BlogWorld NYC 2012: The Future of Content

BlogWorld and New Media Expo 2012 in NYC was a who’s who of social media, a plethora of blogging and content techniques and tools, and a look ahead at the future of new media.

 The Content Strategist was on site for days two and three of the convention held at the Jacob Javitz Center, June 5-7.

The Theme: “Do something 10 percent better than the rest of the world, and the world is going to think you’re awesome.” –Peter Shankman

Shankman opened the morning sessions on June 6 with his talk entitled, “When It Gets Real: What Happens When Your Fun Little Personal Brand Has to Grow Up.” On the web, everyone’s goal should be to have better customer service, captivate an engaged audience, and to write well.

And those points, no matter the panel, comprised a common theme for the conference, at least within the content-focused panels I attended.

There were also tracks geared specifically for those who cover podcasting, mobile, and TV, as well as a premium track called the Social Media Business Summit.

Trends: “Brands will dominate online publishing.” – Shane Snow, Contently.com

Contently Co-Founder Shane Snow’s presentation, with Andraz Tori of Zemanta.com, gave attendees a glimpse into how content marketing became the buzzword over the past year or so, and what it will mean in the near future.

Snow said the slow death of the banner ad is expected to continue as more brands focus on quality content that develops relationships with readers.

The days of SEO writing, gaming Digg, and linkbaiting may be on the decline. Welcome to the age of the personal brand and content creation from non-media companies.

Inspiration: You can beat blogger’s block and write epic content!

Rich Brooks of Flyte New Media provided 50 brainstorming ideas for when you’re all blogged out. From Google trends and reading blog comments to using StumbleUpon and SocialMention.com, there’s a wealth of information to help spark some inspiration.

In one of the highlights of the conference, Corbett Barr donned a plastic gold-colored crown to mock the clichéd “content is king” phrase. His presentation was aimed at helping those in attendance learn how to create “epic content” that keeps readers coming back for more.

Some ways to do that is to take lots of chances, give yourself time and cut yourself some slack as you get over the learning curve, and borrow formats that work elsewhere and make them work for you.

Social Media Strategy: Leverage LinkedIn and Facebook to amp up your content marketing.

Stephanie Sammons’ panel shared lots of ways to improve LinkedIn activity in order to stand out and keep on everyone’s radar. In her estimation, just 15 minutes spent making updates three times per week and/or answering LinkedIn questions can make a huge difference in your visibility and help drive traffic back to whatever you’re promoting. Other tips include getting involved in groups, commenting on others’ updates, and making every post robust.

To get people to see your content, Amy Porterfield’s Facebook strategies are definitely worth trying. From how to manipulate your cover photo and customize tabs to experimenting with promoted posts and how to get friends to follow through on a call to action, there were so many great ideas crammed into her hour.

ATwitter search for #BWENY will help you gain access to some presenters’ slideshows and recaps, though you’ll have to slog through a lot of justified complaining about the poor WiFi and fluctuating temperatures at the Javitz… sorry.

(Side note: Beginning with the next conference in Las Vegas next January, BlogWorld will be known just as New Media Expo #NMX).

In the meantime, here are some terrific recaps from fellow attendees that will get you thinking and clicking:

7 Deadly Social Sins by Profnet’s Maria Perez – She overviews Scott Stratten’s insightful keynote with some smart interjections of her own.

BlogWorld Recap: Social Media and Blogging Lessons from the Pros by Shareaholic’s Ginny Soskey – Complete with video interviews, this post offers a nice summary of insights from some of the presenters.

Top 10 Lessons Learned at BlogWorld by Julia Cantor – A nice collection of lessons learned for both bloggers and marketers, with great link outs.

Next image courtesy of Pavel Ignatov/shutterstock