The Magical Media Retreat
I am a firm believer that sometimes the only reason you go through certain things in your life is so that you can help someone else go through that same thing. Like the saying goes, we are really only successful when we are helping others be successful. So with that in mind I teamed up with two of my very good blogger buddies; Kim from The Parentologist and Justine from Little Dove Blog, to create the Magical Media Retreat. A place to share our knowledge of the blogging business with others.
We had all been to blogging conferences before, even spoke at quite a few, so we knew the importance of going to one, but we all agreed that there was something missing. What always seemed to be missing was an intimate setting. Really getting to know the people and the speakers because there are just too many attendee’s, too many options for different sessions and no real opportunity to ask questions without lots of eyes on you.
So we set off to see if we could create a safe space for a small group of ladies to get to know each other, network, have fun and learn all at the same time. We also had a goal to make it super affordable for those on a tight budget.
We set the date for January 22, 2022 for the first Magical Media Retreat. The location would be the Radisson Blu hotel (which you can read all about HERE). It was the perfect location for our overnight retreat and I can’t wait to go back with our family. We also had a goal to give our attendee’s gifts for attending, which meant reaching out to some of our favorite brands. We are so thankful that these companies wanted to work with us on this project. Here is a little more about each one…
Our Title Sponsor: Smart & Final
Smart & Final is one of our go-to grocery stores here in California. My husband actually goes there all the time to buy things for the fire station because they have bulk items for great prices. They were gracious enough to supply us with lots of goodies for our attendee’s as well as fresh flowers for the tables. They also helped us cover the cost of some of the other expenses of the retreat. I love their store brands and was so relieved we found everything we needed for the retreat.
Networking Dinner Sponsor: Naples Ristorante
We were treated to an amazing dinner at Naples, which is, hands down, one of my favorite restaurants at Downtown Disney! All of their ingredients are so fresh, most come directly from Italy and their chef’s really pay attention to detail. We had access to their private balcony, which overlooks Downtown Disney and was the perfect setting for our group!!
As part of our dinner we had the opportunity to try two of their salads; classic Caesar and the house salad, 3 different types of pizza, and 2 different kinds of gluten free pasta (that you would never know was gluten free because it tastes so good). We also got to try their chocolate mouse dessert shaped like a heart just in time for Valentine’s Day! If you haven’t eaten here, you need to put it on your list asap! Click here to make a reservation, which you will definitely need on a weekend or busy holiday.
Gift Sponsors:
Posh Mommy– Known for their personalized jewelry, we were so excited they wanted to be a part of our event. You can monogram names, special dates, even coordinates, plus it is all very high quality. These make for the perfect Mother’s Day gift, birthday or even graduation.
Be Brand– I love my romper and hat that they sent me to wear for the retreat (the romper has pockets, which is a HUGE selling point for me). They have super cute items on their website from active wear to dresses and accessories, make sure to check them out.
Rubios Coastal Grill– I love Rubios tacos, and not just on Tuesday’s. So thankful they sent us gift cards so I can get some of my favorite meals for our family! What is your favorite thing to order??
Buckle Down Products– I have used Buckle Down Products for years, I love their Disney belts to make any outfit practically perfect.;) They just launched these new adorable cross body bags, which I have already taken to Disneyland and they make for the perfect purse. I am able to fit my phone, sanitizer, chapstick, a few credit cards and some cash.
Erin Condren– For years I have been using Erin Condren for my yearly planner and love how it keeps me organized. They donated journals and pens to all of our attendees to write down dreams and goals for this coming year.
Go Think Co– I am really excited to try out the sunscreen’s from Go Think Co. They are vegan, EWG verified, toxin free, no animal testing with recyclable packaging!
Nash & Mater Creations– This is a small shop that made all of our drink coasters with our names as well as the beautiful sign that we had on our balloon ring. It was the small details that made it so lovely.
PDB Jay– Is a blogger with a heart for helping you on your taxes/finances. Check out her “beginners guide to bookkeeping for your online business.”
Photographer: Captivating by Amanda
Amanda did an incredible job capturing headshots for each attendee as well as hosts and getting all of the details around the hotel and the first night of our retreat. My only regret is that we didn’t beg her to come back on Sunday for the second day!;) Next time we are definitely going to keep Amanda as long as possible. The first photo is taken by her and the bottom is a little behind the scenes from our shoot together.
Speakers:
Heather Brooker & Angela Kim from Mommy Diary, both speakers gave up their Sunday afternoon to come and share their wisdom with us. We are so grateful for their time and knowledge.
Word Press– If you are a blogger or run a website, then you know Word Press is the best in creating your site. I have used them since day one of blogging and I have no regrets. We were soaking up the knowledge that my friend Drew gave us from Word Press, plus loved the portable chargers that he brought for everyone.
It was such a lovely retreat and most of the feedback that we have gotten is that it wasn’t long enough/we didn’t have enough time to cover even more. So with that in mind, we are already brainstorming ideas for next year and how we can make it even better. If you want to attend our next Magical Media Retreat make sure to be following the hosts on social media for the most up to date announcements. Who’s ready to go next year?
And before you purchase a ticket for any conference or retreat here are some questions you should ask yourself…
- How many attendee’s do they allow?
- Will I be able to network with others or even with brands?
- Are the classes applicable to my business? Will I be able to apply the lessons learned to make my business more successful?
- What does my ticket include? Food/Meals? Hotel discount? Headshots? Speakers who are well versed in their topics?
- Opportunities to relax and have fun?
- Is it affordable?
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I’m not a blogger but now I want to be…. looked like a great time!
It was a great time!
I like what you said about the size of the retreat with how many attendees. That was something I really liked about our retreat, and I think next time we know better and we can really and really take advantage of the fact that it’s a smaller size!
Yes, size of the group is very important!