BlogHer 2012 Bound Pt. 2 - The Business

In Wednesday's post, I told you all the basics of BlogHer. Now let's move onto the Business part of the conference. To be honest, this is the part that scares me the most. I am somewhat business savvy, but meeting with brands to rep myself, my work, is the terrifying part. I've never done it before. And really when it comes to my blogs, I don't even know the direction I want to go. It's leaving me feeling very unprepared. And I have about 2 days to figure everything out. No pressure at all. ;) Then there is the whole sponsor thing... but more on that in a bit.

When it comes to preparing for the business side of BlogHer, there are a few things you must have:

• Business Cards
• An Active Blog
• A Positive Attitude
• A Smile

There are other things, like media kits or cards, logo gear, or copies of you stats. But those are completely optional. Since I’m not sure what direction I want to go in yet, in terms of brands, affiliates, ads, and the like, I just went with some basic business cards. I did three different sets… a card for the 3 toy blogs,  one for the 3 Disney blogs, and a basic card for this site. The basic card also lists information on the other 6 sites… just for reference. I’ll most likely hand out the most cards for this site, seeing it’s the most me. I’m pretty happy with how my cards came out. Guess that graphic design degree is worth something.

Cards for the Toy Blogs - Printed by Moo Cards

The Land of Melted Clocks Cards - Printed by Uprinting

Magic Family Cards - Printed by Uprinting - Was going to add ribbon, but changed my mind

Dali
The Amazing BlogFox

The other thing I did was create a mascot for this site, something to help me stand out. I’ll be carrying a stuffed fox that I named Dali. It was my creative attempted at branding. Hopefully, I’ll become know as the cool fox girl… not the crazy chick with a stuffed animal. If you are going to be a BlogHer and want to meet Dali (and get free Disney stickers), just follow the hashtag #Dalishere on Twitter. I'll be tweeting his locations from the event.

The other major part of the business side of Blogher... and believe me, it's a doozy. Sponsorships. Getting a sponsorship can make or break BH for some people. When you add up hotel, registration, travel, etc... BH is not a cheap date. To be able to go, people will pitch companies to sponsor them. This might be in the form of cash in exchange for promoting the company at the event. It might be in ad sales for their site. Or it could even be products, like dresses, business cards, or bags. Anything to help defer the cost of going to BlogHer. Now, I sort of have a sponsor... Janet AKA Super Mom is sending me as a birthday present. Others have sponsors like Best Buy, New Trent, LifeLock, and every other kind of company you can think of. I took a chance and pitched one company for some product, but it didn't pan out. At least I tried. Next year I should be in a better position to try and get some sponsors.

When you do work with sponsors, there are a lot of pretty strict rules you have to adhere to from BlogHer, so be sure you do your research before you promise anything to a sponsor! And be professional! There are a lot of companies that have never worked with blogs and you don't want to risk giving your fellow bloggers a bad rap. And get a contract in writing if you can, I've watched a lot of bloggers have to cancel their trips because a sponsor backed out. And please, please, hold up to your end of the deal. Some companies already have a bad taste in their mouth for bloggers... we don't need a reason to give them an more.

This is just some of the basics. If anything it gives you some topics to take to Google to get you started on your research. I am far from an expert, but I am learning very quickly. Here are some links to other posts by attendees on how to prepare for the business of BlogHer for your reading enjoyment:

BlogHer Boot Camp: Top Ten Tips for Networking and Socializing
BlogHer `12 and Tom Bihn Sponsor Spotlight
Preparing Your Blog, as a Business, for BlogHer
How to Make a Quick Media Kit Using PicMonkey

Dear BlogHer Sponsors... They Don't Speak for Me

Prepping for BlogHer 2012: Business Cards
Conference Corner: 3 Things to Know About Blogging Business Cards
BlogHer 2012: NYC Conference Sponsorship

Good Luck!