All of these amazing ladies have made an impact on my life in one way or another whether they realize it or not. From them I have learned and grown as a professional and as a person. I am happy and thankful that the beautiful industry of Affiliate Marketing has brought us all together. A special Happy Birthday wish to each and everyone of you!
Trio of Birthdays - Feb 6!
I want to take a moment to share a paragraph about why I care about each of these lovely ladies:
Lisa is a natural leader. She is always in control and knows how to say anything with grace. From the moment I started talking to her I knew I could confide in her judgment. I must confess I am a terrible listener but I always listen to what Lisa has to say. I guess when Lisa calls me Lil Steph, she is right because I look up to her.
Trisha Lyn is actually Trisha. Just like me social media has changed her nickname! Sharing an exciting panel with Trisha at Affiliate Summit East brought us close together in our common love for interacting with others. Trish is savvy and diligent in everything she says and blogs. She is one of the only people that I can be completely blunt with and her sense of humor rocks. Trisha is a bubbly and caring lady that I am lucky to call a friend.
Mellies is a New Yorker #nuffsaid. She is passionate and she is a fighter for justice. I respect and am proud of everything she has single-handedly done for our industry. She is someone I can talk to about anything and trust with everything.
Mellies is up for an ABW award for Best Service to the Industry 2009. She deserves this recognition big time! I was nominated and am honoured to be mentioned but FYI I have not done a fraction of what this woman does everyday for our industry. Mellie you are an inspiration!
A Triple Toast to Influence, Wit, and Strength:
I am better for knowing each of these women. We are a tight knit group of people. So this is a special day for all Affiliate Marketers to celebrate. We have three reasons why all Affiliate Marketers should raise their glass tonight and cheers from wherever they are in the world. If you are sitting in front of your laptops or if you are out and about in the city.
Tweet Three Wishes!
When you do make that wish or toast send it out on Twitter: @LisaP @Mellies @TrishaLyn
I made my picture toast on: http://dailybooth.com/MicroSteph add me if you are on this picture sharing social network or come check it out!
I just finished unpacking my bags from Affiliate Summit West. It turns out I am off again for a family matter. Since family comes first I repacked my bags tonight and am leaving in the morning. Before I go I had to post a recap of yet another phenomenal Affiliate Summit. Since my blog posts are lengthy I am going to break it down into a couple posts. Here goes part one covering Saturday and Sunday.
Before each conference I post a daily guide of my recommendations. I usually follow my own guide as an outline of what I will attend during the conference. As you know things don’t always go as planned especially in Vegas, you end up making new plans. I wanted to share my daily summary of Affiliate Summit West as it really happened!
Enjoying Shawn's drink of choice with him
My Saturday Guide and My Real Saturday, The Pre-Parties:
Many people arrived to the conference on Friday or early on Saturday to get a head start. There were several events going on this night. I am proud to say for my first night the plans remained the same. I was able to make it to all the events.
I started off the evening by attending an intimate dinner put together by my friend Joe Sousa. This was a relaxing time to spend at the American Bar and Grill which I would come back to frequent on more than one occasion. Joe also posted his own recap of events he attended during Affiliate Summit. I then headed to the ABW gathering within the Rio. It was a low key get together where I got to see many familiar faces before the conference started.
I then went check out how the poker players were doing. The poker tables were filled for a great cause the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Then I headed to Carolyn Tang’s bachelorette party in McFadden’s which was also at the Rio hotel. She was having the time of her life. From there I headed to the Buy.at event at Rain in The Palms. They had the top level rented out. Buy.at knows how to throw a party.
Buy.at Affiliate Summit West Party
I ended Saturday by going back to the Rio and checking out the Charity Poker Tournament. It was still going on when we returned to the hotel. Skimlinks.com had sponsored someone to play and then ended up winning the tourney! Then it was time for bed and luckily on Sunday the conference started at noon.
My Sunday Guide and My Real Sunday, Meet Market:
On Sunday the first thing to check out was the Meet Market. This was the perfect time to get to know some merchants and network. At the same time there were sessions going on. I got to attend the panel on Monetizing Blogs for Affiliate Marketing and SEO. The panelists were Drew Bennett from BenSpark.com, MurrayNewlands.com, John Carcutt from MediaWhiz.com, and TheRealTimJones.com. Here is my full review of the Monetizing Blogs panel.
I had a chance to interview John Carcutt from Media Whiz. He was on this successful panel and I think he brought on a different perspective. John normally attends nationwide conferences more search focused. This was his first Affiliate Summit. Since he knows his SEO I was interested to hear his thoughts on recent trends such as social media which also affect Affiliate Marketing. Check out our interview below to see what John has to say…
***Disclaimer: Please disregard the #tripodfail which makes me look like a bobblehead!
After learning from John and his panel I went back to the Meet Market for a while to mingle with the crowd. I got to talk to some new people. As soon as I knew it I was running over to the Affiliate Summit Mentor Meetup where I was heading a roundtable discussion. I had a great time talking to new attendees and answering their questions about the conference. Many of them wanted to learn about affiliate marketing in general. It is great to see others discovering how to market online through affiliate marketing.
Cooling off after running to the Affiliate Summit Mentor MeetUp
It was time to have dinner with Jay Berkowitz and a nice group of about 30 marketers. I invited Joe Stepniewski from Skimlinks.com to come with me. While I was there I got to say hello to John Fischer from StickerGiant and JB Glossinger also known as MorningCoach. The dinner was fantastic and both new friends were a delight.
Testing out the Chocolate Fountain at the ShareASale party
The ShareASale party is always a good time so I headed there after dinner. I got to jump in the photobooth and also into the bouncy castle. That is what I like about ShareASale they know how to have fun and don’t take themselves too seriously. I also got to play blackjack and try out the chocolate fountain!
Chocolate Fountain MicroSteph Approved!
I got to end my night with the best thing in the world which included a wardrobe change. Bowling for boobies had to be a highlight of the conference for me. Again it was fun with a cause tied into it which made it all the better. People for some reason can’t get enough of my bowling technique see below for an example.
If someone has a video of my bowling skillz please do send it over. I would love to share it on my blog. Also a big thanks to BowlingShirt.com thanks to them I have that sweet hawt pink bowling dress. They are run by GTO Management which also sponsored the bowling event as well as the great guys at TFAW and AffiliateMarketersGiveBack. If I were an affiliate I would definitely check out the BowlingShirt.com affiliate program. It is on ShareASale and for details on joining you can check them out here.
Brent, Joe and I bowling for boobies
There were over 150 bowlers staying up late. I cannot wait until next time! This happily ended my Sunday night. What a great start to Affiliate Summit West! Monday and Tuesday are where the games and networking really begin. Even though I will be out of the country for a week I hope to post the rest of my conference events as well as more video interviews I made live from the Blogger’s Lounge.
After attending Affiliate Summit West it is painfully clear that this post needs to be made. Upon moving to New York City in August, I immediately gravitated towards the tech community. When we would arrive to a networking event I noticed everyone was “checking in” to the location. Not on Twitter but on FourSquare. I quickly downloaded the app which would become one of my most used iPhone apps.
Stalk much?
Yes FourSquare can seem creepy to some people because it shows your location to others. It is a pro can con. I like using it to find the location address. It can be a con if you don’t want someone to know where you are. There is a feature that you can use to hide your whereabouts. You can check in without showing your location. I have a few other ideas on how to handle this. The way in which you use FourSquare is a personal preference but these are my opinions on it. For starters, I do not have my avatar on FourSquare. If I check in somewhere and someone else is there, I may not want them to be able to find me. I may change it to another icon that is not my face because if you do not have a photo uploaded, you cannot be the mayor of anything.
What is a mayor?
FourSquare has not only made it’s application a way to share locations but has also turned it into a game. I think this feature has made the app more fun and has people talking about it. As you explore the city you are in you can keep track of where you go and win badges such as a Newbie badge which will be the first one you get. It is also useful when you can find popular locations that are near you. This sometimes helps me find new venues.
Discover Your City:
You can use FourSquare not only to discover cool new places but also to see why you want to go there. This is because you can add tips and even get deals from the locations. Your friends and people in the area can add a tip for example by sharing their favourite meal at a restaurant or even a bad review. There are some places that offer you a free drink if you are mayor. Being mayor means you check in to the location more than anyone else does.
Don’t be the Oversharer:
When I arrived at Affiliate Summit West I had many friends asking me about FourSquare and why they should join. Some newbies really did not know how to use the tool like my friend cough cough TheRealTimJones. Tim is an awesome marketer but someone FourSquare would call an “oversharer.” I got this badge when I was on the Vegas Strip checking into too many locations. Tim would get into a room, check in, go to the bathroom, come back and check in again. It is all because he was trying to oust Andrew Bennett as the mayor of Affiliate Summit West but he did not succeed. In fact, the only thing he succeeded in was killing my iPhone battery.
Notification Settings:
You can change the settings to make sure that you do not get notified each time someone checks in somewhere. I like to keep this setting on especially during a conference to see where people are headed. However one setting I have turned off for my own profile is to link to Facebook and Twitter. If someone wants to see what I am doing on FourSquare they can find out but IMO I don’t want to tell them three times where I am.
Accept Friend Request?
Lastly, be careful when accepting new friends. These people will get to see your information which may include your phone number, Twitter, and Facebook. You may be Twitter friends but this may be someone you don’t want having your phone number. Have fun with FourSquare and use it to connect with people. It is another great addition to the world of social media. Use it whichever way makes you feel most comfortable.
Newbie Basic FourSquare Tutorial:
1. Download the FourSquare app
2. Click the Check-in button
3. Either find favourites and locations around you or Search for the name of the place you are at the top.
4. Select which location you want to check into.
5. You can add a shout which will share why you are there and then click “Check-in here.”
6. You can also view on the people tab who is there or details like a map of the location.
7. If you enjoyed your time at this location feel free to enter in a tip for your friends to see. Just click on the tab tip and click on “Add a tip here.”
I hope this helps you make a decision on how to use FourSquare. When you check in somewhere it will show others your first name and last initial. I suggest trying it out at least during your next conference. The city you live in may not be using it much depends on your location. It can be a great tool if you use it right. Follow the hashtag I started #foursquaretutorial for updates.
