SNAP Conference is an annual event held in Salt Lake City, Utah, targeting creative bloggers/content creators. This year in 2019, it ran Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, April 11-13. In their own words from the conference’s website: “We’re joined by the best bloggers representing modern handmade, contemporary craft, mind-blowing home-based events, and DIY, along with dozens of creative entrepreneurs.” I attended last year as well, if you’d like to read the 2018 recap here.
Overview
This year was the first under new ownership, Mandy from Sugar Bee Crafts & Kimberly from A Girl and a Glue Gun, who brought new energy to the conference. The audience of content creators ranged from just starting out to earning a full-time income with millions of monthly pageviews. There were several niches represented, including sewing, crafts, crochet, knitting, beauty, lifestyle, parenting, food, Disney, travel, frugal living, DIY, home decor, and more. A new niche identifiable from last year was digital cut files such as for a Silhouette or Cricut machine.
The conference schedule was a mix of business-oriented classes, craft classes, networking opportunities, speakers, and parties. There was also a room full of conference sponsors, who offered make and take style crafts and the opportunity to talk about future collaboration.
[The sewing room, organized by Emily Thompson of Life Sew Savory and with volunteers, on the left & the Plaid Crafts open craft room on the right]
New this year were “Niche Meet and Greet”s, allowing all the content creators with the same focus to meet and go out to an informal dinner together, and the sewing room that provided drop-in sewing project opportunities.
Classes & Sponsors
This is a list of the classes and speakers who presented at SNAP 2019.
[Kim Coffin of Sweet Red Poppy & Jennifer Voelkel of The Craft Patch presenting on short form video]
A new element was that two of the class presenters offered brief, free one on one mini consulting sessions for attendees who signed up. It was a great way for them to connect more closely with potential customers, since they both sold a course related to their class topic.
Business classes
- ‘Behind the scenes organization’ by Melissa George & Angela Rathbun
- ‘Instagram monetization’ by Britney Anderson
- ‘How to create your own signature style’ by Cori George
- ‘Win-Win-Win: How to make sponsored content great for you, your audience, and the brand’ by Miranda Anderson & Janssen Bradshaw
- ‘Email jump start’ by Matt Molen
- ‘Monetizing your skills through teaching, licensing your work, and live events’ by Melissa Esplin, Natalie Malan, & Natashia McLean
- ‘How to triple your pageviews’ by Courtney O’Dell
- ‘Write about the right content: SEO Keyword research that will land you on page one’ by Ty Kilgore
- ‘All things sponsored’ by Mandi Gubler
- ‘Pinterest promoted pins simplified’ by Annette Barney
- ‘Harnessing the power of short form video’ by Kim Coffin & Jennifer Voelkel
- ‘How to make even more bank with affiliate marketing’ by Kimberly Fidler, Hilary erickson, Keri Lyn Renner, Katie Clark, and Get Away Today
- ‘Master youtube video’ with Ashlee Prisbrey
- ‘Take your printable designs to the next level’ with Liz Call & Erin Williams
- ‘What brands really, really want’ by Kelli Farley & Jane
- ‘A very hands-on podcasting round table’ with Winter Redd & Sharon Titus
- ‘Advanced Youtube SEO for bloggers’ by Raj Shah
- ‘Do your best and hire the rest’ by McKenzie Guymon
- ‘Google analytics and search console 101’ by Clem Coleman
- ‘How to run your blog or business with a partner’ by Liz Evans and Elizabeth Evans
Handmade classes
Amy Chappell of Ameroonie Designs, giving hands-on instruction for her felt flowers class.
- ‘Fab Felt Flowers’ by Amy Chappell
- ‘Not your hippie aunt’s macrame keychain’ by Janet Trieschman
- ‘Wood photo calendar’ with FUJIFILM Instax
- ‘English paper piecing’ with Simple Simon and Company
- ‘Tropical party’ with Silhouette and Amy Robison
- ‘DIY Papercraft magnolia frame’ with Close to my Heart
- ‘Garden marker metal stamping’ with ImpressArt!
Keynote & Meal Speakers:
Jordan Page giving her keynote speech on how she manages her time.
- Opening keynote with Cheri Magill and Shelbey Lang
- Lunch and learn with Adthrive – Rachel Parkin
- Dinner with the Boise Boys from HGTV
- Breakfast and keynote with Jordan Page “Work smarter, not harder: How to make 6 figures or more from a part-time blog”
- Lunch and learn with Create – a wordpress plugin for bakers. Makers. Adventure-takers. – Ethan Butler, Courtney O’Dell, Mediavine
- Closing keynote with Tauni Everett (previous owner of SNAP conference)
Social Events
Pajama party craft night, with attendees & the Expressions Vinyl craft booth.
This year there were two parties at night, with attendees dressing up in varying degrees of commitment and costume. First was a late night craft pajama party, sponsored by Expressions Vinyl, DMC, Epsom Salt Council, ImpressArt, & Fujifilm Instax. This was very popular, with different craft stations set up alongside desserts for snacking, a movie playing, and a themed photo backdrop. On the second night, the Soapbox Soiree was a late night space-themed dance party sponsored by Soapbox Influence. A DJ provided nostalgic and modern music while attendees cut loose on the dance floor. Returning again was the “secret sister” program set up where interested attendees signed up to exchange gifts with another conference attendee who was randomly assigned.
Highlights
The sponsor room, with hands-on craft opportunities and face to face connections with craft brands.
Based on my own observations and asking other folks at the conference, a few recurring topics emerged during the presentations and hallway chatter:
- The importance of setting boundaries and not letting work bleed into family life.
- Debate over the value in narrowing in on a niche as a content creator.
- The importance of video content on all platforms for encouraging growth.
- The potential effects of Pinterest’s IPO.
- How enjoyable it is to be surrounded by fellow content creators who “get” what you do and want to talk about it with you!
The two classes that generated the most buzz and discussion were about email marketing, taught by Matt Molen of Personalized Paths and building a cohesive brand by Cori of Hey Let’s Make Stuff. Both sparked discussions on what had been covered and led to lots of brainstorming on how to apply it to different niches.
You can see more images from the conference on Instagram, searching #snapconf! Connect with SNAP on their website, their Facebook group, or their Instagram account.
+++++
Stephanie Woodson is a blogger who loves trying everything creative. Making things keeps her sane while wrangling two young kids; some of her passions are handmade toys, using up the tiniest scraps, and upcycling/refashioning. Find a toy sewing pattern or get inspired to try a new craft at swoodsonsays.com, While you’re there, be sure to check out 100+ links to help creative bloggers make more money, boost traffic, and network.