Recapping BlogWorldExpo 2009 (#BWE09)

I was at last year's BlogWorldExpo with Jeremy Wright and the b5 Media gang - this year moreso largely as a blogger more than any other role, despite the fact that I didn't seem to have much time to blog.

I was fortune to connect with travel bloggers this year because of We Blog the World, some of whom I met at BlogHer in Chicago this past summer. Gary Arndt (Everything Everywhere) managed to track me down in San Francisco, so we finally had a chance to meet face-to-face the week before heading to Vegas. We got a tad geeky about Canons and light settings. (I love his daily photo). Gary gives me a pose below.

As always, Vegas was Vegas. The gambling energy isn't something I've ever understood, whether its a slot machine or old fashioned blackjack. This year, the inevitable came to pass - attendees were more mainstream than any other year and Hollywood showed up....remember that Ragu was in full force at BlogHer this year and people were following us around pushing creams, lotions, sauces, makeup, perfume, granola bars and designer bags in our faces.

On the one side, you had mainstream vendors, bloggers and promos - everything from gambling woos and tickets to Cirque to the MGM wining and dining four tables of travel bloggers and Jermaine Dupri sitting in as a guest DJ at Planet Hollywood.

I sampled all of it, including time with old timers and geeks. Technorati had a Hilton suite gathering and the best of the always-on addicts were speaking, trolling, dancing and connecting: Chris Pirillo, Chris Brogan, Darren Rowse, Scoble, Jay Rosen, Steve Rubel and Leo Laporte.

And there were the heavily entrenched newbies (relatively speaking) who are not only also always-on addicts, but have used social media to leverage all of their respective 'hats,' such as Scott Monty (Ford), Laura Fitton (Pistachio), Jeremiah Owyang and Guy Kawasaki.

And then there were the folks who have become celebs or already were but are maximizing their exposure through social media tools....in that camp, we heard from comedians Chad Vader, Kevin Pollak and Jenny the Bloggess, who converted her lifestyle from working in HR for a christian organization to blogging and talking about sex. She's preparing for a trip to Japan in early November that is being sponsored by a sex company.

I can only imagine the promotion: Jenny boards the plane with a giant sized Japanese dildo in Tokyo to head home and hundreds of fans are taking her picture as she keeps pulling more product goodies from her bag to serve as props.

As she entered stage left for a panel with Vader and Pollak that Guy Kawasaki moderated, she proceeded to excitedly ask the audience to tweet that Guy just got bit on the leg by a zombie bitch on-stage at BlogWorldExpo. It was a line to bring a little humor to her intro not a real ask yet I found myself too tempted not to tweet it....and so I did.

Below Pollak impersonates William Shatner on.......stage.

A few takeaways in 140 characters or less on a disruptive Twitter panel from a group that included FollowFriday originator Micah Baldwin, Jesse Stay, Lucretia Pruitt (Geek Mommy) and Reem Abeidoh (Outrider).

*Focus on relationships and building them will build conversion.

*Social media is about being social.

*Be Yourself.

A group shot of the panel below:

Security had too much time on their hands. I was in one section where they had free brownies and soft drinks and you'd think a brownie in hand was a hand grenade they were fixated on making sure only the orange colored name badges could get a processed sugar boost.

Speaking of processed sugars, I had a meal with Sugar Shock author Connie Bennett. We did a lot of the minus this, add that kind of ordering. Done like a true New Yorker. Authentic New York energy is hard to beat and it's always a joy to dip the ole toe back into east coast waters.

I'm a huge believer in all of the recommendations she tours in her book; tips that will break people free from the battle of the bulge, depression, brain fog and mood swings.

While we're on the topic of food realities and perceptions, SoyJoy was a sponsor.

I hate to knock a company unless it's United, Comcast or HP, so generally when I have a mediocre experience, I simply keep quiet. But given that I still can't get rid of the foul taste of the SoyJoy bars two days later, it's hard not to speak up. I keep wondering if I'm the only person who can't fatham that their bars are food, regardless of flavor (I tasted three).

There was no shortage of sponsored dinners, tweetups and parties -- loud parties. I have to rant a bit about lousy DJs who not only lacked creativity but gave into mainstream bland, blah and generic time and time again.

It's not new - I've been going through the tug and pull of dragging people on dance floors since I was five and the only thing that seems to work is this: give them rap or house even though they don't have a clue how to capture rhythm on the downbeat which is where you need to sit with it with club music, turn the lights down (or nearly off) to avoid embarrassment because they know they can't do the latter and lastly, alcohol and tons of it.

I found myself observing those who were willing to dance when the lights were on and without a bottle of something strong in their hands and realized there was a correlation between how they managed their business or their blog and lights and alcohol.

The majority went for the latter - booze and lights off baby. Clearly, it's easier to be truly authentic and transparent in the name of good social media when its dark isn't it? Ironic to say the least.

I feel bad for the 20-something year old woman who did a very provactive pole dance since that image was likely up on Moby Picture, flickr and YouTube within minutes and there it will sit for easy-to-find searches during her next job interview.

Last note to add in a related category - when the opposite is what it is. I met the Bunny Eared Tee Morris who was giving away his latest book: Teach Yourself Twitter in 10 Minutes.

Funny guy, and the format and style of his book is easy to digest and plough through, although he can't be serious on the 10 minutes if he means end-to-end. Maybe I'm just a slow reader but its 164 pages, so you tell me. It's a great handy resource - I picked up a few tips I didn't know and will likely pass it off to friends who are still shaking their head in the name of: I just don't get Twitter category.

What seems to work exactly as advertised is Yubby, who I finally got to play with alongside founder Vincent Everts -- in from Amsterdam for the show. More about them as I take a deeper nose dive.

Below Scott Monty talks to us about social media at Ford in a dinner keynote with Kara Swisher.

Below Scott Mock of GiftVenture, a service that provides games and online adventure for kids.

The one and only arm below is Micah Baldwin's tattoos (the FollowFriday originator). When I asked about it, he said it was about friendship. Just friendship.

The Skimlinks team flew over from London to let bloggers know about their affiliate program.

Nonprofits and cause related issues were in full force as well - below Chris Noble talks to folks about his cause - you can hear more about people were talking about in a segment on Blog Talk Radio, hosted by Jim Turner on-site.

Sports marketer Louis Howes does a session on going viral with LinkedIn which I attended on the first day.