BlogHer: Deep Discussions and Lots of Fun

BlogHer '09 was an unbelievably energetic gathering of nearly 1,400 bloggers, influentials, media and marketing folks that covered topics ranging from disclosure and the FTC guidelines to fall fashion and makeovers onthe trade show floor.

I was there to attend the business conference (definitely worthwhile), sign Too Busy to Shop books (see me with Forbes Woman reporter, Heidi Brown at left), and meet and greet the wonderful cadre of bloghers.

Key takeaways from the business conference:

- Don't try to go t from zero to 60 in social media. Listen and take logical next steps. Avoid "cool tools" until they are the logical next step.

- LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN, before, during and after the program. Do nothing before listening.

- Get your organization on board internally, including legal.

- Measure the quality and quantity of online engagement.

- Approach bloggers with an authentic and relevant theme.

- Disclosure and the FTC Guidelines are a hot topic, with disclosure being the key.

By far, the best part was the interaction with other marketers, bloggers and media. What a great group that I am honored to be a part of.

More to come later on the main BlogHer conference.

Great Stats Coming out of BlogHer09

Hello from BlogHer 09 where over 1,000 bloggers are gathered. What a great atmosphere with great stats coming out of it for marketers.

Next year BlogHer '10 will be held in NY on Aug 6 and 7!

With over 42 million women blogging every week and 30 percent of women ditching newspapers for online news, there is more reason than ever for marketers to be connecting with and engaging bloggers.

More to come!

BlogHer Business '09 Covering Hot Topics

The room is packed with marketers and companies interested in engaging the women online here at BlogHer Business '09 in Chicago. If you missed it this year, book early for next year.

Up first was the topic of the State of the Social Media World, including paid product reviews and the importance of disclosure. Listening now to Lizzie Schreier, the woman in charge of Internet marketing at AllState. Lessons learned so far:
- the importance of taking small steps
- getting buy-in from legal, educating internal audiences
- analyzing what other industries and companies have done.

Looking forward to upcoming cases that include Fiskaars, Prego, Coachand Trop 50.

Check out my more frequent updates and key takeaways @toobusytoshop.

Heading Out to BlogHer '09

Can't wait to see many friends and colleagues at BlogHer '09, http://www.blogher.com/. I will be attending the BlogHer Business conference on Thursday, May 23 and will tweet from the conference for those of you who can't make it.

Ketchum is a sponsor of the morning break on Day One (Friday, July 24) from 10 to 10:30. Stop in to the "Ketchum Mixer" and make some new contacts. I will also be participating in the book signings for Too Busy to Shop in the BlogHer bookstore from noon to 1 on Friday. Stop by and say hello!

Engagement Report by Charlene Li

Charlene Li, co-author of Groundswell, and research partner Wetpaint, today released the Engagement Report, an analysis of the ranking of the Top 100 brands that correlates deep social media engagement with financial performance. research done by Ketchum in the past clearly shows that online AND offline engagement are keys to reaching multi-minding women, so I am looking forward to digging into this new report.

Check it out at www.engagementdb.com