The Best Blogger and Influencer Conferences You’ll Want to Attend!

A blogger conference or influencer event can be a great way of stepping outside of the digital realm and networking in person.  Typically, you’ll be treated to excellent learning opportunities, networking with fellow bloggers, and opportunities to connect with brands.

Even if you’re early in your blogging journey (and maybe even especially if you are) – try setting aside a small amount of money in your budget to attend one conference in the next year.  I don’t recommend overdoing it and attending a ton of different events – maintaining a profitable business involves limiting expenses, and overdoing conferences was a mistake I made early on.

But choosing one early on that’s relatively reasonably priced (when you add up registration and travel expenses) is a smart move.  Not only will you walk away learning a ton about the industry, but you’ll make invaluable connections.

(Of course, bloggers generating an income might choose splurge on some of the pricier, more advanced-level conferences).

The conferences below are some of the best options out there for bloggers, especially fellow writers in the wellness, fitness, or food niches.  Some of them I have personally attended, and other recommendations came from fellow blogger friends.

Blogger and Influencer Conferences for Multiple Niches:

Alt Summit – March 12-15, 2023; Palm Springs CA

Alt Summit has been described as “THE premiere conference for creative entrepreneurs and stylish social media influencers.”  I attended this event in 2020 – literally right before the world shut down – and it was a blast.

The topics in the schedule typically vary widely across the influencer and blogger space, covering topics like email marketing, building a brand, life balance, creating retreats, increasing profits, etc.

If you’re new to the field, the only thing to keep in mind is that ticket prices are a bit higher than some of the other conferences.  Early bird tickets are $495 and increase from there. (That does not include any travel accommodations).

Mom 2.0 – May 7-9, 2023; Scottsdale AZ

Though it’s a conference that sounds like it’s only for parents, that is definitely not a requirement to attend.  Mom 2.0 has been around for a while now and their event is known to be fabulous. 

The event includes learning opportunities, networking sessions, certain meals, and social hours. I’ve never attended this one, but hope to make it one year soon.

FinCon – October 18-21, 2023, New Orleans LA

This is technically geared towards financial bloggers, but it has been one of my absolute favorite blogging conferences to attend! I admittedly recently started a site in the finance niche which was my inspiration to go, but I felt like so much of the learning was applicable across all niches.

They had breakout learning sessions on topics like professional speaking, business finances, social media, and content creation, as well as talks on the big stage about broader inspirational topics. There were also meetups that different members organized – like a runners meetup in the morning or a ladies in finance meetup in the evening – that you could attend for some social interaction.

Plus, the last-night-party was a blast! (Tons of music and dancing).

Traffic and Conversion Summit – September 12 – 14, 2023, San Diego CA

This event tends to attract the “whos who” in the blogging and influencer world. I see tons of folks that I follow and admire taking the stage or attending there.

I mean, Snoop was a speaker there a few years ago. SNOOP!

It is a bucket list event for me for sure.

They often cover cutting edge topics in the online space – think Metaverse and Discord, new selling models, how to write good ad and email copy, content marketing funnels, and more.

Tickets are on the higher side, so it’s probably not going to be an event for a brand new blogger or social media enthusiast (unless you’ve got that money to invest!). But if you keep an eye out for early bird deals as soon as tickets are live, you can sometimes score deals for as low as $500-ish. As it gets closer to the event, tickets go up to a few thousand.

Social Media Marketing World – March 13-15, 2023, San Diego CA

Like the name implies, this covers ALL the things related to social media marketing. You’ll learn how to keep up with trends, get better ROI on your social media efforts, learn about social media advertising, and more.

Plus, you’ll make amazing connections at this popular event.

Bloggy-Conference 2023 – September 2023 (specific date TBD), Sandusky, Ohio

This event has been around for a while, first founded in 2011. Their goal is to “offer you a new and continuously developing approach to growth, networking and education in our ever-changing social media world”.

Past conferences have included sessions on topics like authenticity, creating systems, email marketing, and traffic growth.

While I haven’t personally attended, I think this might be an ideal conference for newer bloggers. The sessions span a variety of important basics, and the ticket prices are very reasonable (less than $200). Plus, the event takes place at Cedar Point, which features an amusement park – making it a great work-turned-personal vacation with the family.

FLOCK – April 25–27, 2023, Orlando, FL

A conference at Walt Disney World? Sign me up! 😉

This intimate event is focused specifically on making money as a digital content creator. This is an awesome option for bloggers and influencers who aren’t quite sure how to monetize to the best of their potential. (Or even blogging veterans that are looking for new revenue stream ideas).

The event will have speakers on affiliate marketing, writing your own book, social media monetization, and more.

Wellness Specific Blogger Conferences:

ShiftCon – TBD for 2023

If you’re passionate about holistic health, ShiftCon is a conference you want to attend.  They describe themselves as an “eco-wellness influencer conference focusing on food, wellness, health, sustainability and platform growth.”

The conference features both educational sessions as well as an expo event with wellness and food companies who are committed to health and transparency.

They typically offer a discount on early bird tickets, so consider signing up for their email list and keep your eyes peeled for next year’s ticket release.

Natural Products Expo West (March 7-11, 2023) and Expo East (September 20-23, 2023)

While theoretically these are more expo events and less of a conference, I still think it belongs on this list.  These events are huge, with Expo West being the larger of the two, and feature hundreds of brands that produce natural products (from food to skincare to herbal supplements).  It’s a great way to network with new brands and meet future clients for sponsored work.

Food Specific Blogger Conferences:

International Food Blogger Conference – TBD for 2023

The International Food Blogger conference was one of the first niche specific blogging conferences, started in 2009.  In addition to the standard education sessions you’ll find at most blogging conference, this one offers a few extra bells and whistles.  Their events typically provide experiences specific to the location – like a trip on an Alaskan fishing vessel or a food crawl in New Orleans.

Tastemaker Conference – March 2-3, 2023 in Chicago

The Tastemaker Conference is ideal for food bloggers.  The representatives describe it as a combination of “community, education, and experience, and welcome bloggers of all levels who are looking to elevate their skills and achieve their dreams!”  The schedule typically contains a variety of breakout sessions and panels on topics like SEO, Pinterest, pitching, legal issues, and more.

Plus, when you register for a ticket, you also get a free media ticket to The Inspired Home Show – where you can connect with tons of brands.

Fitness Specific Blogger Conferences:

IDEA World – July 12-16, 2023, Los Angeles CA

While IDEA doesn’t currently offer the blogging-specific portion of the larger conference, I do think the conference as a whole is still incredibly valuable to attend. I’ve gone several times in person (2014, 2017, 2022) and did the virtual events (2020 and 2021). I always walked away feeling like I gained fitness knowledge (that could be shared on my fitness blog!) and made great friends.

And even though it’s not blogging-specific, they do offer quite a few helpful sessions specific to business in their “business and professional development” track – featuring sessions on topics like marketing, revenue, social media, and more.

For example, this past year, I attended sessions on fitness entrepreneurship, email marketing, and creating internships – in addition to classes on metabolism, foot health, and battle ropes. It really is an awesome combination of fitness and business content.

Outdoor Media Summit – October 30 to November 1, 2022, Nevada (2023 date TBD)

If you’re into outdoor fitness – think hiking, camping, kayaking, mountain biking, and any other outdoorsy activities – the Outdoor Media Summit looks like an amazing event.  They describe the conference as the “definitive digital marketing conference for brands, bloggers, and media in the outdoor industry!”

This year’s schedule offers a variety of activities like a breakfast with brands, Web3 info, podcast monetization strategies, monetizing on TikTok, AND a scavenger hunt (whoop whoop)!

Another plus – this conference offers a bundled ticket and hotel rate that is very reasonably priced!

Local Conferences

I’m not going to cover smaller local conferences and events, but it’s worth connecting with other local bloggers in your area to see what types of events take place near you. For example, up until a few years ago, there was a group of bloggers in Boston that used to meet up regularly. You may find that your city or town has similar meetups.

Also, don’t forget to consider other events – like entrepreneurship groups or women-in-business groups. These events aren’t blogger-specific but can teach you a ton about running a successful business.

The Bottom Line

Whether you’re a new or seasoned blogger, I hope this list of conferences was helpful as you start to think about what to attend in the upcoming year(s)!  You’ll learn key concepts to help accelerate your traffic growth and social following, but (perhaps more importantly) make great connections that are so helpful to have on this journey.

Share with me:  Have you been to any of these blogger conferences?  Which one would you like to attend?

Pin this post to share for later!

Sharing is caring!