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This year, WP Media will be sponsoring the WordCamp Bordeaux. We are very happy to be supporting local WordCamps so it was a perfect fit. Just look at this logo! Wine, WordPress and wonderful people, what more could we ask for?
Been wondering if you should attend? The answer is yes! Check out the program and get your tickets before it’s too late! This event is held in Congress center on Saturday March 18th.
Why we sponsor WordCamps
WordCamps are happening all over the world and attract thousands of attendees each year. It is a great opportunity for us to connect with some WP Rocket users and get feedback However, each year, the questions of ROI is reexamined. All sponsors come in expecting a type of return on investments when they sponsor this type of event. It may be about drumming up business, connecting with WordPress influencers or gaining more visibility for a brand; bottom line: all sponsors are working an angle.
It’s a business reality.
So what’s our angle? We take user experience very seriously. Sponsoring a WordCamp is an opportunity to get feedback on our plugins straight from the people that use them! We’ve been able to improve WP Rocket, Imagify and SecuPress with user feedback. We wouldn’t have it any other way! If you have anything to share with us regarding your use of our WordPress plugins, please, just come and chat with us. We’re easy to spot (our company T-shirts and smiles are hard to miss).
Rebooting the concept of the sponsor booth
As a WordCamp sponsor, we set up a booth like all the other companies present. It contains a table, some promotional printed material, goodies and humans to man the table. Pretty standard stuff if you ask us. However, we like to take things one step further because we love attending WordCamps as speakers and as regular visitors. Now that we get to be on the other side of the booth, we want to make it memorable!
Designing goodies: a serious business at WP Media
We all go to WordCamps and we know what we like and don’t like when it comes to goodies. It means that event goodies require a team meeting, a dedicated Slack channel and a whole lot of brainstorming before they make it onto the sponsor table.
We get everyone on board: the COO, the designer, the, well, the everyone that feels like contributing at WP Media! We don’t have a dedicated goodies officer but maybe we should. It would make for a great job title!
What happens during a goodies brainstorm?
- We discuss Wapuu like it’s an actual person
- We show each other our laptop stickers to point to the best ones
- Mathieu, our designer acts like an oracle and has final say on our crazy ideas
- Emilie, our COO decides what type of goodies is best suited for maximum crowd enjoyment.
- Wapuu is discussed one more time.
- Sticker fights ensues.
- Decisions are made.
Bottom line: if we wouldn’t be happy to put this swag on our stuff, it’s not making it on our sponsor table.
Informal workshops
Ever been bored in between talks? Us too. Ever been left wandering around because you decided to sit out one the talks in a timeslot? Us too. The great news is that when we have control of a sponsor table, we try to offer a place to hang out in those situations! That’s why we are offering micro workshops at our table during the WordCamp Bordeaux.
1. Morning micro workshop: WordPress Security Primer
Want to make sure you have control over who goes in and out of your website? Stop by our table to get that stuff under lockdown in a few steps! We’re here to give you some solid security tips.
2. Afternoon micro workshop: WP Rocket Pro Config Secrets
Ever wonder why we offer a WP Rocket Pro Configuration? Well, it’s because we know how to speed up WordPress websites even more with a few little known tweaks. Come by and check out how our caching fairy, ahem, we mean our beloved CEO speeds up a website. You’ll be sure to pick a thing or two!
Our next (conference) adventures!
When it comes to supporting WordPress events, our team is involved at various levels. It’s one of things that our team members have in common: we loved the community before becoming part of the company.
You can find our merry band of remote workers present in WordCamps all over the world. This year we are all over the map!
- Julio Potier will be talking about WordPress security at the Bordeaux WordCamp because it’s something he deeply cares about.
- Jonathan Buttigieg is very present in local meetups sharing his experience on what it’s like running a WordPress startup. Little known fact, if you can pronounce Jo’s last name correctly on the first try, we’ll send you a sticker!
- Alice and Caspar pitched a few topics, hoping to speak at WordCamp Turin this year. If they get selected, make sure to attend their talks! These guys are simply amazing and they have heard of every single caching nightmare you could think of! It comes with the territory when you are a WP Rocket support team member.
- Émilie Lebrun is one of the WordCamp Europe organizers this year. She’s one of the dedicated volunteers working on making sure that this year’s conference held in Paris will be an awesome experience.
As you can tell 2017 looks like it is going to be an exciting year! We can’t wait to see you in Bordeaux (or anywhere else really)!
