Lately it seems like I only write blog posts before or after I attend an event. So to keep up with that trend, here is my recap of my third trip to BlogWorld – this time in Los Angeles, California.

Let’s start with summaries from my previous experiences:

I attended my first BlogWorld in Las Vegas in November 2010, and we were definite newbies. We had a semi-plan of interviewing bloggers, but that quickly fell short when we realized you couldn’t hear any audio from the FlipCam, and without a central location it was hard to pin people down. We eventually parked at a table next to the Sony Lounge (where I met the wonderful Sukhjit) and started tweeting at friends that were attending. It was great to finally put faces to names (and avatars), and I’m sure they enjoyed getting an insider’s look at Livefyre’s new private beta features. This was my first glimpse at the regulars I would continually see at future conferences. It was an educational first experience and we knew next time we would represent Livefyre in full force.

This picture makes BlogWorld look like one big party. Well, it kind of is, with blogging in between. Networking at its finest.

Fast forward to May 2011. The week before BlogWorld New York, Jordan and I were stressed beyond belief, fighting off colds, organizing our booth, and getting ready for a client trip to London before making our way back to NYC. We had no experience with exhibiting at a trade show, which was evident when we showed up to our booth and there was too much furniture to even stand. After ditching a table and chairs and rolling in the keg, our booth quickly became a success. Unfortunately the exhibit hall wasn’t as active as Las Vegas, as the Javitz Center felt a bit like a basement and there was much less overall activity. But the highlight of the trip, once again, was the people. We hosted a dinner with around 20 Livefyre bloggers and friends that were attending the conference. It was great to get to know everyone on a personal level, and to express appreciation for our early adopters. After that I knew I wanted to attend every BlogWorld, so we could continue to thank our biggest supporters.

We met Justin and Heather in person at BlogWorld Vegas. Here we are at The Park celebrating their awesomeness. (Thanks Shonali for the photo!)

Here we are in November 2011. Livefyre is on over 15,000 sites, we just announced our partnership with BlogcastFM, and people came up to us already knowing our name and that they needed to see our special sauce. Max, Joe, and I were the face of our brand, excited to share Livefyre with everyone rolling through. Along with Srini, Sid, Capsun, and later Jordan, our booth was continually buzzing. Livefyre champions continually stopped by, sharing their praises and taking a shirt for the road. We got to amaze new friends with the likes of SocialSync, FriendTag, and real-time updates, enticing many to install right on the spot. Not to mention Srini interviewing over 25 bloggers and our amazing rendition of Reading Rainbow. Needless to say, we had a blast.

Wait, did I forget to mention the Livefyre Happy Hour and After Party? The Livefyre team was happy to treat BlogWorld attendees to whiskey and drinks at Seven Grand and The Standard, to again say thanks for everyone’s continued support. The next day I heard our party was “the place to be,” so I think we achieved our goal. And to clarify, the goal was meeting people and connecting, with some social lubricant to help the cause.

By the end of Saturday we could barely stand – I still have no idea how people made it all the way through Saturday night. We made our way back to San Francisco, walking tall wearing our Livefyre shirts in the airport, catching some ZZZs on the plane, watching the sunset above the clouds, cabbing it through the pouring rain back home. I was in bed by 10pm, reflecting and cherishing all the great people we met and reconnected with during the conference.

[slickr-flickr search="sets" set="72157627962148313" type="slideshow" id="68739094@N08" align="center" border="on" flickr_link="on"]

I hope next time you think about Livefyre you don’t just think think of the best conversation platform; you think of the people behind it. Don’t be afraid to say hi, we always want to talk and share our mission with others.

Were you at BlogWorld this time around? Did you get to come by our booth? Please share your reflections of the event here. And if you couldn’t make it, where do you live? We’ll try to make it to a conference near you!

UPDATE: I wrote this post on Sunday night, before I really let BlogWorld sink in. There are SO MANY more people to thank for making it a great trip, that I have to write a follow up post to make sure I’m able to share how much I appreciated everyone that I met. So for now, a huge THANK YOU is what I have, more to come soon.