more annoying sounds to listen to.
- No volume bar, although this will be fixed in the next update.

Check it out. It is only 99cents that you are putting at stake.

Emily Brill: Your Pitching Nightmare

MTV has pitched the wrong girl. Emily Brill, New York socialite and weight loss success story, was e-mail pitched on a casting call for a show where girls lose weight to become models. According to the pitch, "models will endure twelve weeks of physical fitness training to get down to their ideal size...models must put their best foot forward at all times while staying focused on losing weight."

The pitch backfired, and now Emily published an angry post about it on her blog. This illustrates one of our core Axioms: do your research!

Girly Bloggers

Infamous dating blogger Julia Allison has teamed up with two other girls to make a really girly blog. Called "NonSociety", they are so far covering fashion, dating, and tech news. More contributors promised to come soon.

The left-to-right layout feels a little weird to me, and the style section reads like a Body Shop ad. Maybe it is? A little endorsement cash behind this blog wouldn't be too shocking.

Free music...in China?!?

Google is launching a new music service called Music Onebox in China. People can actually download, not stream, tracks for free. The service is supported through ad revenue.

At this point, record labels really have no choice but to try a service like this in China, since 99% of people don't pay for music over there.

Mashable has a good summary of the service here.

Blog post about killer blog posts

B.L. Ochman has a lot of valuable tips when it comes to social media and blogging. Below are the main points from the article. I deeply encourage you read the whole thing.

- Short, declarative sentences are good
- Link like crazy
- Write less
- Aim at keeping your posts about 250 words
- Don't take yourself too seriously
- Write like it counts

Check out the full story here!