It’s been a week since the conference ended, but I am still on such a high.
Simply put, TravelCon 2018 was amazing.
For as long as I’ve been blogging, I’ve never attended a conference. When I started as a fashion blogger, meeting fellow bloggers at events and fashion shows often had an air of high school to it. The industry was small, but growing, and as a result, extremely competitive. The idea of going to a conference during those years seemed too cut throat. Instead, I would maybe tune in via livestream to keep up-to-date on industry trends and to learn more about blogging.
When one of my favorite bloggers, Gloria of The Blog Abroad, announced that she would be speaking at TravelCon, I was immediately intrigued. Browsing through the details of the conference on the TravelCon website, I realized right away that this conference was different. The lineup of speakers and workshops in photography and writing was beyond impressive, as was the ultimate goal of the conference: to build something sustainable and long-lasting. But what stood out to me the most was that newbies and veterans alike were encouraged to attend. In Matt’s own words, TravelCon is “really about leveling up, no matter where you are in your blogging journey.” Sold, I purchased my ticket. I couldn’t miss it.
“There are already some (very good) existing travel blogging conferences but I want to do something different. I want a conference that is less about “getting free trips to travel the world” and more about quality writing, branding, entrepreneurship, SEO, marketing, video production, and product creation — the things that help create a lasting business that delivers value to people and stands the test of time. I haven’t found one travel conference that really digs deep and makes all of this happen.”
-Matt Kepnes, Nomadic Matt and founder of TravelCon
The conference began with an introduction from Matt and a keynote from Ryan Holiday, followed by the breakout sessions. Throughout the day we joked that day one felt like day three with how much we had already learned. In addition to the keynotes, my day one included sessions about SEO, editing more efficiently in Lightroom, how to create an email list, and the best way to utilize Instagram. Day two and three would offer sessions on different topics and keynotes from Oneika Raymond and Rolf Potts. I even attended a photo walk with one of my favorite photographers, the Minority Nomad Erick Prince. There was lots of fangirling (Hey, Glo!) and networking, and while it was a bit overwhelming at times, it was in the best way possible. I was learning so much and from people that I truly admired, it was such an amazing opportunity.
Oneika Raymond- Oneika the Traveller
The best part of the conference for me was no doubt the people that I met there. Inspiring to describe them would be an understatement. A photographer that uses her skills to empower other women to use photography to affect change. Travelers that face adversity in one way or another, but go regardless. Women and men determined to represent people of color, size diversity, disabled, and LGBT persons in the travel space. No one cared about who had what followers or for how long they’ve been blogging. It was just about a genuine human connection and how we could collaborate and build each other up. We had a great time together, especially at the nightly happy hour. (You can seem some snippets of all the fun throughout the conference on my Insta Stories.)
Andrea Rees Photography / Wandering Iphone | She Wanders the Globe | Flight to Film | Soul in Love with Travel | Miss Baldwin While Traveling | Grant’s Happy Place | Aloha with Love
The experience I had at TravelCon helped me to envision myself in a way I seriously would have never imagined before. I’ve always had dreams of what I saw myself doing for a career and in life. But I fear would almost always sabotage my efforts, and the dreams I had seemed more aspirational than reality. But now with what I’ve learned, things seem more attainable than ever. I see myself now as a writer and photographer. And I continue to remember my “why”, no matter what. The spark was always there, but attending TravelCon threw a little gas to make the flame bigger. I truly can’t wait to do it all again in Boston next year.
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