While I was there to speak on how to “Hackproof a WordPress” website, I also attended this year’s Blogging While Brown Conference to network, learn, be inspired and make powerful connections. I’m here to tell you that this conference did not disappoint.

I could go down a play by-play of the events, but instead I decided to compile a list of my top 10 takeaways from the panels I was able to attend.

1. During the Stop Thinking Like a Blogger and Think Like a Business lead by  (Black and Married with Kids and Tyler New Media), I learned that the gatekeepers are gone. Based on his of the same name, Lamar showed how bloggers need to leverage their blogs into profitable businesses. There is no longer a secret club where wanna-be entrepreneurs were disadvantaged due to lack of money or knowledge. Everything you need to know about growing a successful business is available free online. The tools are there, the resources are endless.
2. The session called Online Energy, Offline Synergy: How Creating Content Online Can Create Financial Opportunities Offline was led by (TheHotness) and (GeorgiaNY.com). We were introduced to various ways that having a blog online can lead to offline opportunities including partnerships with other brands, events at brick and mortar locations and products endorsements.
3. When Keeping it Real Goes Wrong was led by (The Brand Infringement Firm) and she was brilliant yet comical. She used comedy and current events to help the audience understand copyright and trademark law as well as protecting yourself from lawsuits. Don’t just “” photos and assume they are free to use on your blog.
4. Blogs and Brands was a panel led by four ladies, Charlene Bastien-Dance (Strength of Nature Global), (Urban Socialista), (135th Street Agency), (BET and Six One 7 Creative) and moderated by  (The Grio). These ladies gave an unapologetic rundown of how many bloggers get it wrong and miss out on opportunities by not being professional or being timely when posting sponsored articles. I was great to hear tips on how to step up your game to attract sponsors, advertisers and assignments directly from the people who make these opportunities happen.
5. Our Saturday began with an Opening Technology Keynote presentation by (Interactive One) and as a semi-techie this was by far the one presentation were I took the most notes. Markus gave bloggers a huge list of (free) resources which can help monitor our blogs from the perspective of a visitor. By incorporating such tools as Segment.io and Lucky Orange we can tell how visitors interact with our site, while tools such as, Optin Revolution can encourage vistors to sign up for our newsletter.
6. Keep it Movin': Mobilizing Your Blog and You Brand was co-hosted by (Brotha Tech) and (The Digital Quarterback) where they shared insight on how to ensure your blog reaches maximum visibility by considering how your site is viewed on mobile devices when choosing a theme. Responsive (or Adaptive) WordPress themes are readily available online and automatically detect which browser/device a visitor uses to access your website and resizes to that screen size.
7. (Awesomely Luvvie) and Scott (Hanselman) talked about their Ratchet and the Geek show during the Turning Your Brand Up to 11 with a Podcast. While podcasting is not new to me, I did enjoy the behind the scenes information as well as a comprehensive list of the required equipment needed to get started, from every price point.
8. The Professional Blogging Opportunities session from BlogHer, hosted by (BlogHer and GetGood) and (BlogHer) gave honest advice on how to make the most of your blog. I really enjoyed getting a better understanding of how the BlogHer network works and how they are able to band together and create their pool of resources.
9. Crowdfunding your Creative Project was the session moderated by (Black Enterprise), with  (Black Girls Code) and (Nomadness TV) who gave tips on how to create a successful Kickstarter or Indeigogo campaign. They both have had success funding previous projects.
10. The closing keynote panel called Empire Building was the highlight of the entire trip. (Fashion Bomb Daily), (Concrete Loop), () and (Karen Civil), along with moderator (Black Enterprise) gave us an up close and personal view of 4 rock star power bloggers. These four women started out like many in the audience, blogging for passion, and ended up becoming brand building, mini-moguls. Their personal stories of struggle and hardships made them seem more real than their online personas.

Take into consideration I wasn’t able to attend all of the available sessions, but by this list alone, you can tell that some really great conversations were happening all over the Schomburg Center last weekend. I was just elated to be the in presence of like minded, business driven individuals.

Blogging can be a lonely life so being able to create long-lasting friendships with other bloggers is priceless.