Spark Sessions

The blogging world has become very saturated, so it was worthwhile spending the weekend at the second annual Spark Sessions conference to learn how to differentiate myself.

The opening keynotes by Andrew Sardone, Editor at Globe Style Advisor and Vanessa Craft, Beauty Director at ELLE Canada launched the event by describing bloggers as entrepreneurs. Vanessa inspired bloggers to become idea entrepreneurs and leverage our blogs to influence how readers think and behave. “Blogging is storytelling with a megaphone,” she said. Think about the power that comes with being a blogger and consider your future legacy.

Winnie Chan explored various legal issues that are relevant to blogging like CASL, disclaimer policies and copyright infringement. Though it was interesting to hear a lawyer’s perspective about what we do on WordPress, I would’ve preferred to see more visual examples of do’s and don’ts. Likewise, Maxine McDonald from Langton PR helped us understand which information is fundamental to include in media kits, but she didn’t show any examples of media kits she likes.

Lena Almedia, a social strategist at Chatelaine who’s known for her blog Listen to Lena, led my favourite session called The Business of Blogging: How To Turn Blogging Into A Full Time Job. She was blunt about how bloggers and brands work together in an entertaining way and reminded me of The Shirelles’ song Mamma Said. If you encounter a blogging blunder down the road, you’ll wish you followed her advice.

Whereas other speakers spoke about the value of having a blogger network for advice and collaborations, Lena reminded us that bloggers are competitors. If your blog is interchangeable with your friend’s blog, then you need to rethink your strategy.

Eager to incorporate alliteration in a slide, Lena made us laugh when she said “Don’t Piss Off Pepsi!” Remember that if you publicly complain about Pepsi, even in a short tweet, there could be a negative domino effect. Imagine if one public relations agency’s client roster includes Pepsi and a slew of other favourite brands. If you tarnish Pepsi’s reputation by whining about how a $2 product tastes, then you could miss out on the opportunity to receive a $200 product for review. The PR industry is small and turnover is high, so be careful before you burn bridges. You never know where Pepsi’s PR manager will work next.

In the last panel I attended, a few top bloggers emphasized the potential for bloggers to become media personalities. Iva Grbesic, Rema Gouyez and Natalie Ho have been on Cityline, The Social and The Marilyn Denis Show respectively.

They spoke about how having an open mind can lead to dream gigs that you never thought were possible. Prior to becoming a regular guest on The Social, The Marilyn Denis Show gave Rema a hair makeover. As part of the segment, they wanted to film her at a computer and Rema insisted that her blog must be open on the screen. This was a calculated request that allowed Rema to promote her beauty blog to viewers while gaging whether she felt comfortable on camera. It paid off! Rema is now The Social’s beauty expert.

There were a number of generous sponsors who provided beauty products for the giveaways for the swag bags. The biggest sponsors with booths were Nivea, Benefit Cosmetics and Nicole by OPI. Other partners included Best Buy Mobile, AOL, Bench, Keurig, John Frieda, Jergens and Bioré. I was fortunate to win a free Clarisonic system, which is worth more than the cost of my ticket!

Street style has become a circus and fashion bloggers are caught in the middle of the action. Therefore, it’s crucial to attend similar events and keep abreast of tips and trends to stand out. The Spark Sessions executive team hosted a wonderful event and I look forward to seeing how Spark Sessions evolves in the upcoming years.

For more information, visit sparksessions.ca and join the mailing list to receive updates about future Spark Sessions workshops and events.