Welcome to the 2013 WordCamp Miami site! We are excited to be bringing you more information about the event in the coming days and months, not to mention all the cool activities, speakers, and sponsors centered around the event.

However, we wanted to get one thing established right away and that would be the dates for the event. Originally – although this was not official – we had stated via social media (Twitter/Facebook) that WordCamp Miami 2013 would be held on Feb 23rd and 24th, 2013. This is no longer the case.

In a nutshell, WordCamp Miami 2013 has had some difficulty securing a venue for 2013. The week before Christmas we talked with the lovely and awesome Ai Miami International University of Art & Design who has agreed to be the venue location. Great news for WordCamp Miami after attempting to secure a venue for quite a bit of time. However, after some discussion with the WordCamp Miami Planning Committee, it was agreed upon that we could no longer meet the late February dates. Which was a shame, considering the month of February is packed with lots of exciting tech and startup conferences ( the excellant BarCamp Miami and SuperConf conferences for starters ) – this was the reason why we were aiming for those February dates. But here’s why we want to delay WordCamp Miami until after March:

• A better planned and organized conference. This goes without saying. We don’t think we can pull off a quality conference in two months. In the past we’ve done CLOSE to this but 2013 being the FOURTH WordCamp we feel like we should get even bigger and better. Last year was our first two day event, and we wanted another two day (with a possible unofficial third day) event this year. With our volunteer force (who all have full time jobs of course), that simply would have been extremely difficult.
• We wanted to give more time for potential speakers. More time means better quality sessions and better tuning things for our audience. We will be inviting guests that include core contributors to WordPress, among other special guests.
• We wanted to give more time for potential sponsors. Many sponsors take early 2013 as the time to make decisions as to what WordCamps and conferences they would like to sponsor. It would be demanding to ask potential sponsors to make a quick decision and potentially come down to Miami within that short of a time frame. Besides, a better, well-thought out experience will attract larger or additional smaller sponsors – all of which means we can offer lower ticket prices AND a better experience for all attendees. Everyone wins.
• Speaking of everyone winning – more time means being able to locate a potentially bigger and better location for our after-party. This is MIAMI and having a great party experience should be one of the goals, right? For example, wouldn’t it be great to have the after-party on a rooftop pool deck? 🙂
• We are planning (depending on budget) some potentially awesome things involving video and/or live streaming. A possible first for WordCamp Miami.
• Lunch BBQ. That’s all I need to say.

So as unfortunate it is that WordCamp Miami, which traditionally happens in February or early March, to be pushed a bit – we think it’s best for everyone involved. We are currently working with Ai Miami International University of Art & Design to confirm dates (they have been AWESOME so far) and once we can confirm again dates we will let you know. The past two weeks have been difficult for everyone communication-wise with the holidays.

Regardless, no matter what happens we want to bring you the WordCamp Miami experience you deserve.

If you feel you would like to become a sponsor (with some perks and discounts for those sponsors that come on board early), please contact us. We will be opening speaker submissions as well for those confident they could visit Miami in the month of April.

Please keep checking the WordCamp Miami site for details. Once dates are official, we will be officially added to the official WordCamp calendar on the WordCamp Central website.