As you may have heard, this past weekend I attended the Midwest Moms Media Brands & Bloggers Summit in Chicago thanks to my wonderful sponsor, Clever Girls Collective.
First of all, after everything that I heard from other attendees I am glad that this was my first conference. The conference was very well organized, covered some great topics, had an amazing group of panelists, allowed time for networking and offered some awesome sponsors.
To start things off, Lisa and I were prepared to fight for a place to sit near an electrical outlet. We arrived early and even had a surge protector with us just to be safe. We got to the conference early enough to scope things out, only to discover the MJ had been more than prepared for a room full of bloggers utilizing the internet and requiring electricity to do so. MJ had power run to each table to ensure that everyone would be able to plug in if needed. Not only that, we never encountered any issues with the internet either. (Unlike other conferences I’ve heard of.)
And before I forget, I finally had the chance to meet Crystal Duncan from IZEA!
The day kicked off with a welcome from MJ and then on to the Brands & Bloggers Panel. I loved hearing everyone’s take on how to connect with a brand and the tips they offered us.
For me, the session I really appreciated the most was the FTC Guidelines Overview with the wonderful and very pregnant ((thank you for being there!!)) Sarah Evans. It was shortly after I began blogging that the FTC started changing the way things needed to be disclosed. Sarah helped clarify quite a few things that had been confusing to me. You can read Sarah’s presentation on her site HERE. You will not regret reading it!
After a nice break to network (which I did mostly from my chair since I was so swollen), we were treated to a spectacular performance by the one and only Miss Lori who blew our socks off singing Firework.
After the conference was done we had a little bite to eat and then hopped on the shuttle to the John Hancock Observatory for the Mixer Party. Again, I wish I wouldn’t have been so swollen and tired so I could have had a little more fun. (*Thank goodness this is my last pregnancy!) The views from the 94th floor — 1,000 feet up was stunning!
All in all, I had a great time…other than that whole having huge swollen feet and not being able to walk a lot!
Thank you to the Clever Girls Collective for sponsoring me and giving me the opportunity to attend my first blog conference! Also a huge thank you to MJ Tam and the amazing sponsors and speakers of the Brands & Bloggers Summit. Thank you for filling my head with soooo much info!
Disclosure: Clever Girls Collective awarded me with a conference pass and a small scholarship to attend this conference based on a letter I wrote looking for sponsorship. Photos of @PRSarahEvans @ MissLori and group photo © lahleyoo – Fabie de Silva Photography