Matayoshi-san currently manages the blog Last Day.jp, with record access numbers at 150 million PV a month. He has authored books such as “C言語すら知らなかった私がたった２か月でiPhone アプリをリリースするためにやったこと(What I did to release an iPhone app in 2 months even though I didn’t know C) ” and “Facebookコミュニティ成功の法則 (Principles of Facebook community success)”, and also runs a paid Facebook community business called “海外を旅しながら仕事をする力(The skill of working while traveling the world)”. Apart from his time as an author and lecturer, he works as a consultant and is a very popular blogger. With study abroad experience in America and England, he currently operates his office out of Okinawa, working back and forth between Japan and the world.
In retrospect, his personal illness was the main factor for the start of his blogging career. His condition made it difficult to work in a regular company which made him think about work that could be done while sleeping. It was then he dove into the world of the internet, studying Web design and development.
Matayoshi-san got his start into blogging by participating in off meetings with acquaintances he met through the internet. Though there were a lot of small events for bloggers, he wanted to contribute to the blogger community by creating a large event with staying power, which led him to create “Blogger’s Festival” four years ago. The connections he has made with fellow bloggers over the years who share the same purpose, even now volunteer their time to help with the event. Starting by asking his own friends and acquaintances to join as speakers and sponsors, he currently is now able to invite bloggers from a variety of genres, as well as Youtubers, from Japan and across the globe.
“Simply put, I want the blogger community to develop and improve. From professional bloggers to people who are just looking to start out, I want many different types of people to know about and participate in this event. However, in an effort create an event that provides richer content year on year, stimulating even the seasoned participant to find new discoveries in blogging, I invest time in speaker and content selection,” says Matayoshi-san.
Incidentally, about one week after Blogger’s Festival, I was surprised to learn that over 200 articles were posted by participants about this event.
As mentioned in our Blogger’s Festival Report, our perception of the blogger community was very different from what we imagined. The same went for Matayoshi-san, who regardless of his vast experience and knowledge, left me with a very gentle impression despite my ignorance, taking time to speak about the vast world of blogging in very understandable way. Above all, Matayoshi-san is always thinking on how to improve the quality and status of bloggers. It is clearly apparent his event’s success is rooted in his compassionate stance towards readers and surroundings.
Be sure to check out Rei Matayoshi-san’s blog:
Last Day.jp
http://www.lastday.jp/
