Imagine sitting at a conference and asking another female attendee a simple question that would change the course of your life. Imagine then going to another conference and striking up a conversation with the woman sitting next to you and then forming a business with these two women?
That's more or less how BlogHer.com started in 2005 -- it all started with this question: "Where are all the women bloggers?"
BlogHer.com really started out as a forum where women could feel involved and included in the world of technology which was predominantly dominated by men. While attending conferences in the early 2000s the three founders (Lisa Stone, Elisa Camahort Page and Jory Des Jardins) felt singled out and very excluded from a lot of the juicy conversations around technology.
Today, BlogHer.com has grown into the most important community of mostly female bloggers on the Internet.The accomplishments these women have achieved in the last few years is nothing short of mind-blowing:
- BlogHer.com gets 26 million monthly viewers (base on Nielsen NetRatings).
- They produce 6 yearly conferences
1. BlogHer
2. BlogHer Handmade
3. BlogHer Writers
4. BlogHer Business
5. BlogHer Food
6. BlogHer|bet
- 10-20 per cent of the people who attend BlogHer conferences are men and have been consistently.
- BlogHer has 2,500 blogs where advertisers can feature their products targeting women.
- BlogHer has over 36,000 blogs listed in their directory and well over 125,000 registered members on the website
- BlogHer has 60 employees via offices in New York, Silicon Valley and across the U.S.
In this interview with Elisa Camahort Page, the co-founder reveals what it took to build out her vision and she also talks about how the business has dramatically changed since receiving capital funding. One of the most transformational moments in this interview for me is when Elisa explained where she was financially just before the funding came through.
As entrepreneurs, we take huge risks and Elisa's powerful words remain with me to this day and keep pushing me forward on those days when I question my decision to be in business for myself! Being an entrepreneur can some times feel like a full contact sport and Lisa Stone, Elisa Camahort Page and Jory Des Jardins proved to be victorious!