Hopin Networking and Blogger Bridge Instructions

***Please reach out to Tomiko Harvey (tomiko@blacktravelalliance.org) or Martinique Lewis (president@blacktravelalliance.org) if you have any questions***

1:1 Networking Meetings

All meetings will take place in the meeting platform at https://hopin.com/events/wavelength-3-0. BloggerBridge is only used to schedule your appointments, which hopefully you’ve already done or are doing. You may want to print your appointment times so you are ready.

The brands with whom you have appointments will invite you to the appointments, and the Hopin platform will show you a notification to that effect. Please plan on being on time, so it all goes smoothly.

You may also go to the Networking section and click the blue “Join” button to meet other attendees and talk for 5 minutes randomly.

Here’s a video our President, Martinique Lewis has put together to walk you through the Hopin platform.

Note that since this video was created, the panel on the right of the Hopin interface has changed slightly, so the “People” tab is now under the Event tab as shown here. The “People” tab is accessible from every section of Hopin, except the Stage.

Instructions For BloggerBridge

Blogger Bridge is the tool being used to sign up for 1:1 networking sessions for Wavelength 3.0. You may also use this tool to communicate with the brands.

Note: We will have additional information about how and where you should go for your 1:1 Networking sessions; stay tuned.

Pre-Scheduling Appointments

We will be using BloggerBridge as our networking platform to coordinate all appointments, which will open on Monday, November 14th. This is where you will be able to create a profile, research participating brands, and pre-schedule appointments. You will be able to request meetings with brands and they can request meetings with you, but the other party must accept the meeting request in order for it to be confirmed. Log into BloggerBridge here. 

Meeting slots will be available Friday, November 18th from 10 am-2 pm ET. Of course, you do not have to participate for the whole day. You will be able to block your calendar for the time slots when you are not available. Meeting requests close on Please add dates/times

How to Use BloggerBridge

STEP 1: Wait for us to set up your profile

• We will automatically import your registration into BloggerBridge, but it will take a few days after you register. Please be patient!
• It is not necessary to register for a BloggerBridge account; we will do that for you. If you register for a BloggerBridge account and use a different email address than the one you used when you signed up for Wavelength, you will not be able to use the platform. Contact us if this is the case, so we can assist you further.
• If you’re unsure which email you used to sign up for Wavelength, it’s the email where you received your confirmation from Hopin (Wavelength’s platform).

STEP 2: Sign in to your account

• You can access BloggerBridge for Virtual Meetings here: https://bta.bloggerbridge.com/
• To access your account you will need the email address that you used to sign up for Wavelength (this is also your USER NAME)
• If you have already used BloggerBridge at another event, your password will be the same. If you have never used BloggerBridge, click here to reset and create a new password.

If you do not receive the email with your password within 15 minutes, please email admin@bloggerbridge.com to request your password. 

STEP 3: Complete your profile

• Add your bio and link your social media accounts, including analytics, to showcase yourself and your brand to companies you may be meeting with. The more details you can provide on how you would like to work with brands or what specific type of brands you are interested in meeting with, the easier it will be to find the most relevant people to meet with. 
• We recognize BloggerBridge unfortunately is not well-equipped to showcase the work of journalists and freelance writers in particular, in addition to some other types of creators. If this is you, we highly recommend listing out the various outlets you write for in your bio! 
• You can edit your profile by selecting “Your Profile” > “Update Profile” from the top left menu bar, as seen below. 

STEP 4: Set up meetings for Virtual Meetings

• Navigate to the top left menu bar of icons where it says “Wavelength” (it will be the first icon). This will take you to your schedule page.
  • Set the time zone to your local time from the dropdown at the top. Please note, if you don’t see the time zone dropdown at the top of your schedule, all times are ET so please convert accordingly.

Block your calendar when you are not available and remember to schedule yourself a meal break! Click the green “Available” button for each time slot you are NOT available, and it will change to a red “Reserved” button. You can click this again at any time to undo it. Each meeting is 15 minutes with a 5-minute break in between each one.

STEP 5: Request meetings with brands

• You will be able to start requesting meetings with brands right away. However, keep in mind that they are also getting access to BloggerBridge at the same time so we recommend checking the list of participating brands periodically in case some people didn’t have a chance to update their profiles right away. 
• To request a meeting with a brand, select the “Book an Appointment” link from the dropdown and find the brands you would like to meet with. 
  

• You will then see this screen

• To request a 1-on-1 appointment with a company, click on the logo or the name of the company from the company’s profile. Then click “Invite”. You may also “Message” the brand.

If a brand has sent you an invitation, you will see the following screen when you click on the brand’s name or logo:

If you click on “Invitations Received (4)” from the dropdown you will see the list of brands who have requested to meet with you.

Once you select “Accept Invitation,” you will see a screen with the available times; click “Choose” to select a time that works for you. You will also see times that the brand is not available. Of course, if it doesn’t work, you can also choose “Decline Invitation.”

Once you’ve selected your appointment, the next screen will show the brand on your calendar