Blog Paws 2017 Conference

Notes from a Newbie (and speaker)

As I sit contemplating my first experience with a BlogPaws conference, I’m honestly not sure where to begin. From a Great Dane in a pink tutu to Jay Baer in a purple suit to cats in sunglasses to a red carpet experience that would rival the Oscars, it was something you had to see to believe! But between the fantastic information that was given out, the welcoming members of the BlogPaws community, and some pretty darn cute pets, BlogPaws 2017 was a fantastic conference and one I will remember for years to come.

I was lucky enough to have been chosen to speak at the BlogPaws, so I really got to experience the conference on a couple of levels. In “Email Isn’t Dead,” my presentation to all the pet bloggers, I shared how to use email marketing to hold the attention of their audiences. (See below for presentation highlights and to download a free copy of the PDF.) But I also got to sit in on other sessions and two off-the-chart keynotes, one by Kathleen Gage and one by Jay Baer. I’m a pretty serious note taker, so I’ve shared my notes below.

But I’ve been to many conferences where I’ve not only attended, but also given presentations. What made BlogPaws truly unique was the audience that attended. This is the largest community of pet bloggers in the world. When pet bloggers get together, they love to not only tell stories and anecdotes about their pets, this group likes to bring their pets to the conference. I will honestly say this is the first conference I’ve ever been too where I was greeted by a Corgi, a Great Dane in a tutu, a rat, and a cat wearing sunglasses and a cowboy hat. Talk about fun! This was it! And I think it goes without saying that anyone that would bring a brown Newfoundland to a conference is a special person and one that is worth meeting and getting to know.

I can honestly say that this was one of the most welcoming and friendly groups that I’ve had the pleasure to speak in front of. It was also the first time I’d had Huskies as attendees of one of my presentations. What a hoot! Everyone seemed to get a lot out of my presentation on email marketing and was very complementary, which is always great.

I think I got as much out of attending BlogPaws as I did presenting at it. I met many new friends that I’m sure I will keep in contact with for many years to come. I really hope I get invited back next year! Thanks BlogPaws!

Be sure and checkout my montage video of the conference and my gallery of pictures below. If you have a great BlogPaws conference story to tell, please share it in the comments below.

BlogPaws 2017 Conference

My newbie experience at the largest pet blogging conference in the world

BlogPaws Speakers & Keynotes

My notes from the speakers

Kathleen Gage

Highlights from The Delaney Factor: Discover How to Overcome Any Obstacle And Achieve More than You Dreamed Possible

In order to succeed, you must show up.
You have to put the time and effort in, to reap rewards later.
Don‘t be afraid to ask what you’re worth
To the pet bloggers, think of it this way, the more you monetize what you’re doing, the more great things you can do for pets and the pet industry.
Answer the calling that life puts in front of us
You may never have thought you’d end up blogging about cats, but if a love of cats has brought you here and you’re sharing information that is helping people, keep it up!
Your actions determine your reputation no matter way you say about yourself
It’s what others say about you that really matters. That reputation will precede you.
What you do in private will be rewarded in public
Being a kind and generous person in all that you do will come back to you.
It‘s not what happens, it’s what you do about it
Remember that you are perfect the way you are. Your attitude plays a big part in how you look at things and react.
Make a decision to play big
Walk through your fears

Jay Baer

Highlights from YOUtility: How to Build a World-Class Personal Brand by Being Hyper-Useful

You must be massively helpful
Make content that people can’t believe is free. If you sell something you’ll create a customer today. Help someone and create a customer for life.
Dimension 1 of YOUtility - Solve problems for your readers
Specificity creates relevancy. You are more relevant when you’re specific. The better you teach, the stronger your personal brand becomes. You’re going after the subset.
Dimension 2 of YOUtility - Be consistent
Stop random acts of content! Create as much content as long as quality doesn’t lack. Think like a TV station. Create “shows” consistently that you can execute on for at least a year. Create your “Walking Dead.” Lowes has “Fix in Six.” Your content execution must be consistent.
Dimension 3 of YOUtility - Atomize your awesome
Put your “show” all over the place. Lowes has “Fix in Six” everywhere but on their own website. You have to be places other than your website. Need video and text. Have to be in the places where your audience hangs out. Jay does JayToday.TV. Atomize in 8 different ways. 1 to 8.
Dimension 4 of YOUtility - Get paid
Connect companies to their future customers. Think about five places to find sponsors. Potential sponsors are: every company that exhibits at any event you attend, any company with anyone on your email, any marketer or business owner that interacts with you online, any marketer that looks at you on LinkedIn, any company that appears as a guest on your podcast. Look and act like a media company. Convince and convert media. Put together a sponsorship kit.
Content that is useful.
Be relevant. Play the sponsorship game.
One question to ask yourself every day
How can I help?

Kim Butler, The URL Dr.

Highlights from Email Isn’t Dead – How to Grow and Engage Your Audience with Email Marketing

Email Design Best Practices for Mobile

Use responsive design
The answer to a consistent experience across multiple devices is responsive design. Responsive web design aims at providing an optimal viewing and interaction experience, regardless of what type of device you’re using to browse the web.
Use Clear Calls to Action
When visitors open your email, what do you want them to do? You need to have clear calls-to-action, that tell them. Using buttons with clear messaging can enhance the user experience.
Use Images Carefully
You need compelling images to tell your story and to connect with your audience. Make sure your images look good in your emails before you send them.
Don’t Place Links Too Close Together
If you’re going to use text links, be sure and provide adequate white space between them, so mobile users won’t get frustrated trying to click on teeny tiny links.
Avoid Using Too Much Text
Start to rethink your content. Long scrolling messages don’t work for mobile. A couple of short paragraphs that capture the readers interest and attention are what you need. Think about how you can condense your content.
Shorten Subject Lines
The first two words are the most important in your subject line. They need to grab the readers attention and compel them to open the email. You don’t want more than 7 words in your subject line. Strive for about 40 characters. Also try using words that are timely and give the impression that the reader needs to open your email now, before it’s too late.
Use Larger Font Sizes
This one would seem to be pretty self-explanatory…but is no less important. If visitors need to continuously pinch, zoom and scroll just to read your text, you are much more likely that they’ll give up and delete your email. Google recommends using a base font size of 16 pixels and sans serif fonts, like Verdana and Arial. Go even larger for headlines – 22 point is good. Another legibility tip is to have strong color contrast. Dark text on a light background works best.

If you didn’t get the opportunity to hear me speak at BlogPaws, click below to download a free copy of my presentation, “Email Isn’t Dead” and learn how to engage your audience with email. I cover email design best practices for mobile, 25 ways to grow your email list today, why you need to use email with social media, several of my favorite free royalty free photo sites, and a great case study of how Good Dog in a Box used blogging and email to get started.