BlogOrlando 2009
It's the one questions I'm asked most frequently in the past few weeks, "BlogOrlando?" That's it, just one word. The folks asking assume I know what they mean. And I do. Sadly the news is not good.
After a great deal of consideration I have decided not to host a big, public BlogOrlando this year.
Why? A number of reasons:
1. I just can't make the time commitment this year. Work is busier than ever and I've done it three years now. The event consumes almost all my free time in September. I'm looking forward to a bit of a break and I know my family is as well. I've always had a great bunch of volunteers to help out, but still the majority of the work and stress is on me.
2. In some ways I think the event has run its course. When planning last year's event I started by saying, "I can't repeat the same sessions, and have similar speakers." In the end though a little bit of that happened.
As the topics mature you create a few different groups, namely those starting out, and those that are experienced. Eventually there needs to be two tracks, a beginner and an expert. Layer that on top of the already existing tracks for PR/Comms, Journalism, etc and you have quite the complex event. It's not just a simple get together of folks in a room chatting. The first year we had under a 100 folks, the past two we've been near 300, I would expect the same this year, since cost isn't a factor, the event has always been free :-)
3. Back to the roots. Last year I hosted a smaller event a few days before BlogOrlando. If you remember it was the original concept behind the event. I may still do something small, invite only. Think of it as a TED-style event in Orlando. I'll be mulling that over in the next few weeks.
4. I'm not as connected to Orlando as I used to be. My work has taken me all over the world now and I don't get to spend as much time in the downtown area. I mentioned this to a few folks last year; the fact the the guy behind BlogOrlando doesn't really work there anymore. Folks like Greg Pollack and Ryan Price have always been in touch with the local scene and their local events show that.
I've been debating about when to announce this, since I was hoping that thinking about it more would change my mind. However, as I said above, the question is being asked, and a few folks were even asking about travel plans.
It is the complete end? No. I may still hold a small private event this year, or may think about hosting an event in 2010. We'll see.
A few folks have asked if I would let somebody else run the event. I have mixed feelings about this. While there are a few folks that I know could run the event well, BlogOrlando has mostly been my baby and I'm not ready just yet to let it go. However I may change my mind.
Lastly a big thanks to all my friends and colleagues that took time out of their personal schedules and paid their own way to travel to Orlando these past three years. I like to think we put Orlando on the map a bit. Seeing something like this, makes me feel proud.
In the end we all learned from each other and made friendships and business connections that will last for a while. That's more valuable than any topic covered in a session.
