In this episode of the Post Status Happiness Hour, host Michelle Frechette interviews Raquel Manriquez and Carol Stambaugh. They discuss their new venture, Press Conf, a conference focused on the business side of WordPress. Raquel, a former community manager for Elegant Themes, and Carol, co-owner of RadiateU, share their motivations for creating this event. They emphasize the need for a business-centric conference within the WordPress community, contrasting it with the user-focused WordCamps. Press Conf aims to foster deep connections among attendees through a single track of sessions and an intimate setting. The episode highlights their commitment to inclusivity, meaningful networking, and authentic conversations.

Top Takeaways

• Press Conf addresses a significant market gap by being the first WordPress conference specifically focused on business aspects, filling an unmet need in the community for business-oriented professional development.
• The conference prioritizes meaningful engagement through intentional design choices like single-track sessions, no recordings, and an intimate setting - all aimed at fostering authentic discussions and deeper connections among attendees.
• Careful curation is central to the event's strategy, from thoughtfully selected speakers to a sustainable pricing model, ensuring high-quality content and long-term viability while delivering value to participants.
• The conference emphasizes building an inclusive community that welcomes both industry veterans and newcomers, focusing on fostering constructive dialogue and relationships within the WordPress business ecosystem.

Mentioned In The Show:

• PressConf
• Elegant Themes
• WPWonder Women
• RadiateU
• Jeremy Saxey
• WordCamp Phoenix
• PressNomics
• Sally Strebel
• Joshua Strebel
• Doc Popular
• WP Speakers
• The WP World
• Marcus Burnette
• wp.org
• Troy Dean
• Alex King
• Chris Lema
• Karim Marucchi
• Dave Ryan
• Bluehost
• Nathan Atkinson
• Nathan B Weller
• Brian Richards
• Matt Medeiros

🙏 Sponsor: WordPress.com

Build and manage professional sites with secure managed hosting on WordPress.com. Beautiful themes, built-in SEO, and payment tools, and access to over 50,000 plugins. Everything you need for your business, plus 24/7 support from WordPress experts. 

🐦 You can follow Post Status and our guests on Twitter:

• Raquel Manriquez  (Community, ElegantThemes)
• Carol Stambaugh (Co-Founder, RadiateWP)
• Michelle Frechette (Director of Community Relations, Post Status)
• Olivia Bisset (Intern, Post Status)

The Post Status  podcast is geared toward WordPress professionals, with interviews, news, and deep analysis. 📝

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