The Mommy Blogger's Workshop

Hello Lovies!

Yesterday, I attended the first ever Mommy Blogger's Workshop organized by Good Housekeeping Philippines.

I was so excited because this is the first seminar-workshop in blogging that I have attended since I started my blogging career (yep, I want to move on to that next level-- making a career in blogging). So, here what transpired during this event.

Before the Seminar

You might be wondering how did I get tho know this seminar-workshop. Well, I've been an avid reader of Good Housekeeping Philippines and I've been following their Facebook page.The event announcement just appeared on my FB timeline and I immediately texted the number that was written there. Suddenly, I received a reply and they asked for my blog URL (just so to check if I have an existing blog). I gave them my URL address to this blog site and then they confirmed instantly that I can join the workshop. 

The event was held at the Eastwood Richmonde Hotel . Ms.Grace Enriquez, Media Relations Manager of Summit Media, specifically instructed to be there at 12 PM for the registration since the seminar will start at 1 PM. Since its a Saturday, I tagged along Didi to accompany me so that we can also have some time together going to this new place. So, we left home at 10 AM to avoid traffic. 

We arrived at the hotel at around 11 AM. The seminar was held at one of the function rooms on the third floor. And since it's only 11 o'clock, I became the first participant to register. I was hoping that I could get a prize for being the early bird -- well, I did not. :)

I just forgot to take photos of the lovely ladies at the Registration Booth as I was already busy looking around at the exhibits. Here are my photos:

I finally got to meet Ms. Grace who texted me. She's very beautiful and she looks like Sam Pinto. :)

I took a sneak peek photo of the function room before the seminar started.

That's the stage, or more appropriately, the speaking platform for all the wonderful speakers for today's event.

Sponsors of the Event

There were some sponsors that helped out this seminar-workshop become a success. They were there in the event too showcasing their different products and services.

Planners and Journals. You can check them out at their Facebook page

Proudly made in the Philippines! These beauties are all made from pure leather. 

They also have some cute and different styles of planner inserts.

Tiny Buds baby products. I love their Rice Baby Powder. Will be blogging about them in a separate blog post. So, you better watch for it.

Leather.ph. Yep, that's their business name and obviously they make things out of leather. You can even make your own design and have them stitch you by hand your leather product.

The Seminar-Workshop

The seminar-workshop started at 1:30 PM because some participants were just arriving by then. This lovely lady -- Marylaine Loiuse Lagran Viernes, hosted the event. If you need a host for your events, the very beautiful and witty Mary will surely make your event a success. You can check her out in this website: MARYLAINE VIERNES

Up close and personal with our host - Mommy Mary.

The first to speak was Sheila Juan- Catilo. Her topic was on Shooting for Your Blog. Basically, she shared some tips on how to take good and professional-like photos for your blog post. This petite but very talented lady did gave us some great hacks on shooting several subjects like children, foods, products and places. What I like from her presentation was that she was able to simplify the arduous actions and preparation of photography. She even said that everyone can take photos similar to that we see on other professional blogs by just using our smartphone or point and shoot cameras.

Ms.Sheila Juan-Catilo of  www.catilo.net

 Another speaker was Christine Dychiao of Manila Fashion Observer. She discussed Brand Building or how to build your own brand to create your personal niche in the blogging industry. Since there are now numerous blogs to read and follow, it is really critical to build your own brand so that people will identify where you are best at. I liked the reflective questions that she posed for all participants to discover amongst ourselves what do we really want for our blog to become.

Christine Dychiao on Brand Recognition.

The last speaker was Ginger Arboleda, professional blogger, CEO of Manila Workshops, Love Learning and Memory Crafters. Oh my, she is truly an inspiration! Her talk was on Marketing your Blog and Making a Name for Yourself. She delve on important topics like stating your blogging objective, knowing yourself and your personal brand, target market and building an audience, marketing your blog in today's world, and understanding influence.

Mommy Ginger on knowing yourself, your market and defining your blog objective.

I'm just so enthralled by this young lady that I want our pictures taken together. 

Random Pics

What's a seminar-workshop without the food buffet and endless brewed coffee? Well, the hotel definitely provided that and I'm satisfied with their services.

Our merienda: Pasta carbonara, Korean chicken wings, pork empanada, and mango cheesecake.

The chandeliers! This has been a habit of mine recently -- to take ceiling photos of the places where I've been too.

Of course, we get to take home loot bags. Oh by the way, Elica cream was a major sponsor too... 

...and here are the contents of my loot bags (excuse our stained sofa courtesy of my two little tots).

Overall, I am very happy with my experience. I get to know some Mommy bloggers and were able to talk with our life experiences and our blog sites too! The 4-hour seminar-workshop was a success, however I do hope that Good HouseKeeping will be able to conduct another or more related seminars in the future. 

Hope you like this blog post! See you around!