Web Ad.vantage Hits the Road for BlogPaws 2010

Passion.  It’s a simple word that means many things to many people.  I believe it is a core trait for any successful business.  You have to be passionate about what you sell or who is going to want your product or service.  Passion is one of the things that drew me to Web Ad.vantage when I was looking for my next employer.  Passion is what we as an agency look for when talking to prospective customers, and passion is what we feel about our customers’ businesses.  So it seemed only fitting that as an agency full of animal lovers that we take a trip out to Columbus, OH to attend the first annual BlogPaws conference, an event aimed at gathering together bloggers and businesses all about pets and the people who love them.  There was certainly no shortage of passion at this event.

Nose-to-Nose with Pet Bloggers

BlogPaws is really a website dedicated to making pet bloggers better at what they do.  BlogPaws 2010 was a way to get all of these dedicated bloggers “nose to nose” as a way to build relationships and foster collaborative efforts.  All of us have heard the stories of the power of social media and how mountains have been moved, but this event really crystallized what can be done when passionate people ban together for a common cause.  The pet industry is rampant with loving and caring people who want to do everything they can to help animals everywhere and this atmosphere of this event was a testament to this selflessness.  Throughout the day on Saturday were 9 different sessions covering everything from turning your blog into a revenue stream, how to write product reviews, search engine optimization tips, engaging your customers through blogging, and creating contests and promotions.  That final topic on contests was a panel of speakers featuring none other than our own CEO, Hollis Thomases.  Of course what better way to run a contest than by using Twitter.  Hollis was prepared with a great presentation and I saw more than a few copies of her new book in the hand of conference attendees!

Brands + Bloggers

In between the sessions was built in plenty of time to network with bloggers and get face to face with some of the large corporate sponsors like Kibbles ‘n Bits, Petsmart, PurinaCare, and Kodak among others.  The exhibition hall hosted these sponsors to show off their wares and this is where that passion really came out.  I didn’t see anyone trying to sell anything; but rather, these corporate sponsors were eager to get feedback from the blogging public and the average pet owner.  I witnessed a great many conversations about how this company can help with a specific blogger’s charity or fund raising effort.  I have no doubt that products were sold but it was so obviously not the point of this event and to me just another testament that, contrary to popular belief, the cold corporate world has figured out that social media is a force to be reckoned with.  Some companies may take more time than others to embrace the movement fully, but I firmly believe that corporate America is listening.

After BlogPaws I now believe that in the pet industry, corporations are not only listening but begging for ways to help the average pet owner.  Once we all got “nose to nose” it was obvious we all love animals and whatever we need to do to help them was a foregone conclusion.  I attended several sessions and sat through a couple of keynote speakers and was amazed that no matter how strong or esteemed the speaker was that every single presenter shed a tear or two when the subject of a lost pet, or an animal shelter in need came up.  That is passion.  Imagine what can happen when that passion is combined with like minded-people and leveraged across the social media universe.  Well Lynn Haigh of (of @FrugalDougal and PawPawty fame) put together a video that was shown in the closing session that illustrates just what can happen:

So get over to BlogPaws.com & follow @blogpaws to check out everything that is going on in this incredible community of animal lovers.  Stay tuned for more from this group and be sure to book your spot for the next conference.  Hey, you can even bring your pet and they can make some new friends too!

P.S.  My best friend Alex was waiting for me when I got home and he has already requested to go with me next year!

This week’s blog post is contributed by Shannon Rogers,  proud pet owner and Sr. New Business Executive at Web Ad.vantage.  Connect with Shannon online or send him an email.

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