Today's Interview with Co-Founder of BLOGHER

I had the honor of interviewing Elisa Camahort over at Blogher. She is Co-founder of this amazing women driven site. Sit back read and enjoy.


1. Why Blogher?
R1: We started BlogHer in 2005 to answer a question we thought needed to die: "Where are the women bloggers?" We knew that there were tons of the, but there really wasn't a central place to find them, and certainly no place that was shining a spotlight on their amazing voices and quality work. Our mission has been to create opportunities for that exposure, but also opportunities for education, community and economic empowerment.


2. How many members do you have?
I believe we have nearly 60K registered members, but I'll need to check.


3. When did you launch Blogher?
The first conference was announced in March 2005 and took place in July. The BlogHer.com community and news hub was launched in January 2006. The BlogHer Publishing Network, introducing an opportunity to build a business together, launched later in 2006.


4.What inspires you?
I am inspired daily by the voices of the women in our network. Sometimes they are out there striking out and creating new career paths for themselves, supported by their use of blogging and social media. Sometimes they are activating for social or political change...raising money for causes in which they believe or joining the debates on hot-button issues of our time. Sometimes they are simply telling their stories. Stories that have too often been lost to our culture and our society. The blogosphere is actually creating an entirely new history. And women play a huge role in that new history. This inspires me!


5. What is your Favorite color?
Purple


6. What's your Favorite Food?
Portabella Mushrooms


7. What has been your biggest accomplishment?
Definitely taking that risk, making the leap, and taking BlogHer from a passion to a business.


8. What makes you smile?
What can I say, I'm a sucker for 80s music!


9. What member/members that has created a lasting impression.
Well, it all starts with my two co-founders: Lisa Stone and Jory Des Jardins. We were each just bloggers in the community...and then we were three chicks with credit cards who decided to put deposit down on a meeting space for our first conference. And then we decided to go into business...inspired by countless voices. To single out just a few would be too hard.


1o.What have you learned from your site?
That we are all marvelous multi-taskers with diverse interests. That we can jump from a post about politics to one about parenting...and have something to say about either topic. From Finance to Fashion to Food. From Gadgets to Green. Stop me, I could go on with the alliterations forever, much to Lisa's chagrin :)


11. What would you change on your site?
Well, if I may tease you a little bit: We're launching a re-designed site pretty soon, so you'll soon be able to see exactly what we've been longing to change. To say any more would just give it away!


12. Why do you only target women?
We're actually by and about women, but for anyone! Men can and do participate as attendees of our conferences, participants on our site and members of our publishing network. But yes, our mission is to create opportunities for women who blog. Women are the majority of the population in America, the majority of the voters, the majority of the Internet users and control the VAST majority of the household spending. And yet we are not even close to that kind of representation in any hall of power...media, industry, government etc. So, I still feel it's a worthy mission to shine a light on what women are doing and saying and achieving.


13.What are your future goals for Blogher?
We like to joke "world domination", but truly we want to be the women's community and media company that every woman would create for herself if she had the time and money.


14. What exciting thing lies in your future?
Right now I'm flying to DC to present data about women online to the new media teams for both the Republican leadership and the Obama Administration. So, that's a very exciting thing in the *very* near future.

Many Thanks goes out to Lisa Stone,Elisa Camahort and Jory Des Jardins.. Much success with BLOGHER.