The Wonderful Benefits of Participating in Blog Carnivals
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When I first invited my readers to submit posts to what was initially called the Professional Organizers Blog Carnival, I thought it would just be a passing thing. Much to my delight, it is still going strong, with nearly 25% of the participants contributing to 10 or more Blog Carnivals over the years.
Curious about what keeps them engaged, I invited Linda Samuels, Megastar Blogger, to write about her experience. If you’ve participated, feel free to share your own thoughts in the comments.
If you haven’t participated, you may want to after reading Linda’s post!
One of the driving forces that encouraged me to become a regular participant in Janet Barclay’s Productivity & Organizing Blog Carnival, affectionately known as POBC, was a connection. Janet and I met about 13 years ago through social media channels. I’ve had the joy of hearing her present multiple times about blogging and marketing at Professional Organizers in Canada (POC) and the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals (NAPO) conferences. She knows her stuff, and I always learn so much from her.
Janet launched the first POBC in June 2009. She told me, “At the time, blog carnivals were very popular. I’d enjoyed participating in a few and thought my readers would also like an opportunity to share their blogs with a wider audience.” Her hunch was correct. Janet has created a loyal, vibrant community. As of December 2022, 304 bloggers contributed 2,688 posts to 163 editions of the POBC.
Each month the POBC has a different theme inspired by various sources, including trending blog topics, time of year, and even the pandemic. The most popular topic was Organizing Games and Puzzles. Janet’s favorite was the 10th Anniversary Edition, where she asked bloggers to contribute posts with “10” or “Ten” in the title. She promotes each edition on her social media channels and email list. However, she says, “the real power is when participants and other readers share it with their audience, extending the reach even further.”
It was a no-brainer when Janet offered me the opportunity to submit a post to her Blog Carnival in 2011. At that point, I had been blogging for about a year and had no idea how beneficial this participation would become over a decade later.
Fast forward to 2023, I’ve submitted over 100 blog posts to the POBC. This qualifies me as one of Janet’s Megastar Bloggers, who contributed to 50 or more editions. I am thrilled to share that distinction with 10 other colleagues, of which several you will hear from momentarily. There are two more categories- Superstar Bloggers, who participated in 25 or more editions, and Star Bloggers, who participated in 10 or more editions. Janet promotes the newest Stars in an annual post and provides a badge to display on your website.
Do you remember I mentioned how beneficial it has been to participate in the POBC? These are some of the wonderful benefits I enjoy:
- Connect with a community of supportive colleagues
- Maintain a pulse on ‘hot’ industry trends
- Be inspired by fellow bloggers
- Explore ideas to write about and ways to organize posts
- Discover new resources
- Have the opportunity to sponsor a POBC
- Increase blog traffic, interactions, and reach
- Receive opportunities to write guest posts
- Direct new traffic to older posts
- Boost social media engagement
- Enlist help from colleagues for interviews, collaborative posts, and support
While these are some benefits I’ve received, it’s not just me. Janet connected us as a blogging community. Through her, I’ve gotten to know these incredible colleagues even more. Because of these relationships, I reached out to ask several POBC pals and asked:
What is one benefit of participating in Janet Barclay’s Blog Carnival?
They shared these positive thoughts:
Continuous Inspiration
“I am often so inspired by my fellow Blog Carnivaleers (what? that should be a word!) that it prompts me to build my own posts around concepts they’ve raised, sharing their quotes and expanding upon them in completely different directions.”
In-Depth Sharing
“Janet’s POBC is always a post I love sharing. Not only do my followers see my tips, but they can pop around and get advice from an array of top professionals with whom I love being associated!”
Expanded Perspective
“One of the benefits of participating in this blogging group is the connection to a talented, wise, and supportive group of like-minded professionals who generously share their thoughts and open my mind to different perspectives.”
Consistent Review
“I have blogged for over ten years, and sharing on the POBC post allows me to revisit topics on my blog that I might not have reviewed in a while.
Elevated Motivation
“Knowing that the blog carnival is coming up each month motivates me to write about new topics and gives me opportunities to revisit old ones.”
Delightful Camaraderie
“The best benefit . . . is the camaraderie I experience by interacting with the other participants.”
Increased Knowledge
“The best thing . . . is the ability to learn from other bloggers. The monthly carnival focuses on a topic, so I read several posts on the same subject to increase my knowledge.”
Greater Reach
“By participating . . . my blog posts reach a wider community of clients, business owners, and readers, allowing me to share organizing ideas to help make their lives better.”
Insightful Learning
“One benefit . . . is learning from all the other bloggers who share such insightful information.”
Abundant Encouragement
“Janet encourages and supports all of our industry through sharing our knowledge as well as brings us all together to encourage each other.”
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Community is all about supporting and connecting with others. With Janet’s guidance and consistency, she created a path to encourage us to network with one another, share our expertise, learn from each other, and expand our reach.
Do you participate in a Blog Carnival? How do participation and connection benefit you?
Photo by peshkova / DepositPhotos
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Janet- Thank you for providing so many wonderful opportunities to share, learn, and be part of an incredible community of professionals. I marvel at how you continue developing new themes for the POBC. It’s always fun to see what topic you pick each month and then ‘find’ a post to share that matches your theme. My deepest gratitude for your ongoing support to the organizing community.
Thank YOU, Linda, for helping to make the POBC the success that it is – and for taking the time to write this wonderful post!
I second Linda’s enthusiasm and gratitude. What a great post, Linda! Janet, you are a consistent supporter, encourager, resource-finder, technical expert, and friend. Being a part of the POBC over the years has enriched me both professionally and personally.
Thank you, Seana! I may have to add your comment to the testimonials in the footer. 🙂
Thank you, my friend, for your lovely words and contribution to the post. You are an integral part of this blogging community, and I’m so grateful for and to you. I loved seeing your beautiful photos from the NAPO conference. It looks like you had a fabulous time.
We’ve long needed a love letter to Janet and her carnival, and a celebration of why we participate. Linda, thank you for asking us for quotes and for creating such an enthusiastic and robust appreciation of the magic of these carnivals. Without Janet’s efforts, I suspect fewer of us would be inspired to create our content and support our fellow bloggers, not out of malice or selfishness, but lack of awareness.
Linda, you captured what we love about Janet’s amazing support for our profession and the many kinds of boosts the carnival offers. Thank you, Linda, for writing this, and thank you, Janet, for being warm and wise and making the POBC and our organizing bloggers’ community so rich.
Wow Julie, I am truly humbled. Thank you for your kind words.
Thank you so much, Julie. Janet supports us in so many ways. I enjoyed reflecting on how her efforts have so positively affected us. And I was so happy to get input from this beautiful, supportive community of bloggers. Thank YOU for sharing and contributing to the post. Grateful for and to you.
The monthly Blog Carnival collection inspires me to create new ideas. It’s a valuable resource to help freshen up my skills as well. Thank you for including my remarks.
Thanks, Sabrina! You are one of our biggest supporters. 🙂
I think it’s great that you’ve found so many benefits from participating in the Productivity & Organizing Blog Carnival. Janet has created a fantastic community of supportive and inspiring bloggers.
I’ve never participated in a blog carnival, but I can see how it would be a great way to connect with other bloggers, learn new things, and get your content in front of a wider audience.
Amelia, thank you for stopping by! I hope one of the upcoming topics will be a good fit for you.