I’m not going to lie to ya, when it comes to ECMeetUp, I totally get my thrills just by sitting in a room full of bloggers and influencers who probably understand the crazy going on in my head. I mean, we love talking “shop”, right Bloggers?! And we love learning about the latest influencer trends – the what’s hots and what’s nots, if you will. Well, this is why the ECMeetUp team is so excited to welcome speaker Lyle Scritten of Travelstart to our 2018 ECMeetUp panel. You guys, Lyle knows what’s up. And I’m not just saying so because he told me that.

Besides for working at Travelstart – one of the top online travel agency’s in Africa – the guy is also an avid blogger himself. His blog, VersatileLyle, celebrates its 10 year anniversary in June! Lyle will be joining us to talk about Travelstart and their amazing blogger affiliate program. He will also be sharing hot tips and information with regards to working and building relationship with brands. Travelstart will be partnering with ECMeetUp extensively and guys, I’m not saying that some of you may very well get a paid gig out of this, but I’m not saying that you won’t. Please, stop giving me those eyes. I can’t share anymore information. AAAAAAACK!

We also have some AMAZING Travelstart goodies up for grabs and, Oprah moment, everybody’s getting one! Anyways, enough of my chit chat. Here’s more from Lyle:

1. Hey Lyle, ‘sup! Tell us more about yourself – Who is Lyle?
Who is Lyle really? Great question, you should speak to my wife I feel she knows me better than I know myself haha. Well first and foremost I’m a 33 year old male born and bred on the Cape Flats of Cape Town. I’m happily married and have 2 wonderful sons, all of whom I love dearly. I spend the bulk of my time at my second home, namely Travelstart HQ, where I oversee and run blogger and influencer marketing campaigns for our core markets in South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt.

In my spare time, I try to do some blogging under the pseudonym, VersatileLyle and as the name states my blog is versatile, so no specific niche for me. Quick fact on that, while my blog is not yet where I would like it to be, I am proud of the fact that I managed to be a finalist in the Samsung Blogger challenge back in 2014 and even got the chance to be featured on Expresso, yeah that was pretty cool. Lastly I was recently asked to join the leadership team for the Cape Town Chapter of Travel Massive. So, I get to work alongside the incredible Dawn from the The Incidental Tourist and Linda from Moving Sushi, on Travel specific networking events in our city, which I simply love! I’m quite a busy guy lol!

2. Tell us more about Travelstart (for those of us who never go like, anywhere, ever)
Travelstart is the leading online travel agency in Africa and to wake up every morning knowing that I work for such a great company is a blessing to me. Our aim is to make travel simple and easy for everyone and this means I have to do my utmost best to collaborate with the best bloggers and publications in South Africa to get our name and message across to all citizens.

3. Have you learnt alot during your many years working with influencers?
Influencer Marketing is not as easy as most people would think. I have learnt that, while I would like to work on every pitch or proposal I receive, I simply cannot. Ideally I would love to send people around the country and world to write and create content but this is not the case. Each proposal has to be look at in detail and depending on how good it might look on paper we would need to see the value from a business point of view and if it meets our ROI standards then it might get the go ahead. So, ROI is major factor to consider when pitching ideas.

4. You get to visit like, the most beautiful city in the world! Are you excited about your visit to the Bay?
I would be even more excited if you told me I could take a long hot bath but the fact of the matter is that the water crisis is a real thing and an issue we all need to become more aware of. Honestly speaking I am super excited to be joining you guys and to be able to share some of my knowledge with your guests.

5. What will you be teaching us at the ECMeetUp?
I will be sharing some real life scenarios from my past and tying that back to how bloggers should approach pitching collaborative ideas to brands. I’m all about knowledge sharing and motivating other to do their best in this industry.

Head on over to JustEllabElla, to learn more about our other guest speaker, super blogger, By Megan Kelly. Excited yet? Aaack! To get your hands on a ticket, simply use the bank deets below to make your purchase. Can’t make a purchase right now? It’s all good! RSVP with either Luchae (that’s me, yo) or Eleanor and make sure to pay for your ticket by May 25th. See you soon!

Purchase by making payment to FNB 62712255365, and using your name and surname as reference

Bloggers based in the Eastern Cape are in for a treat on June 2^nd, when we celebrate another year of blogging at the annual ECMeetUp. It’s ECMeetUp time you guys, and this time around we’d like to invite you to go and see a man about a horse. That’s right, we’re hosting the meet up at the very classy Fairview Race Course! Aaack! A trip to the races, anyone?

Why the race course, I hear you ask in shock and amazement. Well, for starters, since we will be partnering with Travelstart (yes, the actual real life Travelstart… more on that next week) we thought that “going places” is a pretty apt theme for the meet up this time around. And while I’m sure you’d much rather travel on a jet, than on a horse, we figured that having meet up on a jet would be a bit far fetched even for us. Anyways, we had a chat with the lovely Karin of Fairview Race Course and they are super-duper thrilled to host us.

I mean, we are so blessed to live in the best city in South Africa (seriously though… right?) and there are a ton of amazing venues and attractions that some of us (me, I’m talking about me) may not know about. The meet up is a great way to get us bloggers to explore and learn more about the city AND to show others just how “kwaai” we are. (Because we are very, very kwaai in my totally biased opinion)

Fairview Racecourse
For those who don’t know, yes there is an actual race course in our beloved city. And yes, it’s like, the real thing. Ella and I oohed and aahed while visiting the other day… the facilities are really posh, you guys! The horseracing track is legit and racing takes place every Friday and occasionally on week days (no entry fee… so cool). The venue also doubles as a wedding/function facility and can accommodate 300 people, with full bar and restaurant. (More about the posh ECMeetUp food over on Ella’s blog today).

The Fairview Racecourse is managed and maintained by Phumelela Gaming and Leisure Limited. The race course is more than 40 years old, but the beautifully renovated facilities and new stabling complex hides its age well. I mean, I’m not saying come to meet up wearing wide brimmed hats and fancy pants, but you might just wish you did, once you’ve stepped inside the venue and allowed the tranquility of the magnificent greenery and large glass windows to sweep you in. Photographers – get your cameras ready!

Of corse, there will be food, goodie bags, giveaways and a chance to mingle and learn (more on the guest speakers next week). We have also invited a few PR reps to join us for a while, so there is enough time to rub elbows (don’t forget the Campher cream) and swop business cards. But more than that, we’re just so flippen excited to see you guys man!

Got your ticket?
To secure your ECMeetUp ticket, use the bank details below to purchase. If you’re unable to purchase right now, you can RSVP to Luchae (that’s me, by the way) to hold one for you. Tickets cost R150 and all monies must be paid by May 25^th. There are only 70 goodie bags available you guys, so I’d say put this as a priority on your to do list, for sure!

Purchase by making payment to FNB 62712255365, and using your name and surname as reference

So as you may know, our last #ECMeetUp blogger gathering takes place next week Saturday and I’ll pretty much be aaacking from now until then. I’m just so gosh darn excited! Okay, for starters, if you haven’t purchased your ticket, you literally have a couple of hours to do so! Secondly, yes there will be mini meet goodie bags (I know you’re wondering, so allow me to be that person). Thirdly, our venue, The Boma is literally the most magical place on earth! And lastly, yes, our awesome speakers are ready to answer any and every single “but why don’t brands wana work with me huh?!” related question.

Talking about speakers, have I told you who they are yet? No?! Gasp! The sheer audacity of me to withhold this information from you! Apologies, my dear friends, here they are:

Gillian Pillay
Gillian is the Marketing Manager over at Mastertons Coffee and the owner of the newly launched The Beauty Store. Besides for managing all things marketing and PR, for the Bay’s most favorite coffee roastery, she basically runs her makeup store on the side and works hard to bring high quality brands to our shores. She has quite a bit of experience working in the PR and marketing industry and is going to share a few golden nuggets about relationship building.

Melissa de Klerk
Mel is the brains behind Fox & Owl Media – a studio focused on web design and digital marketing strategy. She focuses on building beautiful, state-of-the-art websites that propel business growth. Melissa believes that your online home is a business asset and the ultimate storefront. She loves learning about her clients’ businesses so that she can design bespoke solutions that best serve a business’ needs. She will be sharing more on how to make your site more appealing and professional looking, in a nutshell. From hosting to lay out, there is just SO much (on the tech side) that we all want to know about! If you have any questions please feel free to pop them on this post and we’ll get them to Melissa.

Reuann Smith
Our beloved Reu is the PR sweetheart behind Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism. NMBT is the destination marketing organization of the city, taking care of all the city’s Public Relations, communications and advertising needs. Reu has worked on countless influencer campaigns, in and around the city and believes in the value of the local influencer. She has a deep passion for our city and more so for the people of the Bay. We really can’t wait to hear what she has to share wrt working with brands. She’ll tackle the nitty gritty’s like what is expected of you when you agree to work on a campaign.

Excited? Me too! So there you have it peoples of the Bay! #ECMeetUp tickets cost R150 and can be purchased by using the bank deets in the banner below. Oh, and before I forget, allow me to just say: Aaaack!