So I took over 1,500 photos, conducted 14 interviews and posted them along with a couple of video clips to our websites and the Iowa Corn Promotion Board Facebook page. They got copies for their own use too. That’s a hallmark of our event coverage! It’s kind of like an old fashioned live radio remote on the internet and you get high quality production at the same time!

You can listen to audio from the start of the race here: Iowa Indy Corn 250 Start

Here’s where you can find my photos: Iowa Corn Indy 250 Photo Album

Darren says that a blog allows you to build a community around a niche topic and that if you are successful doing so you’ll find advertisers who want to be a part of it.

You can listen to my interview with Darren here: bwe-09-rowse.mp3

BlogWorld Expo Photo Album

He says the exhibit show has been packed and I can attest to that since I’ve had to wait at times to get an opportunity to speak with an exhibitor. He says next year’s dates are October 14-16 back here in Las Vegas.

Rick says that one of the beautiful things about new media is that it allows a company or an event to have a media outlet since most of us are in niche topical areas and it may not be big enough to even be mentioned on network television. He says new and social media “cuts out the middle man” and let’s you communicate directly which is how we naturally converse. It’s a tremendous benefit for small business.

You can listen to my interview with Rick here: bwe-09-calvert.mp3

BlogWorld Expo Photo Album

It’s relatively easy to measure downloads and subscribers with services like Libsyn or Blubrry. Results might require conducting a survey of your listeners to determine what they’re doing. For influence Leesa suggests looking at your social networking community with attention to things like Twitter follower growth. In our conversation we also discuss what sponsors or advertisers want to see to show their return on the investment they’ve made in your podcast.

You can listen to my interview with Leesa here: bwe-09-barnes.mp3

BlogWorld Expo Photo Album

They surveyed bloggers this past year and he’s showing us some selected statistics. He started out by saying that the blogosphere is very healthy and contrary to media reports otherwise, bloggers are blogging even more than last year. Of the professional bloggers, 40 percent have worked in traditional media. He says, “Blogs are media.” I fully agree with that.

I’ll do my best to get an interview with him and update this post if I do.

Post Update: I caught Richard on his way out after his keynote address and you can listen to my interview with him here: bwe-09-jalichandra.mp3

BlogWorld Expo Photo Album

He says that not only do blogs increase your searchability but also your results because you’re making the searcher happier. He says to remember that social media is about people. It’s about human beings and blogs help articulate the humanity of the organization.

Chris is seen in the photo talking with some BlogWorld participants after his talk.

Listen to my interview with Chris here: bwe-09-baggot.mp3

BlogWorld Expo Photo Album

After the opening session I did get to speak with Laura, Pistachio Consulting. Laura says that the main message she wanted people to walk away with was “Be Awesome.” She also wanted to plant the idea of using social networking mechanisms like Twitter to connect with other people and get your ideas out in the world where they might yield awesome results.

She says Twitter has helped take her from a busy stay at home Mom to giving the keynote here, publishing a book and launching her business. She points out how well Twitter works for business since there are so many Twitter tools.

Listen to my interview with Laura here: bwe-09-fitton.mp3

Next year Tim’s moving the conference to Las Vegas to as he puts it, “move it to the next level.” Over 2,000 people were registered here for this year’s conference and my guess is that there’s still a lot of growth potential. For example, I’ll bet some international expos would work well like in Europe or Asia.

Thanks to Gary Cooper, Southeast AgNet, for taking the picture while I interviewed Tim in front of the trade show entrance.

You can listen to my interview with Tim here: pnme-07-bourquin.mp3

After our initial meeting of the new organization today I interviewed her. She explains how why she and some others have gone to the trouble of creating a new organization. Basically it has to do with creating some new media industry standards that will allow those of us who create content to better monetize our products. I’m all for that.

You can listen to my interview with Susan here: pnme-07-bratton.mp3