A small group of ambitious outdoor writers, also known as outdoor bloggers, are making plans for what they are calling an Outdoor Bloggers Summit. A blog site has been established to keep those interested abreast to the progress of such an event.
I can’t really tell you what the summit will entail because the Steering Committee has yet to put together a plan. I figured that I would take a few minutes and share some of my thoughts with my readers about what I might envision for an outdoor bloggers summit. These thoughts and ideas are in no way indicative of what might be planned by the Steering Committee.
Most of us outdoor sportsmen have our favorite outdoor and sports writers. For decades all we have known is print media. Our favorite magazines may have been Field and Stream, Outdoor Life, Boy’s Life, etc. Today we have a new media that provides a stage for a host of writers from the seasoned professional to the raw, rough-around-the-edges, wannabe.
For the reader, he is presented with the task of deciding which, if any, new media outdoor writers are worth spending time with. The challenges for the writer are to provide material worth reading and earn recognition as an outdoor writer and gain legitimacy.
We now are blessed with more and more writers wishing to share of themselves with Internet readers. This small group of ambitious bloggers I mentioned earlier, have a vision of better organizing “the movement” for a host of reasons.
There are other existing organizations for bloggers. There’s the Media Bloggers Association that sums up their purpose this way.
The is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting, protecting and educating its members; supporting the development of “blogging” or “citizen journalism” as a distinct form of media; and helping to extend the power of the press, with all the rights and responsibilities that entails, to every citizen.
There’s also Pro Bloggers Association.
Because blogs are creating a new mediascape of network communications. As blogs enter the mainstream as credible business and marketing strategies, a small group of bloggers gathered their thoughts together and saw a need for an organization to:
* Serve as a clearing house for best practices
* Provide educational resources
* Set ethical standards
* Promote the legitimacy of professional bloggers, consultants and those that provide tools and services for blogs and bloggers
These two are examples of how being a member of such organizations can provide benefits to bloggers. An example of a major benefit is when the Media Bloggers Association was able to garner a couple of press seats for the Scooter Libby trial held this past spring. This organization worked hard to get the powers that be to recognize the legitimacy of bloggers. This was a major accomplishment and something all bloggers should be thankful for.
Whether an Outdoor Bloggers Summit would address such an issue, I’m not sure. What I can envision is an organization, perhaps called the Outdoor Bloggers Association, that would work together in order to present us who blog about outdoor sports and recreation as legitimate professional writers who deserve to be recognized as such.
Having such an establishment could give us a unified presence at any and all major outdoor sports shows, such as the S.H.O.T. show. Instead of me putting together a booth at the show to promote myself and at the same time cover the events, the Outdoors Bloggers Association could be the representing entity and members of such could man the booths and cover the show.
With increased organization, recognized professionalism and the power that would be bestowed upon us, great things can happen. Let’s face it, 50 or more members of the Outdoor Bloggers Association would have far more influence in the outdoor sports world than just any one of us bloggers. One goal of having a bloggers summit could be the establishment of such an organization.
Another function I see of a summit would be a way for bloggers to learn to become better writers and bloggers. They could also hear from the most successful bloggers on how to blog and make money, if that is something they are interested in doing.
This field of new media and in particular blogging, is still growing. I’m not even sure that it has a complete identity yet. I do know that it is not yet fully recognized by the previously existing media but that is slowly changing. We have bloggers. We have writers. We have numerous print media that are successful and make money. Some of those have successfully transitioned to an Internet presence. Others have not. What we don’t have an abundance of is bloggers who are recognized outdoor writers, who make money at what they do and are given the legitimacy they may deserve. This needs to change.
A bloggers summit could put together the best of all worlds. With a unified effort to promote all forms of outdoor writing, the available resources can benefit us all. An increase in any outdoor sports writers, both print and Internet, can only benefit the industry.
I see a bloggers summit that brings in some very successful bloggers to share their expertise with others, outdoor writers willing to teach us how to become better writers and successful Internet marketers bestowing us with their knowledge of how to promote our websites.
Well known and successful bloggers are what they are for a reason. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to talk to these people and pick their brains to find out what they did to get where they are today?
Whether yesterday’s and today’s well known and established outdoor writers want to accept it or not, blogging (or whatever it is going to be called in the future) is not going away. If they haven’t begun yet, they will need to blog if they want to remain cutting edge and keep their audiences.
They have to recognize that outdoor bloggers will contribute at least to some degree, to the future of outdoor journalism. With that, they will be anxious to become a part of an outdoor bloggers summit. Writers have big egos and enjoy the limelight. A summit with experienced outdoor writers sharing their experience, enthusiasm and a few trade secrets will a great asset.
Writers and bloggers spend most of their time working on their finished products. Because of this, they have little time or expertise to promote their websites. We all need to learn as much as we can about how to promote our sites so others will find it and advertisers will be wanting to invest in our work.
I have heard suggestions that the Outdoor Bloggers Summit should coincide with or even be a part of a larger outdoor sports show. Again, I don’t see a summit this way as being the best way but it does have some benefits. I think I would rather there be an outdoor bloggers entity covering the show as a media/writers organization. Those willing to attend the show as members could do so. Having a press pass can get any bloggers into places others might not be able to.
I hope this group of bloggers can pursue and be successful at putting together a summit. I think it could be a huge benefit to all of us bloggers.
Tom Remington
